Creamed Chipped Beef and Toast
Creamed chipped beef and Toast or S.O.S. is a recipe originating in our nation’s military. It became popular outside the military as those who had served craved the dish once home and considered a comfort food by many.
Although not all former servicemen remembered it with fondness considering how much they had to eat the very economical meal. Those original recipe variations could have been as much as 3 times a day for those away on ships having to ration food.
Officially called creamed chipped beef, it is also more commonly referred to as S.O.S. (excuse the language…shit on a shingle) and remains a popular dish today.
This popular military dish of sos gravy may have been prepared differently depending on which branch of the military it was being served. The navy found the dried beef essential because a canned meat was shelf stable.
The army cooks might used ground beef instead mixed with the creamy white gravy since they had easier access to fresh supplies.
There are some who also consider sausage gravy to be called creamed chipped beef. Anyways, from mess halls to home cooks, let’s talk about how to make the best creamed chipped beef.
How to make Chipped Beef
What is creamed chipped beef made of? Here’s what you’ll need:
- 4 tablespoons of Butter (half a stick)
- 1/3 cup of Flour (all purpose flour)
- 3 cups of Whole Milk
- Cracked Black Pepper, to taste
- Dried Beef, sliced
- Toasted Texas Toast Bread Slices ( regular white bread slices or biscuits or mashed potatoes)
I get a lot of questions asking if you can use Buddig beef (like you get in the refrigerated deli section) and of course the answer is yes, if that is what you want to use.
I like to use the class dried beef that comes in the little glass jar that you find in the canned meats section of your local grocery store.
Optional ingredients from comments that I’ve received that you might like: mushrooms, peas, a dash of Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne pepper, or whatever you might like to add for an easy meal.
Favorite Comfort Foods
Chipped Beef
The dried beef slices are small rounds before chopping into smaller pieces. Some folks like to soak the slices in warm water prior to chopping to remove some of the excess salt.
Personally, I do not soak the beef and think it adds the required salt needed for the creamy white gravy so no additional salt is need in the recipe.
If you decide to soak it, use a paper towel to blot dry before slicing.
Creamy Beef Gravy
Give the dried beef a rough chop into bite sized small pieces or thin slices and set aside until needed for the cream sauce.
Dried Beef Gravy
SOS Gravy
Above is one of the original photos when I first published this post. I decided to give it a makeover and had a new photoshoot to get better pictures to share in this recipe that is so loved by many.
Creamed Chipped Beef with Dried Beef
Where do you buy dried beef? Dried beef can typically be found at your local grocery store in small glass jars where you find other canned meats.
Let’s make a batch of Creamed Chipped Beef & Toast – S.O.S.
Homemade Creamed Chipped Beef & Toast Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons Butter
- 1/3 cup All Purpose Flour
- 3 cups Whole Milk
- Cracked Black Pepper to taste
- 4.5 ounce Dried Beef sliced
- Toasted Texas Toast Bread Slices
Instructions
- Heat a skillet over medium heat. Add the butter.
- When the butter is melted and begins to bubble add the flour and mix to combine.
- Simmer the roux for 2-3 minutes to cook away the raw flour taste.
- Next, add the milk and stir or whisk to combine.
- Add cracked black pepper and the chipped beef to the white sauce and simmer 3-5 minutes, stirring constantly, until thickened.
- Serve over toasted bread (shingles) , biscuits, or hashbrowns.
Recommended Products
Nutrition
Q & A with Tips for making Creamed Chipped Beef and Toast
What to serve with creamed chipped beef and toast? The creamed chipped beef is usually served on toasted bread as a meal. You could also serve it along with fresh fruit, fruit salad, bacon, sausage, or eggs prepared to your liking.
How long does creamed chipped beef last in the refrigerator? Up to 4 days or you can freeze the meat gravy to re-heat another time.
Why is dried beef so expensive? I’m not really sure but I’ve heard from many that the cost is much higher than it used to be. I would think that might have something to do with the way that it is cured. The cost of dried beef is also why some folks opt for using hamburger, which is cheaper, and humbly nicknamed “poor man’s chipped beef”.
Be sure to serve the creamed chipped beef while it is hot and delicious. You can still find this old timey meal at favorite breakfasts places in South Carolina beach towns. This has always been one of the best recipes to fill hungry tummies on a tight grocery budget.
Other variations that have been shared with me for making chipped beef gravy:
- Some use cream of mushroom rather than making a white sauce from scratch
- Other meats that folks use also include chopped bologna, ground poultry (chicken or turkey), venison and Vienna sausages.
Check out the Latest Recipes
- Easy Blackened Mahi Mahi: Quick, Flavorful & Oven-Finished
- Easy Broccoli Slaw Recipe with Ramen: A Southern Potluck Favorite
- Fried Cabbage and Noodles Recipe with Bacon
- Country-Style Stewed Pork Meat and Rice Recipe
- Easy Cheesy Loose Meat Sliders Recipe
Popular Recipes on the Blog
- Simple Old Fashioned Bologna Salad Recipe
- Homemade Country White Gravy Recipe
- Easy Baked Cubed Beef Steaks
- Classic Southern Meatloaf Recipe
- Traditional Southern Fried Chicken Recipe
- Southern Purple Hull Peas
- Sausage Egg and Cheese Breakfast Casserole
- Julia’s Southern Hot Dog Chili Sauce
Thank you so much for stopping by! I am so happy that you did. I hope that you make a batch of this nostalgic creamy beef gravy soon to enjoy as a delicious meal. It was one of my late mother in laws favorite meals for an easy supper.
Be sure to subscribe to my email list while you are here so that you never miss the latest recipes and news here on the blog. I send out a weekly newsletter to keep you up to date.
Until next time, Friend, love and happy cooking!
About Julia
Hey Y’all! I’m Julia, the cook and writer behind the recipes here at Julia’s Simply Southern. I began my website so that I could share easy to follow recipes that anyone can use to put a home cooked meal on the dinner table. Thanks so much for stopping by!
Follow me on Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest | YouTube
I have been making this economical dish for over 50 years. I have tweaked it constantly. My current version includes sauteed mushrooms, slivered roasted red peppers, minced garlic and onion, worcestershire sauce, and a dash of cayenne. I serve this dish over cooked frozen mixed veggies or corn and peas to make it more nutritious. In other words, this basic recipe can be dolled up to be absolutely delicious!
Absolutely Loufa! Sounds delicious. You can do so much with a basic white sauce. Thanks for stopping by 🙂
Sounds outstanding, but what I need help with is where can I find the beef? Is it something I need to cure myself or can I procure it in a grocery store?
Check your local meat markets! I work at one and we sell it..i got lucky?
buddig is the only brand I like. The others have been way to salty or weirdly flavored. (no I can’t explain weirdly flavored).
Nadine,
I agree that the dried beef is salty, that’s why I don’t add any more salt to the recipe. That being said…my husband requires more salt than most so I’m accustomed to it. HaHa, no need to explain weird…I understand completely. Everyone’s taste buds are different. I’m one of those folks who think cilantro tastes like soap. Thank you for stopping by and I hope to see you again soon.
Julia
What aisle would I find dried beef in? TIA
You’ll find it in the area where you find canned meats such as tuna and chicken. It comes in little glass jars.
That's Correct, Jim. You can find it, usually in a glass jar, located where you would find canned meats – such as tuna, corned beef etc.
My Mother always used Budding Corned Beef… instead of the dried beef. Yummy!
YOU CAN PURCHASE IN GROCERY IN CANNED MEAT AISLE USUALLY IN A JAR
Looks like Buddig pkg meat (Beef).. would that work or not?
Too much salt…
I always Slice it up, put it in a little bowl of water to soak some of the salt out!! Drain it an proceed with making the sauce.
I ALWAYS USE BUDDING CORNED BEEF. MAKE SURE YOU SLICE IT UP AND MAKE STRIPS. IT MAKES IT EASIER TO EAT
Buddig is in lunchmeat area/refridge area…also good w/ ground meat beef etc
Canned? Ugh. Go to a good butcher.
No Doris budding meet just won't taste the same.
No Doris budding meet just won't taste the same.
We always use budding and wonder flour
My Dad always made this but used ground beef! Brown the meat and add it to your white sauce!
You can sub. Sliced pepper turkey breast and add mushrooms, diced onions and cracked hot red pepper. Yummy
I don't know where u live, but I use the dried beef in the lunchmeat & cheese isle
Best dried beef I have ever had is when I purchase at a Dutch market or Amish market! Tastes so much better than that stuff in grocery store and you get way more for your money. Not as salty either.
Buddig beef has a slightly different taste. Way more economical than true dried beef.
Jennifer,We always used Buddig meats. Sometimes regular beef others it was corned beef. If you just simmer the whole mixture a little while longer it really absorbs the meat flavor. That's how my Mom did it.
Jennifer,We always used Buddig meats. Sometimes regular beef others it was corned beef. If you just simmer the whole mixture a little while longer it really absorbs the meat flavor. That's how my Mom did it.
When you buy the chipped beef, cut it in strips, soak in Very hot water for a minute or so. This takes out the salty taste. Also a tip given to me by a a Bistro owner years ago is to use a couple of heaping tbsp of cream of mushroom soup in the sauce.
I GENERALLY USE THE DELI SECTION'S VERSION OF THE DRIED BEEF (ESSKAY/ORANGE PACKAGE!), I AM ALSO KNOWN TO USE SHARP CHEDDAR CHEESE TO PUNCH UP THE FLAVOR.
Here in Philly, the supermarkets will slice it fresh for you! Make sure they "Chip" it! A pound will be enormous, but divide it up in small amounts and then use what you need each time out of the freezer! Dash of cayenne!
Buddig is the very best to use, should be in the refrigerated /meats , always at the meat dept. just ask anyone in the Meat dept.. I use a lot of different spices, and don't forget the pepper and garlic! I have tried the dried beef in a jar, it had a horrible salty taste and smell. Consider ourselves to be lucky,my late husband was a WWII Navy man, they used to get this every day rain or shine, standing on deck in the rain,he used to say,"You have never tasted S.O.S. with rain in it, quite q delicacy!"
I use the Buddig, one can of mushroom soup and half soup can of milk.
I've had it using the dried beef, also had it using hamburger, and another alternate…bologna. Yeah, add that old fried bologna flavor in.. yummy
I grew up on this. We always called it "dried beef" gravy and put it over toasted white bread. My Mom ALWAYS used dried beef NOT sliced Budding. I don't think budding has the same taste and real dried beef. Just my opinion
I have been making it for 50 years… and recently switched over to tearing the chipped beef up and simmering it in the milk, prior to adding it to the rue. It really makes it nice and creamy and distributes the salt. Of course, when I make it, I make about quaduple this so there are leftovers.
I put frozen peas in it. This is the meat I put in it also, cheaper too.
Buddig pkg. meats beef
@Lucinda Head, not canned but in a glass jar….not something you can get from a butcher
@Julia’s Simply Southern, I’m a South Texas girl through & through. Dad always taught us that this meal is call “SOS” from the Navy. Mom always thought we had to have veggies every meal, so she fixed a big salad to go with ours. I think I’ really going to like this site. Thx!
This takes me right on back to my childhood. What a great recipe!! Thanks for sharing with us over at Weekend Potluck.
You're welcome
I buy it in the lunchmeat & cheese isle. Dried beef by eskay
My parents made this using bologna. Diced and fried. Then added to white sauce. My dad was a cook in the Army.
Love this old school throwback!! Thanks so much for sharing it with us all at Weekend Potluck, Julia!!
My pleasure, Mary! Have a great weekend.
When I was growing up and careful with pennies my mother also made creamed hard boiled eggs over toast. Does anybody have a recipe or heard of it??
You can use this same recipe – instead of the dried beef – just pour the sauce over sliced boiled eggs lined on toast.
Yes I make this for my mom all the time, we call it creamed eggs, she also has me add canned peas. She also likes it on toast
I believe the dish you are describing is called Eggs Goldenrod. The white part of the hard boiled egg is chopped in a coarse chop, stirred in the white sauce, served over toast or biscuits and topped with the yolk of the hard boiled egg, crumbled over the top. I have found the recipe in an old Betty Crocker cookbook.
creamed eggs on toast! My mom made this for us on cold winter days when I was a kid. Geez, a long time ago! But I still make it to this day for myself.
Loved creamed eggs….also had creamed cod fish….has anyone heard of that
I haven't seen it with cod Mique but makes sense since some people use tuna
It is a New England dish called Creamed Fin&Haddie. Use salted Cod with a white sauce and hard boiled eggs.
OH Yes I remember that dish so well Mom made it often.
It’s a classic 🙂
Eggs Goldenrod is the egg version….used to mke it sll the time…learned over 50 yewrs ago when I was in 4=H. It was in their cookbook, but it essentially SOS with Eggs added after the sauce is cooked.
There is a creamed ham and eggs over toast…it's pretty good. Same as yours but with ham.in the Betty crocker cook books.
x-wife used to do creamed tuna also over toast…am betting cream of mushroom was involved
@Anonymous, My mother use to make this both ways. With chipped beef = SOS & with HB eggs = it was called eggs goldenrod. Thanks for the memories.
@Mique, I bought a pound of salted cod, just this week, to make creamed cod fish. Growing up we ate it over baked potatoes.
@blbtravel, When I was a young wife, my recipe book called it Eggs Goldenrod. Made same way as this recipe …replace meat with chopped hard boiled egggs. We enjoyed it and was good for a tight budget.
I’ve heard of that dish, but it was called creamed eggs and toast. I think the name Eggs Goldenrod sounds a bit nicer. Thanks for sharing.
~Julia
To get the most flavor from your beef – before adding your flour, saute the beef in the butter until it starts to frizzle, then add your flour and other ingredients.
You get a lot better flavor with this method.
That's the way I've ways made mine. Melt the butter along with the meat, then stir in the flour. Add the milk and stir until smooth and thick. Serve on white toast. We always had whole kernel corn and boiled, buttered potatoes with fresh parsley. Very good meal, and inexpensive meal.
That is exactly how my mother made it and I do the same. I think it gives it better flavor. And I always us Kraus dried beef, found in the refrigerator section of our store near the bacon and sausage.
I’ve never noticed dried beef in the refrigerated section…I’m gonna have to check that out now. Thank you. I appreciate you stopping by, have a great week!
I agree. Adding it uncooked, you miss a lot of the flavor.