Serves: 6
Ingredients
- 1.5 lbs (24 oz / 680 g) sirloin steak tips, trimmed of all visible fat and cut into 1.5-inch chunks
- 1 tbsp (15 ml) Soy Sauce
- 1 tsp (5 ml) palm sugar
- Sea salt and pepper
- 4 tsp (20 ml) coconut oil, divided
- 1 lb (16 oz / 454 g) white mushrooms, trimmed and sliced thin
- 1 onion, halved and sliced thin or diced
- 0.25 oz (7 g) dried porcini mushrooms, rinsed and minced
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 0.5 tsp (2.5 ml) minced fresh thyme (or 0.125 tsp (0.6 ml) dried thyme)
- 4 tsp (20 ml) tapioca or arrowroot flour
- 1.75 cups (420 ml) Beef Broth or Stock
- 1 tbsp (15 ml) minced fresh parsley
Preparation
- In a bowl, combine the steak tips, 1 tbsp (15 ml) Soy Sauce, 1 tsp (5 ml) palm sugar, and 0.125 tsp (0.6 ml) pepper. Let the mixture marinate for 30 to 60 minutes.
- Heat 2 tsp (10 ml) of coconut oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until just smoking. Add the marinated beef and cook until well browned on all sides, approximately 4 to 6 minutes. Transfer the browned beef to a plate.
- Add the remaining 2 tsp (10 ml) coconut oil, the white mushrooms, onion, porcini mushrooms, and 0.125 tsp (0.6 ml) sea salt to the fat left in the skillet. Cover the skillet and cook over medium-low heat until the vegetables are softened, about 8 to 10 minutes.
- Uncover the skillet, increase the heat to medium-high, and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are well browned, about 8 to 12 minutes.
- Stir in the minced garlic and thyme and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in the 4 tsp (20 ml) of tapioca or arrowroot flour and cook for 1 minute.
- Gradually stir in the 1.75 cups (420 ml) of beef broth, making sure to scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the skillet. Bring the gravy to a simmer.
- Add the browned beef and any accumulated juices back into the skillet. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer gently until the meat registers an internal temperature of 130°F (54°C) to 135°F (for medium, 57°C), about 3 to 5 minutes.
- Season with additional sea salt and pepper to taste, sprinkle with 1 tbsp (15 ml) fresh parsley, and serve immediately.
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Steak tips with mushroom-onion gravy is comfort food with a skillet-to-plate time you can live with. Marinated sirloin tips brown fast and finish in a gravy built on white mushrooms, dried porcini and beef broth. Hearty, savory, and deeply mushroomy.
Pro Tips
- Marinate the steak tips 30-60 minutes in soy sauce and palm sugar — the marinade is small but it's what makes the browning so flavorful.
- Give the mushrooms, onion and porcini two cooking stages: covered 8-10 minutes to soften, then uncovered on medium-high 8-12 minutes until well browned. Browning is the gravy.
- Stir the tapioca flour into the vegetables and cook it a full minute before the broth goes in, then scrape up every browned bit as it pours.
- Return the beef with its accumulated juices and simmer only 3-5 minutes to 130-135°F — medium keeps these tips tender.
- Finish with the minced parsley and serve immediately; this gravy waits for no one.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are steak tips?
Tender chunks cut from the sirloin tip — quick-cooking and beefy. Trimmed and cut into 1½-inch pieces, they brown fast and stay juicy.
Why add dried porcini mushrooms?
A quarter ounce of minced porcini deepens the gravy's mushroom flavor dramatically — the background note that makes the sauce taste slow-cooked.
Why brown the beef first and add it back later?
It builds crust and flavor in the pan, then finishes gently in the gravy. Cooked straight through in the sauce, the tips would go gray and tough.
How spicy or salty is the gravy?
Neither — it's savory and rich, seasoned by the soy-marinated beef and the browned vegetables. Adjust salt and pepper at the very end.
Recipe Card
Ingredients
Method
- In a bowl, combine the steak tips, 1 tbsp Soy Sauce, 1 tsp palm sugar, and 0.125 tsp pepper.
- Let the mixture marinate for 30 to 60 minutes.
- Heat 2 tsp of coconut oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until just smoking.
- Add the marinated beef and cook until well browned on all sides, approximately 4 to 6 minutes.
- Transfer the browned beef to a plate.
- Add the remaining 2 tsp coconut oil, the white mushrooms, onion, porcini mushrooms, and 0.125 tsp sea salt to the fat left in the skillet.
- Cover the skillet and cook over medium-low heat until the vegetables are softened, about 8 to 10 minutes.
- Uncover the skillet, increase the heat to medium-high, and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are well browned, about 8 to 12 minutes.
- Stir in the minced garlic and thyme and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
- Stir in the 4 tsp of tapioca or arrowroot flour and cook for 1 minute.
- Gradually stir in the 1.75 cups of beef broth, making sure to scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the skillet.
- Bring the gravy to a simmer.
- Add the browned beef and any accumulated juices back into the skillet.
- Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer gently until the meat registers an internal temperature of 130°F to 135°F (for medium), about 3 to 5 minutes.
- Season with additional sea salt and pepper to taste, sprinkle with 1 tbsp fresh parsley, and serve immediately.
