Noodle & Beef Skillet

This is a mid-century American one-skillet supper that still holds up as honest weeknight cooking. Ground beef browns with onion, green pepper, and mushrooms, then everything simmers in a thyme-spiked beef gravy before cooked flat noodles get folded in at the end.

The gravy is built the old-fashioned way, with a flour-and-water slurry whisked into the boiling stock. It’s less refined than a true roux but faster, and it produces a silkier final sauce than just dumping dry flour into the pan. Stirring the slurry in only when the pot is at a full boil is what prevents lumps.

Cooking the noodles separately and adding them at the end keeps them from overcooking into mush. The hot gravy coats them without turning everything gluey.

Kitchen Tips

• Brown the beef in a hot pan without stirring for the first minute. That’s how you get fond (the brown bits) for the gravy.
• Cover the mushrooms for the first 5 minutes of sauteing to help them release moisture. Then uncover to brown.
• Use wide egg noodles or pappardelle. Thin noodles get lost in the hearty sauce.
• Salt carefully. Beef bouillon or stock is often already quite salty.

Variations

• Stir in a splash of Worcestershire or soy sauce for a deeper umami hit.
• Swap ground beef for ground turkey or venison for a leaner version.
• Finish with a dollop of sour cream just before serving for a stroganoff-style twist.