The Best Homemade Beef Gravy Recipe (How to Make Brown Gravy) (2024)

FAQs

How do I make my gravy more brown? ›

What is the difference between brown gravy and beef gravy? A brown gravy comes from any brown stock, whereas beef gravy always comes from beef stock specifically. In other words, all beef gravy is a brown gravy but not all brown gravy is beef gravy.

You can use any type of stock or pan drippings for brown gravy. To make dark brown beef gravy, cook the roux even longer (but at a lower temperature) until it's a dark color with a nutty aroma. Then use beef broth or beef juices to make your gravy.

The real gravy starts with the fats and drippings from what ever protein you cooked. Then on med-high heat sprinkle all purpose flour onto the pan. Stirring until the liquid and flour is a really think paste. Now the longer you cook the Rue, the darker it becomes.

Melt butter in a medium-sized sauce pan. Add flour and whisk constantly until mixture is golden caramel color and smells fragrant (3-5 minutes). Slowly whisk in liquids, while whisking, until mixture is smooth. Bring to a simmer and cook until thickened and bubbly, 5 minutes or longer.

Herbs and spices: Add dried herbs like thyme, rosemary, or sage, or spices such as black pepper, paprika, or cayenne pepper. These will impart additional flavors and complexity to the gravy. Stock or broth: If your pre-cooked gravy is too thick or lacks depth, you can thin it out.

Browning adds more flavor to the gravy and gets rid of the raw flour taste. You're basically making a roux. We find that a flour-based gravy holds up better and reheats better later, which is why we tend to prefer using flour over cornstarch to make gravy unless we have a guest who is eating gluten-free.

If your gravy is on the skimpy side, you can thicken it quickly with flour or cornstarch. But don't add your thickener directly to the gravy, which will create lumps. Instead, try stirring in three or four tablespoons of flour or cornstarch into a small amount of cold water until you have a smooth paste.

Why is my gravy not tasty? ›

If the gravy lacks oomph, adjust seasoning as necessary with kosher salt and freshly ground pepper. If you used canned stock instead of homemade, the gravy might not be as flavorful. Homemade stock, even made with chicken stock rather than turkey, will produce a superior gravy—so it's worth the effort.

Cook the gravy longer.

If the consistency of your gravy isn't what you want, try simmering the gravy a bit longer to help evaporate some of the liquids. If the gravy still hasn't thickened to your liking after about 10 minutes or so, it's now time to try a thickening agent.

Red-eye gravy is a Southern favorite. It requires just two ingredients: the drippings of pan-fried country ham and black coffee.

At the most basic level, gravy is a simple pan sauce that requires liquid and a thickener. Traditional turkey gravy usually has fat, flour, and stock. You can make excellent turkey gravy with just those ingredients, plus salt and pepper for seasoning.

How do I make gravy from hamburger grease? Mix hot grease with equal part flour whisk to combine and let cook stirring constantly with a whisk for a minute or two, add salt and pepper and whisk in slowly 1 cup of milk for every 2 tablespoon of flour you used, whisk until mixture comes to a bowl.

Make sure the flour has been cooked long enough: When flour is added to the pan drippings or butter, whisk constantly while the mixture cooks until it turns a deep golden brown and smells nutty.

Return to the heat and bring back to the boil stirring continuously until the gravy starts to thicken, then season to taste with herbs and seasoning of your choice. If you want to make your gravy darker, add a tablespoon of gravy browning.

The longer you cook, the darker the roux becomes, the more flavor it will have, but the less thick gravy it will make. That over-the-top brick roux is only 25% as effective as a white roux at thickening. So, you need to ponder how much flavor you want versus how thick you want your gravy to become.