Isabelle Hayes Wants to Know...
Gravy Made with Wheat Flour
Doug Essinger-Hileman
Rowen
Lois
Astrid Bear
Lois Adds...
Jill Bennett
Charlezzzzz Muñoz, Grand Chef of the Gravy World
Gravy Made with Corn Flour / Cornstarch
Bob Saldeen
Lindsay
Jim Klein's Turkey Stock for Gravy
Turkey Gravy - Trish o'Tuama
Isabelle Hayes Wants to Know...
I'd like to find out from the cooks on this list about making smooth gravy by mixing the flour in the liquid first, until it's dissolved, then adding that liquid to the hot fat.
I know this is not the way anyone teaches it, and I am usually competent enough to do it by adding dry flour to the fat and mixing it together with a whisk (that's terribly important, to use a whisk rather than a spoon or fork), cooking it for a few minutes (all the cookbooks say to do this), then adding the liquid a little at a time (this is the tricky part) and continuously whisking until smooth, then adding a little more liquid, until it reaches the thickness you want in the gravy.
The first way described is much easier and much more foolproof, but I wonder at it anyway.
Gravy Made with Wheat Flour
Doug Essinger-Hileman
I would think that this wouldn't work very well, producing a "doughy" taste in the gravy. The idea behind mixing the flour with the fat is that the fat coats the flour, preventing an interaction with the flour and liquid that leads to the doughy taste.
Rowen
Flour, especially the 'instantized' kind (Wondra, Gold Medal brand is easiest, but regular flour works too if you sprinkle it into the liquid) dissolves easily and completely in COLD liquid (milk, water). I usually make my gravies and sauces that way as it takes so much less attention. Just add the proper amount of flour to a cold liquid, then stir into the hot (not boiling or simmering though) drippings. It works especially well when you want to thicken something like soup that has too much liquid to easily whisk into submission, or are unsure how much thickening you want as you can always add more easily.
And it shouldn't have a doughy taste, Doug, unless you don't let it cook long enough after adding to get hot.
The roux method works but requires a lot more skill, IMHO, to get smooth, perfect texture every time.
Lois
A rule of thumb is 2 Tablespoons of fat (drippings, butter), mixed with 2 tablespoons of flour (this mixture is the "roux" of classical cooking), for every cup of liquid (milk, broth, wine, pan juice, etc.). You mix the roux, cook it very briefly or brown if the recipe calls for it), then add the liquid and mix so it's smooth. Getting it smooth is the hard part. Cook to thicken as you want. Adjust, season with salt, pepper, whatever, etc.
The butter, flour, milk base is the foundation of good old "white sauce", and all sorts of classical sauces: Bechamel, etc. You can make a great "au gratin" dish by covering something with a thick, seasoned white sauce, pressing in a good amount of grated swiss cheese, and then broiling.
Astrid Bear
To make it smooth, follow the dictums of the Blessed Julia (Child): Remove roux from heat after it's cooked for 2 minutes. Add hot liquid slowly, while whisking with a whisk. Return to heat, and simmer, whisking every now and then. Did I mention about the whisk?
Lois Adds...
Or the hand-held "wand" appliance that works like a blender, that you can stick right into the pan? It can make any kitchen mess you've screwed up smooth. It also turns onions and pan juice into a great flourless gravy.
Jill Bennett
It wouldn't brown, but it wouldn't look rich like milk gravy either. If the flour is not cooked for at least a couple of minutes, it tastes like flour. I'm not sure why you would want to do it this way. When you have a liquid that already has some flour in it (pot roast, stew, etc) you can then add flour mixed with water and it cooks thru while thickening and, of course it is already brown from the meat. For unlumpy flour, put water in a jar or Tupperware and THEN put the flour in and shake well.
Charlezzzzz Muñoz, Grand Chef of the Gravy World
First make sure the electric can opener is plugged in. Then remove the can of gravy from the cupboard. Open the can, being careful not to cut yourself on the sharp edge. Place the contents of the can into the pot. Heat. Read while the gravy is heating, but try not to let it burn. (If it burns, remove another can of gravy from the cupboard and continue.) As for flour, why?
Gravy Made with Corn Flour / Cornstarch
Bob Saldeen
Am I the only person that makes gravy with corn starch around here? Less bulk needed...no taste difference that I can tell.
It's the way my dad taught me - I take a shaker, mix corn starch with milk, and shake it up. The corn starch dissolves completely. (I'm talking about 1/2 cup or so of milk).
Meanwhile, plain, no-flour-added milk is heating in skillet with sausage bits. I pour the cold milk/corn starch into the skillet with the warming milk--not yet simmering, but getting there. It mixes perfectly. No lumps. No whisk needed. I just stir with a spatula. Once it starts simmering the thickening begins.
Lindsay
I used to use the same method Isabelle until I discovered cornflour. My gravy and sauces are now foolproof (almost).
Here's how:
Take a few tablespoons of the cold gravy base (stock) and mix in a tablespoon of cornflour - you end up with a very thick liquid but not so thick that you cannot pour it. Whilst you're doing this heat the stock. When the stock is warm (not hot - important, as if it's too hot/close to boiling the cornflour mix will lump up immediately) pour in the cornflour mix. Stir the stock continuously and as it comes to the boil it will thicken up like a dream.
The trick is getting the cornflour mix to stock ratio correct, but the great thing about this method is that it's easy to add either some more cornflour mix if the gravy is too thin, or equally add some more stock if the gravy is too thick.
It always works, smooth as you like it, no lumps guaranteed!
Jim Klein's Turkey Stock for Gravy
Me? I made a turkey's worth of gravy.
I bought one of them big, old, cheap frozen tommies from Safeway for $10, stripped off the plastic, and tossed it in a pot. Then I added water to cover, and let it bubble gently for 9 hours, till the meat broke apart and got stringy.
Throw away the meat, cause there's no flavor left.
Add carrots, turnips, leeks, parsnips, onions, celery, and an apple for good luck.
Return to the heat and cook for another 3 hours.
Remove vegetables and discard.
Reduce to two gallons worth of liquid.
That's turkey stock, ready to make gravy.
Turkey Gravy - Trish o'Tuama
Turkey Drippings
1/4 cup butter
3 tbls flour
3/4 cup chicken or turkey broth
2 tbls vermouth (or other dry white wine)
salt and pepper
Remove turkey from pan and scrape drippings and other bits unto a saucepan. Add butter and heat until melted. Add flour and stir into drippings/butter mixture for two-three minutes. Add broth, then vermouth and stir over medium heat until the gravy thickens. Add salt and pepper to taste. You can use more or less broth depending on how thick you like your gravy to be.
We cook a 4 lb turkey breast -- if you are serving a large turkey you can double or triple the ingredients to make more gravy.
Gravy Made with Wheat Flour
Doug Essinger-Hileman
Rowen
Lois
Astrid Bear
Lois Adds...
Jill Bennett
Charlezzzzz Muñoz, Grand Chef of the Gravy World
Gravy Made with Corn Flour / Cornstarch
Bob Saldeen
Lindsay
Jim Klein's Turkey Stock for Gravy
Turkey Gravy - Trish o'Tuama
Isabelle Hayes Wants to Know...
I'd like to find out from the cooks on this list about making smooth gravy by mixing the flour in the liquid first, until it's dissolved, then adding that liquid to the hot fat.
I know this is not the way anyone teaches it, and I am usually competent enough to do it by adding dry flour to the fat and mixing it together with a whisk (that's terribly important, to use a whisk rather than a spoon or fork), cooking it for a few minutes (all the cookbooks say to do this), then adding the liquid a little at a time (this is the tricky part) and continuously whisking until smooth, then adding a little more liquid, until it reaches the thickness you want in the gravy.
The first way described is much easier and much more foolproof, but I wonder at it anyway.
Gravy Made with Wheat Flour
Doug Essinger-Hileman
I would think that this wouldn't work very well, producing a "doughy" taste in the gravy. The idea behind mixing the flour with the fat is that the fat coats the flour, preventing an interaction with the flour and liquid that leads to the doughy taste.
Rowen
Flour, especially the 'instantized' kind (Wondra, Gold Medal brand is easiest, but regular flour works too if you sprinkle it into the liquid) dissolves easily and completely in COLD liquid (milk, water). I usually make my gravies and sauces that way as it takes so much less attention. Just add the proper amount of flour to a cold liquid, then stir into the hot (not boiling or simmering though) drippings. It works especially well when you want to thicken something like soup that has too much liquid to easily whisk into submission, or are unsure how much thickening you want as you can always add more easily.
And it shouldn't have a doughy taste, Doug, unless you don't let it cook long enough after adding to get hot.
The roux method works but requires a lot more skill, IMHO, to get smooth, perfect texture every time.
Lois
A rule of thumb is 2 Tablespoons of fat (drippings, butter), mixed with 2 tablespoons of flour (this mixture is the "roux" of classical cooking), for every cup of liquid (milk, broth, wine, pan juice, etc.). You mix the roux, cook it very briefly or brown if the recipe calls for it), then add the liquid and mix so it's smooth. Getting it smooth is the hard part. Cook to thicken as you want. Adjust, season with salt, pepper, whatever, etc.
The butter, flour, milk base is the foundation of good old "white sauce", and all sorts of classical sauces: Bechamel, etc. You can make a great "au gratin" dish by covering something with a thick, seasoned white sauce, pressing in a good amount of grated swiss cheese, and then broiling.
Astrid Bear
To make it smooth, follow the dictums of the Blessed Julia (Child): Remove roux from heat after it's cooked for 2 minutes. Add hot liquid slowly, while whisking with a whisk. Return to heat, and simmer, whisking every now and then. Did I mention about the whisk?
Lois Adds...
Or the hand-held "wand" appliance that works like a blender, that you can stick right into the pan? It can make any kitchen mess you've screwed up smooth. It also turns onions and pan juice into a great flourless gravy.
Jill Bennett
It wouldn't brown, but it wouldn't look rich like milk gravy either. If the flour is not cooked for at least a couple of minutes, it tastes like flour. I'm not sure why you would want to do it this way. When you have a liquid that already has some flour in it (pot roast, stew, etc) you can then add flour mixed with water and it cooks thru while thickening and, of course it is already brown from the meat. For unlumpy flour, put water in a jar or Tupperware and THEN put the flour in and shake well.
Charlezzzzz Muñoz, Grand Chef of the Gravy World
First make sure the electric can opener is plugged in. Then remove the can of gravy from the cupboard. Open the can, being careful not to cut yourself on the sharp edge. Place the contents of the can into the pot. Heat. Read while the gravy is heating, but try not to let it burn. (If it burns, remove another can of gravy from the cupboard and continue.) As for flour, why?
Gravy Made with Corn Flour / Cornstarch
Bob Saldeen
Am I the only person that makes gravy with corn starch around here? Less bulk needed...no taste difference that I can tell.
It's the way my dad taught me - I take a shaker, mix corn starch with milk, and shake it up. The corn starch dissolves completely. (I'm talking about 1/2 cup or so of milk).
Meanwhile, plain, no-flour-added milk is heating in skillet with sausage bits. I pour the cold milk/corn starch into the skillet with the warming milk--not yet simmering, but getting there. It mixes perfectly. No lumps. No whisk needed. I just stir with a spatula. Once it starts simmering the thickening begins.
Lindsay
I used to use the same method Isabelle until I discovered cornflour. My gravy and sauces are now foolproof (almost).
Here's how:
Take a few tablespoons of the cold gravy base (stock) and mix in a tablespoon of cornflour - you end up with a very thick liquid but not so thick that you cannot pour it. Whilst you're doing this heat the stock. When the stock is warm (not hot - important, as if it's too hot/close to boiling the cornflour mix will lump up immediately) pour in the cornflour mix. Stir the stock continuously and as it comes to the boil it will thicken up like a dream.
The trick is getting the cornflour mix to stock ratio correct, but the great thing about this method is that it's easy to add either some more cornflour mix if the gravy is too thin, or equally add some more stock if the gravy is too thick.
It always works, smooth as you like it, no lumps guaranteed!
Jim Klein's Turkey Stock for Gravy
Me? I made a turkey's worth of gravy.
I bought one of them big, old, cheap frozen tommies from Safeway for $10, stripped off the plastic, and tossed it in a pot. Then I added water to cover, and let it bubble gently for 9 hours, till the meat broke apart and got stringy.
Throw away the meat, cause there's no flavor left.
Add carrots, turnips, leeks, parsnips, onions, celery, and an apple for good luck.
Return to the heat and cook for another 3 hours.
Remove vegetables and discard.
Reduce to two gallons worth of liquid.
That's turkey stock, ready to make gravy.
Turkey Gravy - Trish o'Tuama
Turkey Drippings
1/4 cup butter
3 tbls flour
3/4 cup chicken or turkey broth
2 tbls vermouth (or other dry white wine)
salt and pepper
Remove turkey from pan and scrape drippings and other bits unto a saucepan. Add butter and heat until melted. Add flour and stir into drippings/butter mixture for two-three minutes. Add broth, then vermouth and stir over medium heat until the gravy thickens. Add salt and pepper to taste. You can use more or less broth depending on how thick you like your gravy to be.
We cook a 4 lb turkey breast -- if you are serving a large turkey you can double or triple the ingredients to make more gravy.