Below is a group of recipies that will make you a expert in gravy making. I have noticed most cooks cannot make a good rich un-lumpy gravy. Some of the work is mine and some I found on internet, take time to read and learn the basics to advanced subtle sauces.
I have been asked to explain "Rue",how to make, used to thicken soup or make cream soups. The 'rue' you speak of in your request for recipe is spelled 'roux'
I stick close to only soup recipies and techniques but sinse gravies are nothing more than thick soups with all the same techniques and problems of creamed soups. I will try to explain the basics.
2 Tabelspoons Fat/Oil
2 Tabelspoons flour
1 cup of Liquid
This is the basic formula for gravies and soups if you will maintain relationship of all ingrediants 2 2 1 then you will always have excellent results. The only differance between soup and gravy is the viscosity.
To make a rue/roux gravy, the basic formula is two tablespoons fat/oil, two tablespoons flour, and one cup of liquid to equal one cup of gravy. After cooking the meat or poultry, judge the amount of fat or oil remaining in the pan drippings. This is the most crucial part of a roux gravy. Determine how much gravy you need. You will need to adjust the fat or oil amount up or down to suit your needs according to the basic formula. Remove fat from the pan or if you don't have enough, add butter. Stir an equal amount of flour into the hot fat and cook at least five minutes. Add corresponding ratio of liquid slowly to the roux while stirring. It should immediately begin to thicken. Bring to a simmer while stirring to avoid lumps. Adjust seasonings. At this point you can continue cooking the gravy to make it as thick as you desire. The more you cook gravies or cream soups the thicker they become due to less un reacted liquid. We call this thicking process reduction
The liquid used can be a strong broth, milk or heavy cream, depending on how rich and decadent you want the finished product. If it needs thinning, just add a little more broth. Unless your meat was highly seasoned, you will generally need to add salt and pepper before finishing. As a general rule, one-half teaspoon of salt will be needed for each cup of liquid, but taste first. Keep in mind that the gravy will thicken upon standing, so resist the urge to speed up your gravy by adding additional flour to soon.
Stir, stir, and stir this and by the time yousee bubble breaking the surface, you'll be fully thickened. Pay attention! You'll be really surprised at how quickly this happens. Also keep in mind that gravies thicken as they cool -- it's better to thin a thick gravy/ soup with liquid than to thicken a thin one.
Onion Gravy
2 medium-sized onions
1 stick margarine
1/4 cup flour
1 package dry brown gravy mix
dash of salt
dash of pepper
2 cups milk
Water
Fry onions in small amount of margarine. Remove onions from pan. Add remaining margarine. Then add flour. Stir until flour is really brown. Add milk and enough water to make gravy as thin as desired. Then add brown gravy mix. Stir until gravy boils about 2 minutes. Add onions into gravy. Use with fried hamburger patties.
Giblet Gravy
2 tablespoons flour
1 to 2 Tbsp. fat to each cup liquid
1/4 cup chopped giblets
2 hard-boiled eggs, chopped
Blend the flour thoroughly with fat or cold liquid before combining it with the hot poultry drippings. This helps to prevent lumps. For moderately thick gravy, use 2 tablespoons flour and 1 to 2 tablespoons of fat to each cup of liquid. For thin gravy use only 1 tablespoon flour and 1 tablespoon of fat for 1 cup liquid. You add 1/4 cup chopped giblets and 2 chopped hard-boiled eggs before pouring over dressing.
Cranberry Gravy
1 (10 1/2 oz.) can condensed chicken broth
1/4 cup lemon juice
Grated peel of 1 lemon
1 can whole cranberry jelly
Salt and pepper to taste
After turkey has been removed from pan, skim off as much fat as possible from drippings (an ice cube passed through the drippings will hasten the congealing of fat, facilitating the removal), leaving juices and brown bits. Add chicken broth, lemon juice and the grated peel of lemon. Cook over medium heat until bubbly hot. Add cranberry jelly to gravy, stirring until dissolved and thoroughly heated through. Add salt and pepper to taste. This will not be a thick gravy, but it may be thickened slightly, if desired. Pour into a warmed gravy boat to pass with the turkey or dressing.
Cornmeal Gravy
1/2 cup corn meal
1 cup water
Salt and pepper to taste
1 cup milk (buttermilk may be used for buttermilk gravy)
1 teaspoon oil or bacon grease
In heavy skillet brown corn meal to a golden brown, add salt and pepper, then stir in the oil. Combine the milk and water and pour as much as needed to boil. Make sure the gravy is thin enough too, because it will thicken slightly after it is cooked. Let boil for about 2 minutes.
Peanut Butter Gravy
Sausage grease or bacon grease
Flour
Milk
Peanut butter
Salt and pepper
Brown flour in the sausage grease. Stir in 1 heapingtablespoon of peanut butter. Add milk as necessary to reach desired consistency. Salt and pepper to taste. This is great on toast, biscuits or hash browns.
Chocolate Gravy
3 tablespoons cocoa
3/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon flour
2 cups milk
Mix cocoa, sugar, and flour together in a skillet. Cook on medium heat until mixture thickens, stirring continuously. Serve over hot biscuits.
Red Eye Gravy
6 to 8 tablespoons ham drippings
1 cup or so of water
2 to 3 teaspoons coffee (not that fancy kind, mind you)
Salt and pepper to taste
Place drippings in a large skillet over medium heat. Add water and coffee and simmer until either a "red eye" appears in the middle of the reduced mixture, or the mixture reaches your own personal sopping texture, or fifteen minutes or so has elapsed and you are tired of waiting. Season with salt and pepper. Serve immediately over grits, hash browns, eggs, or biscuits.
Tomato Gravy
Oil or bacon grease
Flour
2 (or more) cans finely cut tomatoes
Salt, sugar
Put oil in a pan. Put a heaping tablespoon of flour in hot oil and brown lightly on low heat. Pour 2 or more cans of finely cut tomatoes in the pan. Take a potato masher and mash the tomatoes up. Pour enough water to make gravy. Season with salt and a tablespoon sugar. Cook about 10 to 15 minutes on low heat. This is great with meatloaf.
Mushroom Gravy
1 onion, sliced thin
1 (2 to 3 oz.) can mushrooms, chopped
2 tablespoons flour
1 to 1 1/2 cups water (include mushroom liquid)
1 beef bouillon cube (or substitute one 10 1/2 ounce can beef broth for water and bouillon cube)
Saute onion and mushrooms in drippings from roast until onions are transparent. Add flour, blending thoroughly. Gradually add water to desired consistency. Season to taste. Add bouillon cube, dissolving thoroughly. Simmer about 5 minutes.
Italian Gravy
1 large onion, diced
5 slices garlic, pressed
4 teaspoons marjoram
4 teaspoons thyme
1 tablespoon poultry seasoning
1 large can V-8 juice
2 cans (small) tomato paste
2 stalks celery, broken into pieces (remove later)
1/2 cup sherry wine
2 cans mushrooms
Fry onions and garlic in 1/2 cup oil until onions are golden. Add remaining ingredients and simmer 1 hour.
Cream Gravy
Grease from fried chicken or fried steaks (2 or 3 tablespoons)
2 tablespoons butter
4 tablespoons flour
1 cupmilk
1 cup hot water
Salt and pepper
Leaving the grease in the pan with the browned crumbs. Add butter, flour, blend and cook until golden brown; add milk and hot water. Stir until smooth and the right thickness and add salt and black pepper. Pour into a gravy boat and serve with hot biscuit or dry rice.
Cheese Gravy
1 cup shredded sharp American cheese
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon fat (meat drippings, bacon grease, or butter)
Heat milk, fat and cheese over low heat until melted for about 15 minutes. Cook over low heat until very smooth.
Sour Cream Gravy
Butter
Flour
Soup stock
Sour cream
Melt butter; add flour; stir in soup stock. Cook over hot water until thick, stirring occasionally. Then slowly add the sour cream; season and serve hot.
Sage-Green Peppercorn Gravy
Cider-Basted Turkey with Roasted Apple Gravy
Gravy Tips
For lumpy gravy, beat it with a whisk until smooth. If this doesn't work, try pureeing it in a food processor, putting it through a strainer, or even mixing it in a blender. Erica Campbell wrote in and suggested, "Just wanted to tell you...if your gravy does lump on you, use a small strainer to pour your gravy through before serving it. This way no one has to know there were ever lumps. My mom taught me this and I thought I would share, being that you shared your recipes with me on your site." Thanks, Erica!
Gravy that is slightly too salty can be fixed either by adding several 1/2-inch slices of raw potato and cooking until the potatoes are translucent, or adding a few pinches of light brown sugar. Don't add too much or your gravy will be too sweet and that's nasty. If the gravy is major league over-salted, then just make another batch of gravy (unsalted) and then mix the two.
A light gravy can be darkened by using a dash or two of instant coffee or by frying your roux longer.
Thin gravy can be thickened by making a slurry of cornstarch and water and stirring it into the gravy, or making a thin paste of flour and cold water. You will have to cook this a while so that the raw flour taste goes away. The best way to thicken a gravy is to just keep simmering it until it thickens.
To thin out a thick gravy, slowly whisk in your liquid until you get the consistency you want.
If the gravy is too greasy, skim off the fat or soak it up with a slice of bread. If you have time, chill it, skim off the fat and then reheat it until it bubbles.
Good Things about Gravy:
Making good gravy can save money. Rendered fat and flour are cheap!
No meal is complete without gravy.
Gravy can turn even the nastiest, burned supper into something digest-able.
The smell of gravy on clothing can be used to attract men (and dogs too).
Your gravy will be only as good as your fat or drippings. Don't expect to get a tasty gravy using the gelatin left in the Spam® can. Fat is not to be taken for granted! We Southerners love our fat -- it is an inexpensive and crucial part of almost everything we make, especially gravy. Just mentioning gravy brings back fond memories like gorging yourself on biscuits and gravy before heading off to church, soaking up Momma's pot roast gravy with fresh baked rolls and remembering that time when there was just a smidgen of Granny's milk gravy left and Uncle Oscar actually sopped it up with his cigar because all the bread and taters were gone.
Cooled gravy can be used to grease up your ball bearings, bicycle chains, and chain saws.
Overcooked gravy can used to cement together the shingles on your roof.
We have it on solemn authority that Sawmill gravy on biscuits is served at 6am daily on the other side of the Pearly Gates.
The sound of raking gravy out of the skillet is will cause children to teleport from bed to the breakfast table.
Southern men have been known to use a woman's gravy making expertise as the deciding factor on whether to make a nuptial offer. I've had many a cousin bag a man solely on a blue ribbon gravy recipe.
No comments:
Post a Comment