Beef Tips and Gravy is the kind of stick-to-your-ribs comfort food that turns a regular weeknight into something special! Tender chunks of beef simmer low and slow on the stovetop until they practically fall apart on your fork, all bathed in a rich, glossy brown gravy with deep, savory flavor.
Ellen’s Notes
This recipe holds such a special place in my heart because it’s the dinner I make when I want everyone gathered at the table for something cozy and filling.
The beef tips come out so tender they fall apart on your fork, and that brown gravy is so rich and savory you’ll want to spoon it over everything on the plate.
My daughters always ask for it when they’re home visiting, and I can never make a small batch because we all want leftovers! If you’ve never made beef tips and gravy from scratch, I promise this is the recipe to start with.
📌 Key Ingredient Notes
Beef Tips: For the most tender results, look for sirloin tips or tenderloin tips at the meat counter — these come from leaner, naturally more tender cuts. If you only see “beef stew meat” or pieces from a chuck roast, those will still work, they just need a longer simmer time to break down.
No-Sodium Beef Broth: Using no-sodium broth is key because the Worcestershire, bouillon, and gravy packets all bring their own salt. If you only have regular broth on hand, just cut back on any added salt and skip the bouillon to keep the seasoning in balance.
Beef Better Than Bouillon: This paste packs way more beef flavor than cubes do. Two beef bouillon cubes will work as a swap, but the Better Than Bouillon really takes the gravy up a notch. You’ll find it near the broths in most grocery stores.
Brown Gravy Packets: I know packets sound like a shortcut, but they’re absolutely the secret here! Look for reduced-sodium brown gravy mix to keep the dish from getting too salty. If you’d rather skip the packets, you can substitute 1/3 cup of cornstarch whisked with cold water — just know you’ll lose a little of that built-in seasoning.
How To Make Beef Tips and Gravy
See the printable recipe card for full ingredient list and directions below.
- Season the beef tips with salt and pepper.
- In a skillet, heat olive oil to medium-high heat. Sear the seasoned beef tips on both sides. Make sure to allow the skillet with oil to get hot before adding the meat.
- Reduce the heat to low, then add the onion and garlic. Continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until the onion has softened.
- Add 1 cup of the beef broth, Worcestershire sauce, and beef bouillon, stirring till fully combine. Cover loosely with a lid.
- Continue cooking the beef tips, stirring occasionally, for 1 to 2 hours. The longer the beef tips simmer, the more tender they become. You can add a little more beef broth, if needed.
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- Right before you are ready to serve, whisk to combine the gravy packets with the remaining 1 cup of low-sodium beef broth. Pour the gravy mixture into the skillet and stir to combine.
- Raise heat to medium and bring the gravy to a simmer, cooking until the gravy has thickened.
- Remove from heat and serve as desired over rice, mashed potatoes, or egg noodles.
Ellen’s Recipe Tips
Always start with room temperature beef. Cold beef hitting a hot skillet won’t sear properly — it steams instead of browns. Let your beef tips rest on the counter for about 30 minutes before cooking for the best crust and most tender results.
Don’t crowd the pan when searing. If your beef tips are packed too tightly, they’ll steam instead of brown. Sear them in two batches if needed — that little bit of extra effort makes a huge difference in flavor.
Resist the urge to rush the simmer. Beef tips need time to transform from chewy to fork-tender, and there’s no shortcut. Cranking up the heat will only make the meat tough, so keep things low and slow for at least an hour.
Layer your beef flavor. The combination of beef broth, Worcestershire, Better Than Bouillon, and brown gravy packets is what gives this dish such deep, savory flavor. Each one brings something a little different to the gravy. Don’t skip any if you can help it!
What To Serve With Beef Tips And Gravy
My favorite way to serve beef tips and gravy is over some homemade mashed potatoes! Rice or egg noodles are also great. You really just need something to help catch all the gravy.
This is such a hearty, heavy entree. When it comes to side dishes, opt for something light a simple veggie to help balance out the plate. Some of my go-to’s include roasted broccoli or roasted brussles sprouts.
FAQ – Recipe Help
The most common culprit is rushing the simmer. Beef tips need slow, gentle heat to break down their connective tissue and turn tender. If yours are still chewy after an hour, just keep cooking — add a splash of beef broth if needed, cover, and give them another 30 to 60 minutes.
Yes! Substitute 1/3 cup of cornstarch whisked with cold water in place of the packets. The flavor will be a little less seasoned, so taste the finished gravy and adjust with extra salt, pepper, or a dash more Worcestershire as needed.
The beef should be fork-tender, meaning a fork slides in easily and the meat pulls apart with very little pressure. If you have to saw at it with a knife, it needs more time. Taste a piece — it should practically melt in your mouth.
This recipe freezes beautifully. Transfer cooled leftovers to a freezer-safe container or zip-top bag (lay it flat for easy stacking) and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge before reheating for the best texture.
Beef Tips And Gravy
Ingredients
- 2 pounds beef tips, room temperature*
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 cups no-sodium beef broth, divided
- 3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1 ½ tablespoons beef better than bouillon, or 2 beef bouillon cubes
- 2 .87 oz reduced sodium brown gravy packets**
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Instructions
- Season beef tips with salt and pepper. Set aside.
- In a medium skillet, heat olive oil to medium-high heat. Sear seasoned beef tips on both sides.
- Reduce heat to low, then add the onion and garlic. Continue cooking, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes, until onion is tender.
- Add 1 cup beef broth, Worcestershire sauce and bouillon, stirring to combine. Cover loosely with lid.
- Continue cooking beef tips over low heat, stirring occasionally, for 1 to 2 hours, until fork tender. (The longer the beef tips simmer, the more tender they become. You can add a little more beef broth while cooking, if needed.)
- Right before you are ready to serve, whisk to combine the gravy packets with 1 cup of low-sodium beef broth. Pour gravy mixture into the skillet and stir to combine.
- Raise the heat to medium and bring the gravy to a simmer, cooking for about 2 to 4 minutes, until gravy has thickened.
- Taste your gravy to make sure it is well seasoned, then remove from heat and serve as desired (over rice, mashed potatoes or egg noodles).
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Notes
- Fridge: In an airtight container in the fridge, any leftovers you may have will stay fresh for up to 5 days. You can reheat your beef tips either in the microwave or back on the stovetop.
- Freezer: Want this recipe to stay fresh for even longer? Pop it into the freezer, where it’ll stay fresh for up to 3 months. Let it thaw in the fridge, before you reheat it, for best results.
Nutrition
More of the Best Beef Dinner Recipes
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- Easy crockpot steak and potatoes is a comforting classic that’s perfect for cold weather.
- French onion cube steak and gravy is smothered with caramelized onions and melted Gruyere cheese.
- Instant Pot pot roast is so unbelievably quick and easy!
This was a most delicious meal , I made it for my husband’s birthday, then he had the leftover the next night . So good!
Very good! I made it in my instant pot.
So glad you like it! We love an easy instant pot dinner.
I followed the recipe and it was very good but I think next time I’m going to also use low sodium Worcestershire and low sodium better than bouillon as it was still a bit salty with the broth and gravy packets being reduced sodium. I also think a splash of red wine would be a nice touch.
I would definitely suggest cutting back the worchestershire sauce to half of what the recipe calls for, it’s a very rich flavor, but just a bit much.,
Can this recipe be made in a crockpot? If yes, please provide instructions. Thank you.
Hi Brandy, here is a link to crockpot beef tips https://easydinnerideas.com/crockpot-beef-tips/
If you want to convert the beef tips and gravy recipe for a crockpot I would add everything in the crockpot, cut the beef broth back to 1 cup. Cook on low for 6-8 hours, when ready to serve if the gravy has gotten too thick add a little more beef broth. Or if the gravy needs to thicken up you can make a slurry with 1 tablespoon cornstarch and 1 tablespoon water add it to the crockpot stir and let thicken for 5 minutes before serving.
Or (skip the slurry) add a third gravy packet before serving if you want the gravy thicker.
YUM! These were so tender and the gravy had a ton of flavor! Served over rice, but next time will do mashed potatoes for sure.
Super easy! Love that it’s one pot. Added mushrooms to mine and served over mashed potato’s and corn. Husband loved it. I used unsalted beef broth due to the other comments and mine needed a little bit of salt so I added that at the end.
Super exc to make. I wondered if I left out Worcester sauce it would still work? What are your thoughts? Please let me know if you can help.
Hi Mary! Yes it will still work, Worcestershire sauce just helps to add a little more deeper flavor to the beef!
I’m going to use this recipe for a church meeting needing to serve 25. Do you think it would work increasing X4 and cooking in a nesco roaster or best to do in smaller batches and freezing? Looks wonderful!
Hi Mary! We are not familiar with cooking in a nesco roaster, but from what we see on google it looks similar to a large slow cooker but with higher heat options. In that case, you could definitely make these beef tips in it, but could also try our crockpot beef tips: https://easydinnerideas.com/crockpot-beef-tips/
I don’t know if my other comment came through, but I did make this the other day and it came out really salty but I think it was because I only had half the meat and I was supposed to cut the recipe in half and I had the meat in half. I had the onion in half. I had the garlic in half but then I forgot to put all the other ingredients in half and it came out very salty but I figured out that I believe it’s because I used half of the meat so I’m making more meat today and I’m gonna redo it with the leftover sauce. I think it will even it out because this taste very good. It just has a bite of salt, but that was my bad so we’re trying again. Thank you for the recipe.
Very yummy but mine came out a little salty …what did I do wrong ?could it be the gravy wasn’t low sodium
Hi Shana, we used no sodium beef broth and reduced sodium gravy packets. Next time make sure and grab the low sodium packets or try no sodium gravy packets you can always season with a little kosher salt.
Thank you for responding. I just saw my other comment. I’m trying to fix it today because I don’t wanna waste food. I’ll let you know and I was thinking it might be because of the low sodium. I just had the regular beef packet on hand. Thank you
Could I use one pack of Lipton onion soup mix in place of the corn starch?
Hi James! Lipton Onion Soup Mix does not thicken, the cornstarch is used to thicken the gravy. The onion soup mix will add more salt as well, so you would need to cut back on the salt in the rest of the recipe to balance it out. Hope this helps!
This was amazing. I cooked my beef tips for 3 hours and ate it over mashed potatoes.
I added some portabella mushrooms to the onion. A family hit.
I’ve always made Beef Tips and Gravy 40+ years. I was intrigued by this recipe and planned on making it for Christmas Day being it’s easy, it’s a favorite comfort food for everyone. I also made your Garlic Mashed Potatoes, along with lots of roasted veggies. This is probably the most delicious recipe I’ve ever made and will forever make this exact recipe. I’ve never really measured anything in my lifetime but I did stick to this recipe because I wanted to get it right. I also doubled it for 12, everyone LOVED IT! I cooked mushrooms on the side because not everyone likes mushrooms, it was so delicious all together. Thank you for sharing!
Love the recipe. I used the cornstarch method and turned out great. One question, I want to add mushrooms and not sure when I should add them.
So glad you liked it! Add the mushrooms right before you add the gravy. Mushrooms cook quickly so adding them when you are ready to make the gravy should be the perfect time.
I’m making your beef tips right now and the recipe it calls for beef better or beef cubs. I don’t have either of those. I do have plenty of beef broth. Should I use something in substitution or just have more beef broth
The beef bouillon adds extra beef flavor and salt, if you don’t have it, you can add a little more salt at the end, to taste!
Hello Ann, these beef stews are classics in a variety of european countries under different names : Boeuf Bourguinion in France, Vlaamse Carbonades in Belgium. A real taste addition in the sauce is adding either wine or dark beer and to thicken the sauce put slices of brown bread or ginger bread covered with mustard, and operate slowly, take your time
bon apetit
What cut of meat do you recommend?
Hi Laura! Here’s some info from the post that I think will help:
“Tenderloin beef tips will produce the most tender beef bites, but sirloin beef tips are a close second! Stew meat will come in third for how tender it will become. Stew meat is usually made from a rump roast or chuck roast, both of which are a tougher cut of meat. They will work in this recipe as well, but may need a little more time cooking until they are fork tender.”
Made this for Christmas Day as I wanted an easy no fuss recipe. The cost of beef is way high now so the appeal was also there for a dinner that was affordable. For about $20 I made this for four of us. It was one of the best Christmas dinners I ever made according to my adult children. I served it over Buttermilk Mash Potatoes and Sauteed spinach with garlic. Thank you Novice Chef!
Yay! So glad you all enjoyed Beef Tips and Gravy, it is one of my favorites too! Merry Christmas Denice we miss you
Made this recipe last night for supper. My husband loved it. We will certainly make this again soon.
Just made this for my husbands supper with some mashed potatoes and it was delicious.
I’m not sure if I did something wrong .. I’m 2 hours in and my steak is SWIMMING still off the 1 cup broth. Is this normal? Do I drain it?
Hi Steven, don’t drain it, you can make a slurry if you have to much liquid. To make a slurry mix equal parts cornstarch with water, stir and slowly pour into the beef tips and gravy.
2 tablespoons cornstarch and 2 tablespoons water add it into the pot, stir and wait a few minutes if you want the gravy thicker add a little more slurry until thickened to your liking.
This is THE BEST RECIPE EVER. We have made it 3 times in the last 2 weeks. Seriously a new family favorite. Thank you!!
This looks delicious. Can i cut up a chuck roast for this? TIA
Yes! It should work just fine!
There definitely has to be a error in this recipe! I was so excited to make this for the first time and was sooo disappointed. We could not eat it! What a waste of time and money! The salt intake for this dish is well over 7000, that is 3 days worth of you average salt intake in one serving. My husband did the math. You need to remove this recipe before you kill someone!! Extremely disappointed!
This recipe serves 6 people, one person does not eat the entire dish. If you are concerned with the amount of sodium in the recipe, you can use beef broth with no salt added, use less bouillon, swap the gravy packets for cornstarch (as we directed in the recipe post) and more. This is how we make this recipe, but no one is forcing you to make it.
So many of these ingredients come in a low-sodium form. Don’t add any table salt. Give this recipe another try. I made this for an evening football party and got rave reviews.
Recipes are a base for you to follow. Anyone that cooks would tweak the recipe according to their own tastes. There is no excuse to make rude comments On how someone else makes it. Common courtesy would tell you to simply move on. Don’t be mean! God Bless and have a great day.
We made this last night and it was the BEST! My mom used to make beef tips, she’s gone now, but this reminded me of her recipe growing up so much. I really loved it and so did my husband.
Isn’t 2 TBLS of better than bouillon equal to 6 cubes of bouillon?
Hi Vincent! No, 6 cubes would be too much. I would use 2 cubes of bouillon. 🙂 Hope you enjoy it!
If 6 cubes of bouillon = 2 TBS of Better than Bouillon and you say 6 cubes is to much. Why do your recipe still have people using the 2 TBS of Better than Bouillon in this recipe. You need to change the recipe. People are wasting their time and money on this!
No one is wasting their money. This is a very popular recipe on our site and people really enjoy it. From your multiple comments, it’s obviously not for you, and that’s ok. I recommend you exit out and go find a recipe you prefer!
Also, for the record, better than bouillon and bouillon cubes act very differently in recipes. While they have a calculator on their website for converting bouillon cubes to better than bouillon, it’s for making broth. Not for making Beef Tips and Gravy.
Yet you wasted even more time making comments. If you don’t like it, don’t make it and move on.
Will this work in the slow cooker instead of simmering for 2 hrs.? Sounds great
We have a crockpot version that works great in the crockpot! However, if you want to make this exact version, yes, you could move it over the to crockpot to let it cook longer.
Here is our crockpot version: https://easydinnerideas.com/crockpot-beef-tips/
Made it last night. Smelled amazing, but we found it incredibly salty. My husband has blood pressure issues, so I use low to no sodium everything. I didn’t season the meat with salt, I used italian seasoning instead and pepper.The only thing that I can think of was the boullion. I will try this again, and omit the boullion and just use the low sodium beef broth, low sodium Worcester and low sodium gravy packets.
I think you can use the corn starch too instead of the salty gravy mixes and make your own gravy with lower sodium beef broth instead of the gravy mixes .or use 1 gravy mix pack and corn starch slurry to substitute for the other one. Use lower sodium Mrs. Dash seasoning too instead of the bouillon.
Can you do this in the crock pot?
Yes! We have a crockpot version! Here it is: https://easydinnerideas.com/crockpot-beef-tips/