Homemade Turkey Gravy

An easy and foolproof way to make Homemade Turkey Gravy with or without drippings. Use this recipe to make almost any gravy- chicken, pork, beef, or turkey!

*Originally published November 2016. Photos and text updated.*

Homemade Turkey Gravy

I know gravy scares a lot of people and it shouldn’t. I promise, promise, promise it really isn’t hard to make at all!!!!

And in my opinion it’s just one of those things that just makes the Thanksgiving meal complete, I mean how can you eat mashed potatoes without gravy?!?  

I know there is always butter but homemade gravy is just hard to beat. Honestly, I pour gravy over my mashed potatoes, stuffing and turkey because I like it that much! It just adds that little something extra that makes it taste sooo good.

How do I make homemade gravy using pan drippings?

This is actually really easy and makes for a very flavorful gravy.

1. Drain and reserve any pan drippings you have. It can be from roasted chicken, turkey, beef, or pork. It also will work with meat juices from meat cooked in a slow cooker.
2. Pour meat drippings into a 4 cup measuring cup. Spoon off the fat. Add in enough stock to measure 4 cups of liquid. Set aside.
3. In a small saucepan melt butter (you could also replace the butter with the skimmed fat which provides even more flavor!) over medium-high heat.
4. Stir in flour and continue to stir and cook for a couple of minutes.
5. Slowly pour and whisk in the reserved drippings/stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until thickened.
6. If too thick whisk in a little more stock. Remove from heat and taste for salt and pepper and adjust to taste.

How do I make gluten-free gravy?

1. Drain and reserve any pan drippings you have. It can be from roasted chicken, turkey, beef, or pork. It also will work with meat juices from meat cooked in a slow cooker.
2. Pour meat drippings into a 4 cup measuring cup. Spoon off the fat. Add in enough stock to measure 4 cups of liquid.
3. Pour meat drippings into a saucepan and bring to a boil.
4. Meanwhile, in a small bowl combine 2 tablespoons cornstarch with 2 tablespoons of water. You will use half of the amount of cornstarch as flour.
5. When meat drippings are boiling whisk in the cornstarch slurry and cook for 1 minute. Remove from heat and season to taste.

How do I make gravy without drippings?

Just replace the drippings with broth/stock and stir in a small amount of bouillon for flavor.

How do I make gravy with milk?

Simply replace the extra broth or stock with milk. It makes a creamy variation and is oh so yummy! Perfect for serving with fried chicken or chicken fried steak!

How to darken gravy?

If your gravy is looking a little pale simply add a little dark soy sauce to the gravy before seasoning it with salt. I promise it won’t make it taste weird unless you are adding a lot of soy sauce.

Just add a little at a time tasting as you go until you reach the color of your liking. Then season with salt and pepper if extra is needed.

Troubleshooting homemade gravy problems

• Gravy is greasy or broken
  • Be sure to use the same amount of flour as you do fat or butter. So, if you are using 4 tablespoons of butter you will need 4 tablespoons of flour. Also, be sure to skim off any fat from the meat juices because that extra fat will cause the gravy to break. To fix this add more thickener and simmer. Or run it through a high powered blender to re-emulsify the gravy. Fat is flavor so don’t be afraid to use it. I often skim off the fat but use it to replace the butter when I make the gravy.
• It’s too salty
  • To fix this you can either make a new batch or create another roux and add water until thickened and add that to the gravy. So melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a pan and add 2 tablespoons of flour. Cook for 1 minute and whisk in 1 cup of water. Cook until thickened and whisk this into the gravy.
• It’s too thin
  • Make a cornstarch slurry (equal parts cornstarch and cold water or stock) OR make a paste out of equal parts softened butter and flour. Whisk in a little of the slurry or the butter/flour paste and bring to a simmer. Whisk in more slurry or paste as needed until you reach the right consistency.
• It’s too thick
  • Whisk in more broth until you reach the consistency you are looking for. Remember to taste and reseason if necessary.
• Taste is off or weird
  • Be sure to taste your meat drippings before making gravy. If they taste burnt you can’t use them. Just use broth or stock instead.
  • Add depth of flavor by adding soy sauce (just a little) or simmer with some sauteed onions and garlic or some fresh herbs to add flavor.
  • Also, salt will bring out flavor too.
• It’s lumpy
  • Strain the gravy through a fine-mesh strainer or run through a high powered blender.

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