Does the dog turn up his nose at your gravy? Is it bland, watery, lumpy? Well, here's help.
When you learn to make good gravy you will have a talent few people possess. Even many excellent cooks never learn to make good gravy on a consistent basis. Making gravy can pose a real challenge. It's not easy, but you can learn. The tips here will help but, unfortunately, the one thing you need, which no one can give you...is experience.
The secret to making gravy is to know when it "looks right". I can give you a good recipe and tell you what it is suppose to look like, but you will never know until you learn for yourself from experience.
So, what is good gravy? Well, it should be flavorful, the proper color and the proper thickness. It should NOT be greasy, lumpy, watery and taste like flour.
Aside from experience, the most important thing in making good gravy is to make a proper roux. Roux (pronounced "ruu") is a mixture of oil (grease) and flour. There are two things to look for in making a proper roux. First, the consistency (thickness) of the roux. Second, the color of the roux should be the proper color for the type gravy you want. White gravy should have white roux. Blond should be blond and brown should be, guess what? Brown.
Liquid, usually water or milk, is then added to the roux and cooking time is adjusted until the desired thickness is obtained.
Making the Roux: The oil used in making roux may be cooking oil, grease left from cooking meat, bacon drippings, olive oil or other oil. Bacon drippings makes a flavorful gravy and is very popular.
The proportion of oil to flour is generally about 50-50. Let's use an example of 4 tablespoons oil and 4 tablespoons flour. Begin by heating the oil. Then add flour slowly, while stirring. It should be bubbling hot. You are looking for a thin paste. It should not be oily or lumpy. Adjust amount of oil and/or flour to get a thin paste.
Continue cooking until you get the color needed for the type gravy you are making. For white gravy, add liquid as soon as you get the proper paste and the roux is still white. For brown gravy, continue cooking the roux until it is dark brown. Be sure to stir continuously and do not over cook. It will burn quickly.
Important: You must get the roux right at this point. You can not adjust after adding the liquid (next step). If you add oil after adding the liquid, it will float on top of the gravy. And, if you add flour, it will form lumps.
Add 1 cup of the liquid (water or milk) while stirring. Bring back to a gentle boil. Continue adding liquid, watching the thickness. When the desired thickness is obtained, remove from heat immediately. Be aware that the gravy will thicken more as it cools, so remove from heat just slightly before the desired thickness is obtained.
There, you have the perfect gravy. Now, let's add some flavor. You can add one or all of the following.
Add 1/3 cup chopped onions to the hot oil before adding the flour. Cook only until the onions are tender. Do not allow to brown. Then add flour and continue making the roux.
Add 1 or 2 cubes of beef or chicken bouillon the last couple of minutes of cooking the gravy.
Add 1 teaspoon of garlic powder and/or a couple dashes of Tabasco sauce (good with gravy on biscuits) the last couple of minutes of cooking the gravy.
In summary, the tips here will help, but only experience will enable you make good gravy every time. So, get in the kitchen and learn from your failures and take pride when it turns out perfect. Over time you will notice that the perfect gravy seems to happen more and more often.
