Making Gravy

Gravy is the name for the sauce, based on the meat juices, that is served with meat or poultry. Although the unthickened meat juices are sometimes called gravy, this name is usually reserved for the sauce made by thickening these juices with flour, cornstarch, or another thickening agent.

Contrary to the opinion of many inexperienced cooks, good smooth gravy is not difficult to make. The one important step to making lumpless gravy involves separation of the starch particles in the thickening agent. When flour or cornstarch is added directly to a hot liquid, the starch particles clump together and form lumps. Once formed, these lumps are difficult to eliminate, but they can be prevented by initially coating the particles with fat or by mixing the starch with a cold liquid.

Although the end products are indistinguishable from each other, the two types of gravy - pan gravy and kettle gravy - differ in the way the starch is initially dispersed. Use pan gravy when there is a high proportion of fat to liquid. This method is very similar to making a white sauce. The flour, cornstarch, or other thickening agent is stirred right into the meat drippings, allowing the fat to coat the starch particles. The liquid is then gradually stirred in as the mixture cooks. On the other hand, use kettle gravy when there is a lot of liquid but not much fat in the meat juices. In this method the starch is first dispersed by mixing it with a cold liquid, usually water or milk. The starch liquid mixture is then stirred into the simmering meat juices.

With both types of gravy, constant stirring is also important in preventing lumps. If the gravy is cooked only until it thickens, it will have a raw starch taste. Therefore, simmer the gravy for a few minutes after the mixture starts to thicken.

If, despite every care, there are some lumps in the gravy you make, strain them out or whirl the gravy in a bender for a few seconds. If you measured the fat a bit too generously so that some rises to the top of your finished gravy, skim the excess off with a spoon or a piece of paper toweling, or with an ice cube that is wrapped in a piece of clean cloth.

In recent years, cooks have welcomed the introduction of instant type flour for making gravy. This flour has been pretreated so that it is less apt to lump than is regular flour. However, when making kettle gravy, the instant zed flour still must be combined with some kind of cold liquid before stirring into the hot meat juices.

Probably the easiest way to ensure lumpless gravy is to use canned gravy or packaged gravy mix. These products are also very convenient when you are in a hurry or when you want to serve gravy with leftover meat or meat that does not have enough drippings to make gravy.

Gravy is probably most commonly served over potatoes as an accompaniment to meat, but this is by no means its only use. There are many other foods that are especially delicious when served with gravy. Try it over rice, dumplings, or stuffing. Spoon hot gravy over a roast beef sandwich, and make it a hot entrée serving. Mushroom gravy served over meat loaf converts it from a plain to a special main dish. In fact, spooning the gravy over any meat dish makes the meat seem more moist.