No need to fret over making homemade gravy ever again! Nope. It’s easy-peasy and I’ll teach you how! It comes out perfect every time and it’s so very good that you’ll want to lick the pan! Doing the dishes just got a whole lot more fun! 😉
And so did the holiday dinner! Because, if you, too, make your turkey in advance, you can make the gravy ahead of time, too! Yep!
Because the holidays are busy-busy, this is actually a pic of the leftovers from the next day that are only lukewarm before popping the last into the fridge! And if my gravy still looks this good…you KNOW you can count on my recipe! *
You can always thin it out a bit with the extra broth from the turkey in the crockpot, but we like ours just a bit thicker. (I don’t like my gravy to run all over my plate invading other dishes that clash with it. But that’s just a personal preference.)
Just make it according to my amounts and directions, and then you can simply dip into the broth and thin it a bit to however you enjoy it most!
And any leftovers can be thinned a bit, too, as gravy thickens each day. But just note that it’s thinner than the pic above when first made. I had forgotten to take a photo, so this was all I could get the next day. 😉
What I love most about this, is that there’s no last minute fretting and scrambling in the kitchen. Thanksgiving has a few too many last-minute dishes to make and turkey carving to do, that it all just made the holiday extremely stressful.
I now prepare and make everything ahead of time and everyone’s happy and dinner is served on time with almost no fuss and mess at all! It just can’t be any easier and more efficient. The holiday should be enjoyable, relaxing, and you should be able to spend time with friends and family instead of jailed in the kitchen and missing all of the fun, laughter and football games!
So check out my Holiday Turkey recipe if you missed it, and this gravy will come together in a snap!
You can of course make it the day of, but if it tastes and is exactly the same with minor adjustments, why not toss all of the stress down the garbage disposal, grab a cocktail, and just have a blast at the party, too? I say, who needs all the worry?!
Just because it wasn’t made the “day of” doesn’t lessen it and make it bad by any means. You still made it homemade and some things taste even better the next day anyways. 😉
Hope this is another one that helps you out during the chaos of the holidays, and starts a new tradition in your kitchen as well! Enjoy all, and happy holidays!! 🙂
PERFECT EVERY TIME TURKEY GRAVY from SCRATCH
4 Tbl. butter
4 Tbl. flour
1 (14.5 oz.) can chicken broth, or 1 3/4 cups homemade from a stewed chicken
1 1/2 cups pan drippings from roasted turkey, *see note about fat
1 1/2 Tbl. cornstarch
1 1/2 Tbl. COLD water
1/2 tsp. poultry seasoning
1/4 tsp. ground rosemary
salt and coarse ground black pepper to taste adding a small amount at a time (*I usually start with a 1/4 tsp. coarse ground black pepper and a 1/2 tsp. salt)
DIRECTIONS:
In large saucepan over medium to med-low heat, melt butter. Stir in flour and cook, stirring constantly, for 5 minutes. Do not brown. Slowly whisk in broth and *drippings from roast turkey keeping mixture creamy and lump-free, and bring to a boil while whisking. Whisk and boil until thickened, about 2-3 more minutes. Stir in poultry seasoning and ground rosemary. In small glass, mix well the cornstarch and cold water until completely combined scraping bottom to incorporate all of the cornstarch. While whisking, pour in “cornstarch slurry”. Whisk for 1-2 more minutes while simmering. Taste and add salt and pepper to your liking add very small amounts at a time. You can also add a tiny bit more poultry seasoning, but be careful adding this as well. It contains a lot of sage and sage is a very potent herb and a little of it goes a LONG way. *Remember, you can always add but you can’t take out! (*I don’t recommend whole rosemary and don’t particularly care for crushed. The ground keeps the gravy smooth while still adding flavor.)
Serve now, or refrigerate in covered dish or container with a lid until the next day. To reheat the next day, place back into a saucepan and warm over low heat until hot. Whisk in a LITTLE broth at a time from the crockpot of turkey or extra broth you have on hand until the exact consistency you like. taste for saltiness and add more salt and pepper if needed.
*Note: If you don’t have a fat separator, pour drippings from roasting pan into a heatproof glass measuring pitcher to equal just slightly more than 1 1/2 cups and refrigerate. When fat comes to the top and solidifies, remove with a slotted spoon and discard.