Slow-Cooker Barbecued Beef Tips

Why this recipe works:

Browning our Slow-Cooker Barbecued Beef Tips in a skillet not only improved the flavor and texture of the beef, but also created the foundation for a concentrated sauce that would become a main component of the dish. To get a grilled flavor, we needed to keep the meat away from the juices in… read more

Serves 6 to 8

Flap meat is sold in different configurations: as whole steaks, strips, and pieces. For this recipe, buy a whole steak and cut it into 2-inch pieces yourself. You'll need a metal steamer basket and five 10-inch skewers.

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons soy sauce
• 3 tablespoons tomato paste
• 3 tablespoons dark brown sugar
• Salt and pepper
• 3 1/2 pounds beef flap meat, cut into 2-inch pieces
• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 onion, chopped fine
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 cup tomato sauce
• 1 cup ketchup
• 2 teaspoons cider vinegar
• 1 teaspoon hot sauce

Instructions

1. 1. Combine soy, tomato paste, brown sugar, and ½ teaspoon pepper in 13 by 9-inch baking dish. Pat steak dry with paper towels and thread onto skewers.
   
   2. Heat 2 teaspoons oil in large skillet over medium-high heat until just smoking. Brown 3 skewers on all sides, about 5 minutes. Transfer to baking dish with soy mixture and turn to coat. Repeat with additional 2 teaspoons oil and remaining skewers.
   
   3. Add onion, remaining oil, and ½ teaspoon salt to now-empty skillet and cook over medium heat until onions are browned, 6 to 8 minutes. Stir in garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add tomato sauce and ½ cup ketchup and cook, scraping up any browned bits, until very thick, 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer mixture to slow cooker.
   
   4. Set inverted metal steamer basket in slow cooker. Following photo 3, place skewers on steamer basket, scraping soy mixture over meat. Cover and cook on low until meat is tender, 5 to 6 hours (or cook on high 4 to 5 hours).
   
   5. Transfer skewers to serving dish, slide steak off skewers, and tent with foil. Pour juices into bowl, let settle, then skim fat. Transfer 2½ cups defatted juices and remaining ketchup to medium saucepan and bring to boil. Simmer over medium heat until reduced to 1½ cups, about 10 minutes. Stir in vinegar and hot sauce. Season with salt and pepper. Pour 1 cup sauce over steak tips. Serve, passing remaining sauce at table. (Steak tips can be refrigerated in airtight container for 2 days.)
   

Getting Barbecue Flavor from the Slow Cooker. Really.

To simulate the flavor of grilled steak tips in the slow cooker, you have to compensate for the juices released form the meat.

1. SEAR Brown the skewered steak tips in a skillet to intensify the flavor of both the meat and the sauce.

2. COAT Once the meat is browned, coat it with a potent wet rub.

3. ELEVATE Lay the skewers on an inverted steamer basket to keep them out of the liquid.