02201 Country Gravy
Give us this day our daily taste. Restore to us soups that spoons will not sink in and sauces which are never the same twice. Raise up among us stews with more gravy than we have bread to blot it with. Give us pasta with a hundred fillings. — Robert Farrar Capon
Most of us remember the gravies from our grandmothers' tables. Somehow gravy just isn't the same anymore. There’s a simple reason for that. People don’t make gravy the way your grandmother did it. They buy a powdered gravy mix and use that. The problem is that gravy mix leaves a lot to be desired when it comes to taste and nutrition. This is sad because homemade gravy is one of the most frugal and tasty recipes you can find. Even though it is cheap, it is better than any of the canned gravies or mixes in the supermarket.
Gravy over toast makes a frugal and filling breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Leftover gravy can be combined with cooked pasta and vegetables, or hamburger and pasta for your own homemade "hamburger helper" (which is all that hamburger helper is — pasta and gravy). Make gravy with your own homemade stock and get a double burst of flavor and nutrition.
The Basic Rules of Thumb for Gravy.
A tasty, rich, and luscious gravy that you would brag about to others contains fat, flavored liquid, and something to thicken the liquid.
Thin: 1 tbsp oil or butter, 1 tbsp flour, 1 cup liquid.
Medium: 2 tbsp oil or butter, 2 tbsp flour, 1 cup liquid
Thick: 1/4 cup oil or butter, 1/4 cup flour, 1 cup milk
Bacon fat? NON-hydrogenated lard? Hamburger fat? Olive oil? Sunflower oil? Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes!
There are lots of concerns about using hydrogenated shortenings and margarine. I don't use them.
Roux Rules.
Put the oil, butter, or lard in a pan, over medium heat, add the flour to it, and stir it so the flour and butter or oil mix thoroughly. Chefs refer to this mixture of oil and flour as the ROUX, which is pronounced ROO.
Generally, for a white sauce, let the roux bubble over medium heat for about a minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat, add liquid, turn heat back on, stir until thickened. Of the thin, medium, and thick gravies, the consistency I like best is the medium. Do not leave roux cooking unattended. If you must step away from the stove, turn off the heat until you can return your full attention to the roux.
I use white flour for gravy roux, or I sift whole wheat flour before adding it to the oil or butter.
Freezing Roux.
Making the roux is the most time-consuming aspect of making gravy (or a sauce). Cooked roux freezes well. So make a larger batch than you need and freeze in convenient portions for use later. I make a large amount of it and freeze it in metal ice trays. After the cubes freeze, I pop them out of the tray and put them in a larger container of some sort in the freezer. Always label the container so you know what it is. When I want gravy, I just plop one or two of the frozen “ice cubes” of roux into a pan, melt and warm it, add the liquid, and voila, gravy. To make a larger quantity for freezing, use equal portions of fat and flour, e.g., 1 lb butter or oil and 1 lb flour. I never use hydrogenated shortening. Non-hydrogenated lard would be just fine.
Liquid.
A liquid that is full of flavor will make a delicious gravy. Use your own homemade stocks or broth/juices from roasts or hams or even leftover soups. When you fry meat, you can deglaze the pan (pour water into the hot pan and stir vigorously so the flavor and bits of food are combined with the water) and make the gravy with the pan water. Use milk for cream gravies like sausage and bacon. In a pinch, you can make a broth with bouillon and use that to make gravy. Your own homemade stock will be more tasty and nutritious. Use vegetable stock to make a vegan gravy.
Oil, butter, meat fats.
If you use butter, cook the roux at a lower temperature so that the butter itself doesn't burn. If you like a darker roux, it is better to use oil as a dark butter roux can take a long time. Olive oil is the primary oil I use in making roux. I occasionally use meat fats from pork, beef, or chicken. Non-hydrogenated lard is great. Never use hydrogenated shortenings. The best fat is from cooked meats. Don’t use all of it though! Pour off the fat and measure back into the pan only what you need.
The Skillet. A cast iron skillet is great for making gravy. You can make it in an electric skillet, or with a skillet on a hot plate or a camp stove, if you don’t have a regular stove.
Microwave roux? Yes, if you don’t care about the various issues regarding microwave ovens. . . you can use a microwave to make roux. Mix the fat and flour and microwave about 5 minutes total or until it reaches the color you want. Stop every minute or so and stir the roux with a spoon or whisk until it starts to brown. Be warned that when microwaving roux, it can go from “just right” to “burned” quicker than you think possible. Once it starts to actually brown, check it every 20-30 seconds until it gets just right.
What is “just right” when it comes to the color of the roux? That’s something you need to decide for yourself. The darker the roux, the less it thickens, so the more roux you need. If you want brown gravy, use a darker roux. Make white sauce with a lighter roux.
Measure! It is best to measure the liquid, oil, and flour. Yes, your grandmother did it by sight and yes you will eventually be able to do this too, but probably not at first. I always figure 1/3 to ½ cup of gravy per person, at least.
Always make extra gravy! It freezes just fine. Use it within a month.
Adding extra flavor to gravy. You can always add extra flavor to gravies. Before adding the flour to the oil, add some sliced/chopped garlic, onions or shallots, and a chopped fresh or dried pepper. We especially like chipotle peppers in brown gravy. Sometimes we add dried mixed "Italian herbs" like oregano, basil, rosemary, and thyme, and of course black pepper. The amount of salt a gravy requires depends on the taste of the eaters. Be wary of adding too much salt.
Gravy Recipes.
These make a 2 cup quantity. They can be multiplied to make larger quantities of gravy. There is a recipe for a gallon of gravy in this chapter.
Country Brown Gravy.
With a simple white sauce, you don't let the flour brown. You sauté it for just a bit and then add the milk. With true country gravy, brown the flour. One of the old names for country gravy is "scorch gravy,” and that's because you brown the flour right to the point where it turns dark brown BUT doesn't actually burn. Once you get to that point, move fast — turn off the fire, add the liquid all at once and stir like crazy, continuing to stir frequently as you turn the fire back on and cook the gravy until it thickens to the consistency you want.
Because deciding how much "brown" is enough is such a judgment call, you may not want to go very far in the beginning, only sauté the flour until it is a light brown. You need to stir the roux constantly when you cook it. The browner you make the roux, the less it will thicken, so if you make a darker brown roux, make more, as a dark brown roux has only about 1/3 the thickening power of a lighter colored roux.
After you have made gravy maybe 50 times, you will develop your own eye for how dark you will like the roux. Note that stirring "Constantly" means just that. Don't stop! Don't splatter any roux on you or anyone standing close by, because it is EXTREMELY hot and can raise a blister faster than you can wipe it off.
You can make this kind of brown gravy with either milk or stock. If you make it with a light chicken stock, it is Velouté, one of the five Mother Sauces of French cuisine. If you use a vegetable stock, you make Country Vegan Gravy.
Sausage Gravy
Crumble sausage in a pan (say 1/8th lb for 2 cups gravy) and fry until done. Remove sausage and measure the fat in the pan, adding more oil or butter to make a total of 4 tablespoons. Add 4 tablespoons of flour and sauté until the flour is a light brown. Turn off the burner. Add 2 cups milk (or 1 cup milk, 1 cup water) and mix vigorously. Turn the burner back on, add the fried sausage to the gravy, continue to stir until the gravy thickens to your desired consistency.
Pork Chop or Sliced Ham Gravy
Fry the pork chops or sliced ham in one pan. Take out of pan and set aside on a plate. In a second pan, melt 4 tablespoons of butter or put 4 tablespoons of oil in the pan. Add 4 tablespoons flour, and sauté until the flour is brown as you like it. Turn the fire back on under the pork chop pan and heat it up if it has cooled down. When it is hot, pour 2 cups water or stock on it and stir/scrape the pan vigorously to deglaze it and mix the little flavored bits (known in the trade as the fond) with the water. Add this richly flavored water to the bubbling roux.
Bacon Gravy
Fry your bacon and measure 4 tablespoons of the fat into the gravy pan. Add 4 tablespoons of flour, fry until light brown. Add 2 cups of milk, or 1 cup milk and 1 cup water, stir until thickened to desired consistency.
Pot Roast or Ham Gravy
This is the traditional brown gravy you make from the juices of a pot roast or a whole ham cooked in your oven or in a crockpot. Pour the juices/broth into a container and skim the fat off the top. Put 4 tablespoons of the fat into a pan, add 4 tablespoons flour, and sauté until the flour is medium to dark brown. Pour the broth into the roux, stirring constantly, turn the burner back on and continue stirring until it thickens to the desired consistency. If you don't have enough broth, you can add water to make the desired amount of liquid.
Brown Gravy without the Roast . . .
If you have some frozen or left over beef stock (or chicken or vegetable stock), use that as the liquid and make gravy without having to make a roast. If all else fails, you can make the pot roast/ham gravy recipe above and use bouillon for the liquid. Make the roux from butter and flour. If you made the roux with a mirepoix, you have made Espagnole, one of the five Mother Sauces of French cuisine.
Hamburger Gravy
Fry hamburger, drain fat, measure back into meat 4 tbsp of hamburger fat, add 4 tbsp. flour, stir. To make a cream gravy, use a light brown roux and 2 cups milk (or 1 cup milk and 1 cup water or beef stock). If you want a brown beef gravy, make a more brown roux and add 2 cups beef stock instead of milk. Cook until thickened. Serve over rice, toast, or biscuits.
Gallons of Gravy
This recipe makes 50, 1/3 cup servings of gravy:
- 1 cup fat or oil
- 1 cup flour
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 1 gallon meat or poultry stock
Use at least a three-quart skillet. Put the oil and flour, salt and pepper, and cook for about five minutes, stirring constantly. Start adding stock, stirring with a whisk, and cook until it thickens. For added flavor, cooked 1 pound diced carrots, 1-1/2 cups chopped onions, and ½ cup chopped celery with the stock.
White Sauce
Make the roux with butter and flour. Use milk for the liquid, with a dash of salt and pepper. Add some onion and thyme to the roux and it becomes the traditional béchamel sauce, another one of the Five Mother Sauces of French cuisine.
Cheese sauce
To 1 cup white sauce, add 1/4 tsp dry mustard and ½ cup grated cheese.
Mushroom sauce
Sauté 1 cup sliced mushrooms and 1 tsp grated onion in the butter or oil for white sauce, then proceed as you would to make white sauce. For a brown mushroom sauce, use beef stock instead of milk and make a brown roux.
Red Sauce
To 1 cup white sauce, add 3 tbsp tomato sauce. The white sauce can be made with milk or with a light chicken stock.
Velouté sauce
Same as white sauce, only use a light stock or vegetable broth in place of milk. Another one of the Five Mother Sauces of French cuisine.
Espagnole sauce:
A rich sauce made with a dark beef stock, brown roux, mirepoix. In Oklahoma this would be a traditional pot roast gravy. In France, it is one of the Five Mother Sauces.
Mornay sauce:
To Velouté sauce, add 1 cup milk, 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper, and 1 cup grated cheese.
Tomato Mushroom
Fry one strip of sliced bacon, add 1 tbsp flour, 1-1/2 tsp sugar, and a dash of salt. Cook until smooth and bubbly. Remove from heat, stir in 1 cup tomato juice or juice from canned tomatoes. Bring to boil, stirring constantly. Add about ½ cup sautéed mushrooms.
The French Sauce Tradition
For a rich education in traditional sauce making in the French tradition, see these following pages at the eGullet Society for Culinary Arts and Sciences. This is a continuation from Units 1, 2, and 3 referenced in 30701 Stock-making.
Unit 4, Stock-based sauces
http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?/topic/25584-stock-based-sauces-unit-4-day-4/ or http://tinyurl.com/yapzjw8
Cream Sauces
http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?//topic/27189-cream-sauces/ or http://tinyurl.com/yetyrx9
Non-stock Sauces (includes mayo and red-eye gravy)
http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?/topic/29574-non-stock-based-sauces/ or http://tinyurl.com/ykpcku5
When Gravy Goes Wrong . . .
The most common problem with gravy is that it doesn't get thick enough. If this happens to you, take an empty jar (like a peanut butter jar or a half-pint mason jar), add 1/4 cup water and 2 tablespoons flour. Put the jar lid on and shake it vigorously to mix the flour and the water. If there are any blobs of flour on top of the water, skim them off (or pour through a strainer). Add a little bit of this mixture to the bubbling gravy and stir, keep doing this until it thickens to the desired consistency.