Classic Pan Gravy Recipes

CLASSIC GRAVY

Steps:

• Place the giblets in a saucepan, cover with water and bring to a boil. Cook until the giblets are cooked through, 20 to 25 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and let the giblets sit in the water, allowing them to cool.
• Remove the giblets from the saucepan and chop the liver and gizzards. Pick the meat from the neck bone and discard the bones. Save the giblet broth.
• Pour the turkey drippings from the roasting pan into a pitcher. Allow the fat to rise to the top, leaving the stock juices at the bottom. Ladle or pour the fat into a separate container.
• Place the roasting pan on the stove over medium heat. Add 1/4 to 1/2 cup of the reserved fat. Sprinkle over the flour and whisk to combine, scraping the brown bits from the bottom of the pan. If it is too oily, sprinkle in another 1 to 2 tablespoons of flour. If it is too dry, add more fat and stir until the flour and fat are combined. Continue to cook the roux until it is golden brown, 4 to 5 minutes.
• While whisking, pour in the chicken stock. Cook, whisking gently, until the mixture begins to thicken. Pour in the stock juice drippings from the pitcher and continue to cook, stirring, until thick, 4 to 5 minutes. Thin as needed with the giblet stock and additional broth if needed. Stir in the giblets and season to taste with salt and black pepper. Cook for another 5 minutes or so until the giblets are warmed through, then serve.

CLASSIC PAN GRAVY

Steps:

• After removing turkey from roasting pan, pour drippings (turkey juices and fat) into bowl or glass measuring cup, leaving brown bits in pan. Let drippings stand 5 minutes to allow fat to rise. Skim 6 tablespoons fat from top of drippings and return to pan; discard any remaining fat. Add enough broth or water to remaining drippings to measure 3 cups; reserve.
• Stir flour into fat in pan, using wire whisk. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly and scraping up brown bits, until mixture is smooth and bubbly; remove from heat.
• Gradually stir in reserved 3 cups drippings. Heat to boiling, stirring constantly. Boil and stir 1 minute or until gravy thickens. Stir in a few drops of browning sauce if a darker color is desired. Stir in salt and pepper.

PAN GRAVY

Steps:

• After removing beef from pan, scrape all brown particles from pan and pour particles and drippings into bowl or glass measuring cup. Skim 2 tablespoons of fat from the top of the drippings; add fat to 1-quart saucepan. Discard any remaining fat; reserve remaining drippings. Stir flour into fat in saucepan.
• Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until mixture has thickened; remove from heat. Gradually stir in reserved drippings plus enough broth or water to equal 1 cup. Heat to boiling, stirring constantly. Boil and stir 1 minute. Stir in a few drops browning sauce for darker color. Stir in salt and pepper.

HOW TO MAKE GRAVY

Steps:

• It helps to have a fat separator, which looks like a measuring cup with a spout. It lets you easily pour off the gravy and leave behind excess fat.You can use a wooden spoon to make gravy, but you risk lumps. A whisk makes things smoother.For the silkiest gravy, or for added insurance against lumps, strain your gravy before serving. Have a sieve on hand. Drippings from brined and kosher turkeys may be too salty to use in gravy, particularly classic pan gravy. (If you add them to make-ahead gravy, do so slowly, tasting as you go.) Drippings from dry-brined turkeys work in any gravy.
• Whether you're making classic last-minute gravy or our make-ahead recipe, remember that great gravy can only come from great stock. It's absolutely worth the time to make your own turkey or chicken stock from scratch, but there are tricks to fortifying store-bought stock, too. To make your own stock, you first need poultry bones, either cooked or raw or a combination. Some of the bones should have meat on them, but most can be picked clean. I save my roast chicken carcasses in the freezer until stock-making day, and augment them with fresh chicken or turkey wings picked up at the supermarket. Two or three pounds of bones is plenty, but even a pound will give you enough stock to make gravy. If you've got turkey giblets from your bird (heart, gizzard, neck, anything but the liver), throw them into the pot with the bones and a big pinch of salt. Add some vegetables and aromatics: a carrot, a leafy celery stalk, an onion and/or leek, a few cloves of peeled garlic, a bay leaf and/or some parsley stems, and a teaspoon of peppercorns.Pour in enough water to cover all the solids by at least 2 inches. Then bring it up to a very gentle simmer and let it bubble for a couple of hours. I don't bother skimming, but it won't hurt if you do. Strain everything, pressing down on the solids, and chill for up to three days, or freeze for up to six months. If you want to make a more intensely flavored stock, try this recipe by the chef Suzanne Goin, which calls for roasting the bones and the vegetables before they are combined with white wine and a red chile and simmered on the stove. If making your own is out of the question, you can come pretty close with a good-quality poultry stock bought either from a butcher shop or specialty shop (preferably one made in-house). You'll often find stocks in the freezer case. If the supermarket is your only option, the rule for canned stock, or stock sold in Tetra Paks, is to taste before using. If it's terrible, you're better off with a bouillon cube and water, which is a low bar but marginally better than water. As a last-minute fix for weak stock, simmer it with the turkey giblets for an hour or two. That will fortify it.
• Roux, a cooked mixture of equal parts flour and fat, like butter, oil or pan drippings, is what thickens a gravy. Here's what you need to know.A roux is made with equal parts fat and flour. If you're making classic pan gravy, you'll use the fat in the roasting pan. If you're making gravy ahead of time, use butter, melting it in a medium pan over medium heat. Either way, sprinkle in an equal amount of flour. (If you're using butter, the ratio is 1/2 cup flour to one stick of butter.) Gently whisk the fat and flour together for at least 5 minutes, long enough for the raw taste of the flour to disappear. Keep cooking, whisking all the while, until the roux has reached your desired color. A white or light roux, in which the flour is cooked briefly, will give you a mild mixture that lets the flavor of the poultry dominate. It's also the most effective thickener. A dark, mahogany-colored roux adds an intense caramelized flavor to the gravy, but sometimes at the expense of turkey flavor. Or strike a balance and cook the roux until medium brown, which will give you a nuttiness that still allows the poultry character shine.
• The gold standard for holiday cooking, classic gravy uses the pan drippings as the base for the roux, giving you the most intense turkey flavor you can get. Don't try this with drippings from a wet-brined or kosher turkey; they may be too salty. Drippings from a dry-brined bird, however, should work just fine.This recipe calls for whisking flour with the fat in the bottom of the roasting pan to create a light roux, then hitting it with stock and wine, salt and pepper; you could also add cream, or other spices. Decant the gravy into a warmed boat or beaker, rather than into a cold one, and serve immediately.
• Making the gravy ahead gives you some peace of mind on this notoriously crazy cooking day, and the result is every bit as good as classic pan gravy. For enhanced flavor, spike the prepared gravy with pan drippings just before serving. Pour off any extra fat from the roasting pan, add a few tablespoons of water or wine to the pan and then set it over a pair of burners. Let the liquid simmer, scraping up the browned bits from the pan until they loosen, then pour the liquid into the gravy, adding them gradually and tasting as you go - particularly if you're using drippings from a wet-brined or kosher turkey, which may be very salty. But if you're too harried trying to carve the bird and reheat side dishes, skip this step.

CLASSIC ROASTED TURKEY WITH PAN GRAVY

Steps:

• Remove the package of the giblets and neck from the turkey cavity. Rinse the turkey with cold water and pat dry with a paper towel. Tie the ends of the drumsticks together.
• Place the turkey, breast side-up, on a rack in a shallow roasting pan. Brush the turkey with the stock. Insert a meat thermometer into the thickest part of the meat, making sure the thermometer is not touching the bone.
• Roast at 325 degrees F for 3 to 3 1/2 hours or until the thermometer reads 180 degrees F and the drumstick moves easily, basting occasionally with the stock. Begin checking for doneness after 2 1/2 hours of cooking time. Let stand for 10 minutes.
• Remove the turkey from the roasting pan. Pour off any fat. Stir the stock and flour in a small bowl until the mixture is smooth. Stir the stock mixture in the pan. Cook and stir over medium heat until the mixture boils and thickens. Season to taste. Serve the gravy with the turkey.
• Serving Suggestion: Serve with savory herb stuffing and cranberry relish. For dessert serve with pumpkin pie.

CLASSIC GRAVY

Steps:

• Prepare the stock: Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the turkey neck and giblets; cook, turning, until browned, about 5 minutes. Add the onion, carrot, celery, thyme and bay leaves; stir to coat. Add the wine and bring to a boil, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Cook until reduced by half, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the broth, reduce the heat to low and simmer about 1 hour. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a large measuring cup; reserve the saucepan. You should have 7 cups stock-if you're short, add more broth.
• Melt the remaining 8 tablespoons butter in the reserved saucepan over medium heat. Add the flour and whisk until smooth and bubbling, about 2 minutes. Gradually whisk in the 7 cups stock; bring to a simmer and cook, whisking occasionally, until thickened, about 10 minutes. Set aside until the turkey is done.
• Pour the turkey pan drippings into a fat separator and let stand until the fat rises to the top. Discard the fat (or drizzle on your stuffing). Whisk the defatted drippings into the gravy; season with salt and pepper. Reheat before serving.

TURKEY GRAVY WITH DRIPPINGS

Steps:

• Pour off all but 7 or so tablespoons turkey fat from the roasting pan, and set the pan on the stovetop over medium heat. Sprinkle the flour over the fat and cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture is golden, 8 to 10 minutes.
• Increase heat to medium high and add a little white wine, whisking as you go to let it reduce. Slowly add stock, stirring constantly, until the mixture is smooth. Cook, continuing to stir, until the gravy has thickened, approximately 8 to 10 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

CLASSIC LAST-MINUTE GRAVY

Steps:

• Make a roux: melt butter in a large skillet. Add the flour all at once, whisking until incorporated. Cook, whisking occasionally, until the roux begins to look grainy, 3 to 4 minutes. Set aside.
• When the roast turkey is done cooking, pour the pan drippings into a bowl.
• Deglaze the roasting pan by adding the wine, bringing it to a boil and scraping the pan with a wooden spoon, adding a little water as needed to incorporate the browned bits. Add to the drippings in the bowl. Skim off the fat with a spoon, or put in the refrigerator or freezer until the fat has congealed on top, then remove fat.
• Make the gravy: Bring the broth to a simmer in a covered saucepan, then slowly add 3 cups of the broth to the cold or room-temperature roux, whisking constantly. Slowly add the reserved drippings, starting with a few tablespoons; taste, then whisk in more a little at a time until the gravy tastes right. Season with salt, if needed, and pepper. To adjust the consistency, add more broth for a thinner gravy or simmer for a few minutes for a thicker one. Keep warm until ready to serve.