Gravy – the ultimate touch of every roasted meat and poultry dining party

If you are the kind of person who is meticulous about planning Christmas dinners, you would probably never underestimate the importance of gravy. Indeed, even the moistest turkey and the crunchiest baked potatoes will miss this flavoursome sauce, generously laded over steaming food.

Gravy is nothing modern

Gravy has been known to our ancestors at least as early as the 14th century when it first appeared in the famous English cookbook of the time, “The Forme of Cury”.

Undoubtedly, variations of gravy predated the book. Meat and poultry drippings containing fats and flavours would certainly be used to accompany dishes by our resourceful predecessors.

Today, such meat drippings are essential in gravy preparation, at least in the classical recipes.

Gravy variations are as numerous as nations

As the world moved on, different variations of gravy appeared. And new ingredients are being added, or some old ones are removed to suit the flavour for local populations.

For example, what Westerners call gravy can look and taste different from what the population from the East is used to. Gravy can thus be light in colour or golden brown, depending on the ingredients and the length of cooking. And in India, some curry sauces are also called gravy.

Making your own gravy is a straightforward process

Nowadays, gravy can be easily purchased in concentrated form in local grocery stores, saving you time and trouble to make it from scratch. Yet, if you are making a roast, gravy can be quickly whisked up at home in a matter of minutes.

In the modern interpretation of gravy, thickening agents like wheat flour or corn starch are introduced. The equal parts of fats (either reserved after roasting meat or poultry or just plain butter) and flour are mixed in a saucepan over heat. This mix is also known as roux. Then liquids (juices from roasting, stocks or milk) are gradually whisked into the roux to bring the gravy to a desired consistency.

Sometimes, condiments like Worcestershire sauce, vinegars or wines are used to deglaze pans with a roux. Some might add small pieces of meat to the gravy before serving, like in a “gravy and biscuits” dish that is popular in the southern states of the US.

An exquisite recipe for preparing a mouthwatering gravy and biscuits

Ingredients:

• 6 pieces of sticky bacon rashers
• 1 pack of pork meat sausages
• 1 finely sliced onion
• 1 clove of garlic
• 3 tbsp butter
• 3 tbsp flour
• 700 ml / 3 cups milk

Preparation:

1. Cook the bacon rashers in a pan. Remove the bacon, leaving the juices in the pan.
2. Place the meat sausages in the pan with the bacon juices, onion and garlic. Brown the sausages, then remove them from the pan.
3. Melt the butter in the pan with the fats, onion and garlic. Add flour and mix the roux until combined.
4. Gradually add the milk at room temperature to the pan with the roux. Stir to prevent flour from clumping until the desired consistency is achieved.
5. Cut or crumble the cooked bacon, return to the gravy and serve over the traditional US-style morning biscuits alongside the pork sausages.