Ingredients
2 pounds lean ground beef
2 (0.87-ounce) packets brown gravy mix (about 3 tablespoons each)
3 cups low-sodium beef broth
12 ounces wide egg noodles, uncooked
Directions
Place the raw ground beef in the bottom of a 5- to 6-quart slow cooker. Gently break it up with your hands or a spoon into large chunks, but do not brown it first.
Sprinkle the brown gravy mix evenly over the surface of the raw ground beef, making sure the powder coats as much of the meat as possible. This step helps the seasoning cling to the beef and thickens the cooking liquid into a rich gravy.
Pour the beef broth evenly over the seasoned ground beef. Do not stir; leaving the layers as they are helps the meat steam and gently cook in the seasoned liquid.
Cover the slow cooker with the lid and cook on LOW for 4 to 5 hours, or on HIGH for 2 to 3 hours, until the ground beef is fully cooked and can be easily broken apart with a spoon.
Once the beef is cooked, use a wooden spoon or spatula to break it into small crumbles right in the slow cooker. Stir well so the beef, gravy mix, and broth combine into a smooth, meaty gravy. If there is excess fat on top, you can skim some off with a spoon at this point.
Add the uncooked egg noodles directly into the slow cooker, pressing them down gently so they are mostly submerged in the hot gravy mixture. Stir to distribute the noodles as evenly as possible.
Cover again and cook on HIGH for 20 to 30 minutes, stirring once or twice, until the noodles are tender but not mushy and the gravy has thickened and clings to the beef and pasta.
Taste and adjust seasoning if needed with a pinch of salt and black pepper, then serve the beef gravy noodles hot straight from the slow cooker.