# What was this U.S. breakfast dish? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 10, 2008, 6:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-this-u-s-breakfast-dish/476527 "2008-12-10T06:46:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2008, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-this-u-s-breakfast-dish/476527/81 "2008-12-11T17:49:13Z")
> [@Lynn\_Bodoni](#): > > Yeah, I forgot about that. Sometimes my husband or daughter will order hash browns or French fries with sausage gravy on the side. My husband is particularly fond of this. And then there’s Baltimore, with its French Fries and gravy. [![](https://farm4.static.flickr.com/3293/2932470431_6c68ee00ee.jpg?v=0) ](https://farm4.static.flickr.com/3293/2932470431_6c68ee00ee.jpg?v=0) And of course poutine [![](https://jevoispasdequoituparles.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/11/food_poutine_closeup.jpg) ](https://jevoispasdequoituparles.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/11/food_poutine_closeup.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Wile\_E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c37758/32.png) [@Wile\_E](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wile_E)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2008, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-this-u-s-breakfast-dish/476527/82 "2008-12-11T18:33:00Z")
> [@jjimm](#): > > OK, I have GOT GOT GOT to make this this weekend. > > The gravy I can do - I just need spiced sausage meat. But biscuits? Not so much. I tried to make them once and they were like hockey pucks. Anyone got any pointers? Look for those tubes of premade biscuits in the refrigerated section of your grocery store. All you need do is bake them. Oh sure, good homemade biscuits are better but when you are biscuitilly challenged, such as I, you learn to make do. Besides they are really just a vehicle for the gravy and these ones are fine for that. Concentrate on making good sausage gravy and don’t sweat the biscuits. ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2008, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-this-u-s-breakfast-dish/476527/83 "2008-12-11T18:41:41Z")
Biscuits and gravey is a very southern (actually south-eastern) dish. Don’t expect that everywhere in America. ---
**Author:** ![beanpod](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a9adbd/32.png) [@beanpod](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beanpod)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2008, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-this-u-s-breakfast-dish/476527/84 "2008-12-11T18:46:01Z")
[QUOTE=Wile E] \ …don’t sweat the biscuits. [/QUOTE] Heresy! The biscuit and the gravy have an equal partnership. If one of them isn’t good quality, then of course, the other will take up the slack and carry the load, but to abandon the poor biscuits that way is _shocking!_ Don’t listen to him, **jjimm**! You can do it! ---
**Author:** ![bouv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc8723/32.png) [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2008, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-this-u-s-breakfast-dish/476527/85 "2008-12-11T19:08:44Z")
> [@Zebra](#): > > Biscuits and gravey is a very southern (actually south-eastern) dish. Don’t expect that everywhere in America. It’s popular here. I know my uncle makes it all the time for family gatherings and from what I can tell it doesn’t seem out of place. ---
**Author:** ![Mollie\_Magill](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mollie_magill/32/20882_2.png) [@Mollie\_Magill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mollie_Magill)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2008, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-this-u-s-breakfast-dish/476527/86 "2008-12-11T19:12:08Z")
> [@Wile\_E](#): > > Look for those tubes of premade biscuits in the refrigerated section of your grocery store. All you need do is bake them. > > Oh sure, good homemade biscuits are better but when you are biscuitilly challenged, such as I, you learn to make do. Besides they are really just a vehicle for the gravy and these ones are fine for that. Concentrate on making good sausage gravy and don’t sweat the biscuits. This must be some sort of elaborate road-runner trap. ---
**Author:** ![Bridget\_Burke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7cd45c/32.png) [@Bridget\_Burke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bridget_Burke)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2008, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-this-u-s-breakfast-dish/476527/87 "2008-12-11T19:35:30Z")
> [@Mollie\_Magill](#): > > This must be some sort of elaborate road-runner trap. Just don’t buy the Acme Biscuits! ---
**Author:** ![LurkMeister](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3da27b/32.png) [@LurkMeister](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LurkMeister)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2008, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-this-u-s-breakfast-dish/476527/88 "2008-12-11T21:03:04Z")
Damn, now I have a taste for sausage gravy and biscuits, which I haven’t had in a while. And I don’t have any of the ingredients in the house, even if I were inclined to try making them for the first time. ---
**Author:** ![aerodave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f08c70/32.png) [@aerodave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aerodave)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2008, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-this-u-s-breakfast-dish/476527/89 "2008-12-11T21:34:37Z")
> [@beanpod](#): > > ETA: ha, perfect timing! **jjimm** , if your biscuits are too tough, you probably either didn’t add enough leavening or added too much flour. Stirring them too much can also make them tough. Another common reason for tough biscuits is using the wrong flour. Too much protein makes it hard for the baking powder to do its job, and you get something that might tend toward hockey-puck. Personally, I don’t use All-Purpose flour for just this reason. If it’s available where you live, you’re better off using flour labeled “Southern”, “soft”, or “winter wheat”. White Lily brand is my favorite. I used to think my biscuits were doing _okay_ with AP flour, but I discovered soft flour and never looked back. Huge improvement. If you can’t find that type, you can cut AP flour with cake flour. A 2:1 ratio (AP:cake) does a good job. ---
**Author:** ![Great\_Dave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/46a35a/32.png) [@Great\_Dave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Great_Dave)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2008, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-this-u-s-breakfast-dish/476527/90 "2008-12-11T23:31:29Z")
> [@Zebra](#): > > Biscuits and gravey is a very southern (actually south-eastern) dish. Don’t expect that everywhere in America. :rolleyes: We’ve already had people from all over the country report on biscuits and gravy. ---
**Author:** ![beanpod](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a9adbd/32.png) [@beanpod](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beanpod)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2008, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-this-u-s-breakfast-dish/476527/91 "2008-12-11T23:39:12Z")
[QUOTE=aerodave] If you can’t find that type, you can cut AP flour with cake flour. A 2:1 ratio (AP:cake) does a good job. [/QUOTE] I’ve heard that before, and I’m going to have to try it for the biscuits I make for Christmas dinner. I’ve always just used AP flour–and I have to admit, I’ve had a few batches just turn out like crap even when I was sure I didn’t mess anything up. ---
**Author:** ![Ogre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecb155/32.png) [@Ogre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ogre)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2008, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-this-u-s-breakfast-dish/476527/92 "2008-12-12T02:52:34Z")
> [@blondebear](#): > > Holiday Inn Express usually has biscuits and gravy as part of their breakfast bar. (Except the last time I stayed in Truckee – they ran out at 8 on a Sunday morning! :mad:) And as I found out recently, Holiday Inn is based out of Atlanta. ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2008, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-this-u-s-breakfast-dish/476527/93 "2008-12-12T04:25:04Z")
> [@aerodave](#): > > Personally, I don’t use All-Purpose flour for just this reason. If it’s available where you live, you’re better off using flour labeled “Southern”, “soft”, or “winter wheat”. White Lily brand is my favorite. I used to think my biscuits were doing _okay_ with AP flour, but I discovered soft flour and never looked back. Huge improvement. > > If you can’t find that type, you can cut AP flour with cake flour. A 2:1 ratio (AP:cake) does a good job. Oh, sure. Just bring up the [White Lily](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=472870&highlight=white+lilly) fiasco again! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![aerodave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f08c70/32.png) [@aerodave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aerodave)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2008, 6:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-this-u-s-breakfast-dish/476527/94 "2008-12-12T06:01:29Z")
> [@samclem](#): > > Oh, sure. Just bring up the [White Lily](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=472870&highlight=white+lilly) fiasco again! 😃 Wow…I totally missed that. I’ve even bought White Lily since then unknowingly. And I thought my last couple batches of biscuits didn’t rise enough. I chalked it up to too-old baking powder. I feel like crying. ---
**Author:** ![brujaja](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4af34b/32.png) [@brujaja](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brujaja)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2008, 7:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-this-u-s-breakfast-dish/476527/95 "2008-12-12T07:17:01Z")
ermm… pardon me, but > [@Auntbeast](#): > > Mmmm, fried okra and fried green tomatoes up next! and may I just say, fried okra…mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm. ---
**Author:** ![Nan\_Sequitur](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/e36b37/32.png) [@Nan\_Sequitur](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nan_Sequitur)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2008, 7:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-this-u-s-breakfast-dish/476527/96 "2008-12-12T07:56:45Z")
> [@Isamu](#): > > Anyway I took it all back to the table and tasted the oatmeal, which was not oatmeal at all but a delicious, savoury, chickeny stuff, which I ate with the biscuit. Ohhhh… one of the earliest memories I have is of waking up at my Grandmother’s house to the aroma of fresh coffee, biscuits and sausage gravy. She also made a milk gravy with the crusty leavings in the fried chicken pan which was heavenly too, so your memory may not be faulty at all. I’m a southern girl who can’t make biscuits, but there is a frozen biscuit made by Mary B’s which substitutes as an acceptable gravy substrate. It may be a regional product, though. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2008, 9:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-this-u-s-breakfast-dish/476527/97 "2008-12-12T09:06:29Z")
> [@Wile\_E](#): > > Look for those tubes of premade biscuits in the refrigerated section of your grocery store. All you need do is bake them. While I love this dish with a passion bordering on evangelism, I think the purchase of a transatlantic ticket to visit a country where they actually sell such tubes in the supermarkets would be a step too far, even for me. ---
**Author:** ![pepperlandgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f17d59/32.png) [@pepperlandgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pepperlandgirl)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2008, 9:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-this-u-s-breakfast-dish/476527/98 "2008-12-12T09:29:43Z")
> [@SmellMyWort](#): > > Not even limited to cities with significan black populations or below the Mason-Dixon. I’ve seen biscuits and gravy and chicken fried steak in breakfast restaurants all over the Midwest, including towns I’d wager a guess were 100% white, or close. No kidding. I grew up on biscuits and gravy and chicken fried steak. You can find them in pretty much any local diner in Utah. My parents made both dishes all the time. And there is no black population in Utah. Neither is Salt Lake City anywhere near the south. ---
**Author:** ![Zabali\_Clawbane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/ecd19e/32.png) [@Zabali\_Clawbane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zabali_Clawbane)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2008, 9:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-this-u-s-breakfast-dish/476527/99 "2008-12-12T09:52:49Z")
> [@jjimm](#): > > OK, I have GOT GOT GOT to make this this weekend. > > The gravy I can do - I just need spiced sausage meat. But biscuits? Not so much. I tried to make them once and they were like hockey pucks. Anyone got any pointers? Alton Brown has good pointers. If I recall correctly, it is basically scone batter that you should be making. Don’t stir too much, lumps are ok! ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2008, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-this-u-s-breakfast-dish/476527/100 "2008-12-12T14:56:46Z")
Argh. I got out of bed, made coffee, started a fire, but haven’t eaten anything. And I read this thread! Now I’m hungry. I got my biscuit recipe off the back of a tin of Clabber Girl baking soda. I haven’t made biscuits in years, but they’ve always turned out fine. (I tend not to have milk when I think of making biscuits, as I seldom have milk.) I use a tumbler of the right diameter (about two inches) to cut out the biscuits from the dough. I prefer sausage with my breakfast, but I rarely buy it. Bacon is more usual. To make my gravy I fry up six rashers of bacon and remove it from the pan. As described earlier, I mix about an equal amount of flour into it, stir the lumps out, and toast it a bit. Then I add milk, salt (as needed), pepper, and the crumbled bacon. But as usual I have no milk. And the bacon is in the freezer. And I have to start working in an hour. The four-day Christmas weekend is coming though, so maybe I’ll get to it. With sausage. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-this-u-s-breakfast-dish/476527.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-this-u-s-breakfast-dish/476527.md?page=6)