I’m not a particularly gifted cook, but I can follow direction and stir-fry anything short of moss or pebbles.
I grew up in an ultra-traditional Mormon household where to women cook and the men do whatever ultra-traditional men do. My father was vaguely aware that there was a kitchen in the house, but I never saw him make anything and I received no instructions on cooking.
Anyway, I need to learn to cook gravy. My Taiwanese wife loves gravy but has no idea how to cook it.
I’ve tried a couple of recipes gleaned off the net, but haven’t found anything particularly special. I haven’t gotten the consistency right and can’t get rid of lumps.
Help me out here. What is a recipe which reasonably to follow and doen’t take special ingredients, which I wouldn’t be able to source in Japan.
Just to be clear… are you talking about gravy that Americans put on biscuits, gravy that Italian-Americans put on pasta, or gravy that [people generally] pour over their sunday roast?
As far as lumps are concerned (in any thickened sauce), I find it’s usually possible to get rid of them with a small balloon whisk - just keep whisking over a low heat until they’re gone.
In general, whether you’re making an American-style gravy* or meat-based gravy like we enjoy in these parts, the best way to avoid lumps is either a) to mix up the powdered thickening agent in a small amount of liquid (milk/water) first to make an amalgam with the consistency of cream, and then mix thoroughly when it reaches the roux; or b) to add the thickening agent dry via a sieve in small amounts while the roux is off the heat, and mix frenetically with a whisk until it’s smooth, then return to the heat, mixing still, before repeating the process.
*I made an excellent American-style one in Hong Kong using local ingredients - butter, milk, flour, ground sausagemeat, mixed herbs, salt and pepper.
The best way to avoid lumps is by not using a thickening agent that you add at the end. By this I mean either flour/water mixture or cornstarch. The best way to make gravy is by using pan drippings (or oil) and adding flour to them, and forming a roux. You add enough flour to make the mixture have a consistency that is thick but will still run together after a few seconds when you scrape through it. You cook this over a medium heat, preferrably in a cast iron pan, whisking constantly, until the flour browns. The longer you cook the flour, the darker the color and the stronger the flavor, but the weaker the thickening properties will be. Once you reach your desired color, you add your liquid, either water or some chicken or beef broth. You continue whisking until all the liquid is incorporated and the gravy is your desired consistency.
I have never had lumps using this method. However, lumps are common if you start with the liquid, and add the thickening agent at the end instead of the beginning.
It is possible to add flour/water at the end and reduce the amount of lumpage, however this requires that when you pour your water/flour mixture into the liquid, you pour it through some kind of strainer, and be whisking as you add the mixture. It is much more difficult, and even doing it this way, you will probably still have some lumps. You are much better off using oil/flour and forming a roux at the beginning.
Cover your ears and run away screaming if you like, but I sometimes thicken gravy at the last minute by adding a bit of wholemeal flour and whisking it in - it doesn’t clump up so easily as ordinary flour (and as you say, TripleTee, the roux method is the proper way to do it). If the gravy already contains bits of pan drippings and little crunchy bits of roast veg, herbs and so on, then the fine pieces of bran from the wholemeal flour aren’t noticeable at all. It wouldn’t work with a gravy that’s supposed to come out smooth and translucent.
The problem with having all the thickening agent in at the beginning, is you never really know how much you need until the end - especially if you’re using pan juices, the volume of which can’t really be predicted.
True, of course, but when I’m making gravy that way I have plenty of standby liquid available in the shape of the water the vegetables have been cooked in, and just add as much as necessary. I’ve already picked up one tip in this thread (the more you brown the flour, the less it thickens the gravy) and just want to add that if you’re really tired of your heart and want a new one you can mix an ounce of butter with an ounce of flour to make beurre manie and whisk that into the liquid a little at a time - that’s what I did last time I made coq au vin.
I don’t really cook gravy to a recipe, but the one I made for last sunday’s roast chicken kicked arse, so I’ll attempt to recreate it here:
In 1 tbsp butter fry 1/2 finely chopped onion until soft. Add 1 glass white wine (though I think I read in another thread that you’re keeping away from the booze, so you might want to skip that bit - try substituting with a spoon or two of chilli jelly or fruit-based preserve in the stock mixture) and 500 ml hot chicken stock from a cube or jar, made up with the water you’ve boiled veg in, into which has been dissolved 1 heaped tsp dijon mustard and 1 tsp dried mixed herbs, and freshly ground black pepper to taste - no salt needed, as most stock is salted to bejaysus already. Allow to simmer for about five minutes.
When the bird is done, transfer it to a serving dish and allow to stand. Take the roasting dish, tip it up a bit and skim off most of the fat, but retaining the juices. Pour the stock mixture into the pan and return to the stove until it’s boiling away fiercely. Meanwhile mix a heaped tsp of cornflour (cornstarch) in about 150 ml of cold water to make a smooth paste. Take the pan off the heat and allow to cool for a minute or two, then pour in the paste, whisking vigorously until it’s mixed thoroughly. Turn down the heat to medium and return the pan to the stove, and simmer until it’s the required thickness. Serve!
For roast beef, I’m usually happy with the following:
Remove the meat to a serving dish and pour off most of the juices into a clear Pyrex jug or a fat separator. Keeping the roasting tin off the heat, add the tablespoon of cornflour or wheat flour as above and mix the bejaysus out of it with the small amount of fat left in the roasting tin. Add a few tablespoons of warm juices (defatted), mix well and also deglaze any pan-scraps at this point. Put back over heat and bring to the boil, mixing continuously and adding more liquid as the mix starts to thicken (which it’s likely to do quite rapidly). Add vegetable water for more volume. Keep mixing thoroughly and you will keep the lump problem under control. Adjust seasoning to taste. Any meat juices which have drained from the roast meanwhile or which leak out during carving can likewise be added to the gravy. Practice makes perfect.
I never get enough pan juices to make gravy anyway; I always supplement it with some stock and a bit of wine. Unless it’s a pot roast, but then I would strain the juices into a measuring cup so I know how much I have.
Anyway, for standard gravy I use 1 tablespoon of flour per cup of liquid, or 1.5 Tbsp if I want a thicker gravy or if I intend to brown it a lot.
