A church friend wrote this on a scrap of paper in 1976. Just four ingredients, but the pan is scraped clean every time I make it for a late summer supper.

This Oven Baked 4-Ingredient Beef Pendleton features tender beef stew meat baked low and slow in a velvety gravy made from cream of mushroom soup, dry onion soup, and beef broth. Covered tightly and baked to fork-tender perfection, it is an easy weeknight meal that pairs seamlessly over warm mashed potatoes, egg noodles, or rice.

Ingredients:

Step-By-Step Directions:

1. Preheat and prep: Preheat your oven to 325°F (165°C) and lightly grease a 9×13-inch glass casserole dish.

2. Arrange beef: Spread the raw beef stew meat in an even layer across the bottom of the prepared dish.

3. Mix gravy: In a medium bowl, stir together the dry onion soup mix, condensed cream of mushroom soup, and beef broth until smooth and combined.

4. Coat beef: Pour the gravy mixture evenly over the beef in the casserole dish, ensuring all pieces are fully coated.

5. Bake covered: Cover the dish tightly with aluminum foil and bake for 2 to 2 1/2 hours, until the beef is fork-tender. Uncover during the last 20 minutes of baking if you prefer extra browning around the edges.

6. Rest and serve: Allow the casserole to rest for 10 minutes before serving warm over mashed potatoes, egg noodles, or rice.