Thursdays Are For Cooking… again!

Enough with the hot weather already!  I want to get back to my frying pan and griddle and Dutch oven, for Pete’s sake. And the first order of the day is — well, something that is always welcome any time of year, but especially at holidays and other celebrations, and maybe on Sunday dinner.

These folks have put all of it together at one go. And you’d think that making gravy might be easy, but if you have too much of one ingredient, or not enough of another, it does matter in how it turns out.

They don’t mention sausage gravy, but I’ve found that the better brands are made up of meat that is quite lean and does not produce enough pan drippings to make a good paste (roux) for the gravy, so you might want to save bacon drippings for the sausage gravy – as long as it’s good bacon.

It is gravy making the easy way.

AUTHOR: Adam and Joanne Gallagher

https://www.inspiredtaste.net/36231/easy-gravy-recipe/

Quick and Easy Gravy From Scratch

PREP: 5 mins

COOK: 5 mins

TOTAL: 10 mins

Homemade gravy is quick and easy. If you’ve roasted chicken, turkey or beef, use the drippings left in the roasting pan. They make the gravy extra flavorful and seasoned. You can make gravy without drippings and use stock or broth in it’s place. Store-bought stock is usually under seasoned. Take care when seasoning with salt and pepper towards the end of the recipe. Finally, for more flavor, whisk in mushroom powder. This is optional, but adds a deep savory flavor.   

Makes about 3 cups

YOU WILL NEED

1/4 cup unsalted butter

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

3 cups warm stock (poultry, beef or vegetable stock) or use pan drippings, see note below

1/2 teaspoon mushroom powder, optional

1/2 tablespoon chopped fresh herbs or 1/2 teaspoon dried herbs (try sage, thyme or rosemary)

2 to 3 tablespoons half and half or cream, optional (This is if you’re making a cream gravy instead of the plain old pan drippings gravy.)

Sea salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS TO MAKE GRAVY:

In a wide skillet with sides, melt butter over medium heat. When melted and sizzling, whisk in the flour. Whisk until the flour and butter turn into a smooth paste and look medium blonde in color; about 1 minute. It smells toasty, like browned butter.

Pour in stock and whisk until smooth. Bring the gravy to a low simmer. As it simmers, it thickens and becomes glossy.

Whisk in the herbs and mushroom powder then cook at a low simmer for a minute or two. Remove from the heat then stir in half and half or cream (optional).

Taste for seasoning and adjust with salt and black pepper (we like a generous amount of pepper).

TIPS FOR USING PAN DRIPPINGS:

Substitute some or all the butter with fat left in the pan from roasting. If there are juices left in the pan, strain them then swap all or some of the stock for the pan juices. Pan drippings and juices will be well seasoned compared to the stock. When seasoning, taste the gravy first then adjust with more salt and/or pepper. If you used a stove-top safe pan such as a Dutch oven or stainless steel pan for roasting, there is no need for the skillet. Make the gravy directly in the roasting pan.

ADAM AND JOANNE’S TIPS:

Make ahead: Cool the gravy then store in an airtight dish. Refrigerate up to 5 days. When ready to serve, reheat the gravy over low heat. If you have pan drippings pour some of them into the gravy before serving.

Make onion gravy: To add even more flavor and sweetness, chop 1/2 an onion then cook in the butter until very soft and translucent (10 to 15 minutes). When the onion is ready, whisk in the flour and follow the recipe as stated above.

More flavor: Depending on the stock used, you may find you need to add more flavor. A dash of Worcestershire sauce, fish sauce and even soy sauce can help deepen the flavor of sauces.

For vegan/plant-based gravy, use vegan butter or follow our method for gluten-free gravy shared above in the article (made with cornstarch starch).

Nutrition facts: The nutrition facts provided below are estimates. We have used the USDA database to calculate approximate values.

If you make this recipe, snap a photo and hashtag it #inspiredtaste — We love to see your creations on Instagram and Facebook! Find us: @inspiredtaste

NUTRITION PER SERVING: Serving Size About 1/3 cup / Calories 76 / Protein 2 g / Carbohydrate 4 g / Dietary Fiber 0 g / Total Sugars 0 g / Total Fat 6 g / Saturated Fat 4 g / Cholesterol 15 mg / Sodium 285 mg

 

Category: Cooking, Economy