Easy Recipe for Gravy without Drippings (2024)

FAQs

Is it better to make gravy with flour or cornstarch? ›

What's the difference between using cornstarch or flour to make your gravy? Cornstarch does have more thickening power than wheat flour (because it's pure starch, while flour has some protein in it). So usually you need a little less cornstarch than flour for the equivalent thickening power.

Originally Answered: How to make gravy without broth? You don't need a meat broth to make gravy. You can use water, milk, or cream to make a gravy. Brown flour in hot drippings or other fat, then slowly add the liquid while stirring.

You cannot make gravy with just water and flour. What you will get is a slurry, not gravy. To make gravy you mix equal parts of oil (or butter) and flour. Whisk them together until you have a smooth roux. Cook over medium low heat, stirring constantly, for about 3 minutes.

How do you fix gravy if you accidentally added too much cornstarch? The best thing you could do to loosen the gravy is to add more liquid - broth or water. Then, check the seasonings. You would need to add salt if you added water to it.

If your gravy is on the skimpy side, you can thicken it quickly with flour or cornstarch. But don't add your thickener directly to the gravy, which will create lumps. Instead, try stirring in three or four tablespoons of flour or cornstarch into a small amount of cold water until you have a smooth paste.

Bonus: Seasoning for Tasty Gravy

I only season my homemade gravy with salt and pepper, and it's delicious! If you want to add more spices, avoid anything with large pieces (such as dried rosemary) to keep gravy smooth. Thyme, onion powder, garlic powder, parsley, paprika, and oregano all taste great.

A traditional roux uses roughly an equal amount of flour and fat, but gravies often call for a bit more flour than that, to ensure the gravy is thick enough. (The classic ratio for gravy is three:two:one, so 3 tablespoons flour, 2 tablespoons fat, and 1 cup of hot stock.)

Fortunately, Shannon has several suggestions for fixing bland gravy, starting by adding a bouillon cube, herbs or a splash of wine or cognac. But if you have time to spare, add pan drippings from turkey, bacon or bacon drippings, caramelized vegetables (like onions, leeks, carrots and celery), herbs or garlic.

Flour + water is called a “slurry”. Flour + butter (or other fat) is either a Beurre manié or a roux, depending on if it's raw or cooked. For making gravy with a slurry, you would combine flour and *cool* water until hom*ogeneous, then whisk it into the simmering stock/drippings.

Should stock be warm when making gravy? ›

It used to be said that the broth must be cold or the gravy will turn out lumpy. We made three gravies, one with gently simmering broth, one with room-temperature broth, and one with cold broth. Adding the warm broth shaved a few minutes off the cooking time, but there was no discernible difference in quality.

In most cases, stock and broth are interchangeable. If you're in the soup aisle and can't remember whether the recipe called for stock or broth, either will do for making soup, gravy, or a flavorful pot of rice or grains. Keep in mind that stock is unseasoned, and broth is seasoned.

Melt butter in a medium-sized sauce pan. Add flour and whisk constantly until mixture is golden caramel color and smells fragrant (3-5 minutes). Slowly whisk in liquids, while whisking, until mixture is smooth. Bring to a simmer and cook until thickened and bubbly, 5 minutes or longer.

1.5 tablespoons fat to 1.5 tablespoons flour to 1 cup liquid, which yields 1 cup of gravy. (Note: If you like your gravy thicker, go with 2 tablespoons of fat and 2 tablespoons of flour to 1 cup of liquid, which yields 1 cup of gravy).

Mix a little flour and water in a bowl.

Be sure to use cold water, since warm or hot water will cause the flour to clump together. If you want a thicker sauce, add a little more flour.

Cornstarch works remarkably well as a thickener in sauces, gravy, and pie fillings, and some prefer it to flour. 2 You won't be able to taste the cornstarch the way you sometimes can taste the flour. Be aware that these foods will be more translucent.

Cornstarch should thicken gravy in less than a minute when at a simmer. If it doesn't thicken enough, it's a sign that you need more cornstarch. Whisk in more cornstarch slurry a little at a time, and let each addition come to a simmer before adding more.

If you've ever made a roux, you know how well good ol' all-purpose flour thickens sauces, gravies, and stews. It's not a perfect substitute for cornstarch: A sauce thickened with cornstarch will be more translucent, while one thickened with all-purpose flour will be opaque and have a thicker texture.

Easy-to-access alternatives are wheat flour, arrowroot flour, and rice flour. These are good alternatives to cornstarch because they are more nutritious and contain fewer carbohydrates and calories. Xanthan and guar gum are much stronger thickeners than cornstarch, but they can be harder to obtain and use.