The Best Homemade Beef Gravy Recipe (How to Make Brown Gravy) (2024)

FAQs

How do I make my gravy more brown? ›

Soft, fragrant, sautéed vegetables lend a sweet, earthy, warm flavor to your store-bought gravy. Use any combination of onions, leeks, shallots, celery, carrots, and mushrooms cooked in butter, olive oil, or pan drippings. When the veggies are sufficiently sautéed, stir in your jarred gravy and simmer on low.

What is the difference between brown gravy and beef gravy? A brown gravy comes from any brown stock, whereas beef gravy always comes from beef stock specifically. In other words, all beef gravy is a brown gravy but not all brown gravy is beef gravy.

To make dark brown beef gravy, cook the roux even longer (but at a lower temperature) until it's a dark color with a nutty aroma. Then use beef broth or beef juices to make your gravy.

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.

Herbs and spices: Add dried herbs like thyme, rosemary, or sage, or spices such as black pepper, paprika, or cayenne pepper. These will impart additional flavors and complexity to the gravy.

Browning adds more flavor to the gravy and gets rid of the raw flour taste. You're basically making a roux. We find that a flour-based gravy holds up better and reheats better later, which is why we tend to prefer using flour over cornstarch to make gravy unless we have a guest who is eating gluten-free.

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.)

If the gravy lacks oomph, adjust seasoning as necessary with kosher salt and freshly ground pepper. If you used canned stock instead of homemade, the gravy might not be as flavorful. Homemade stock, even made with chicken stock rather than turkey, will produce a superior gravy—so it's worth the effort.

What is the difference between brown sauce and brown gravy? ›

Originally Answered: What is the difference between a gravy and a sauce? Gravy is made from and for meat, often using cooking juices from meat and parts of animal like reduced skin and fat. A sauce doesn't have to have any meat or meat products in it, it's a smooth liquid based condiment used to accompany a meal.

Other common names include country gravy, sawmill gravy, milk gravy, and sausage gravy.

At its most basic, gravy is a thickened sauce made of meat drippings + stock + seasonings.

INGREDIENTS: CORNSTARCH, WHEAT FLOUR, DEXTROSE, HYDROLYZED CORN, SOY, WHEAT PROTEIN WITH SUNFLOWER OIL, SALT, YEAST EXTRACT (YEAST EXTRACT, NATURAL FLAVOR, SALT, MALTODEXTRIN ), NONFAT DRY MILK, CANOLA OIL, ONION, SILICON DIOXIDE (TO PREVENT CAKING), GARLIC, BEEF FAT WITH TOCOPHEROL , CARAMEL COLOR, EXTRACTIVES OF ...

You need to throw some fat in first. Fat cooked with flour is called a roux. Heat your oil/butter/lard/shortening/pan drippings/bacon grease in a pan. Add an equal weight of flour and cook it over medium to medium high heat, stirring all the time until you get a nice brown color.

The color of the finished roux will determine the color of the gravy. To make a roux, cook the flour in oil, butter or pan drippings. Heat the roux long enough for the color to deepen a little darker than the desired color of the gravy. Darker roux produces a deeper, richer flavor.

The longer you cook, the darker the roux becomes, the more flavor it will have, but the less thick gravy it will make. That over-the-top brick roux is only 25% as effective as a white roux at thickening. So, you need to ponder how much flavor you want versus how thick you want your gravy to become.

Dark roux

That dark roux can be used as a browning sauce substitute because it will add a similar taste and color to your recipe, enhancing the depth without adding too much thickening power. It's important to note that roux is made with flour, so using it as a substitute means your dish will no longer be gluten-free.