 |
Recipe: Basic Chicken or Turkey Gravy
11/19/2002
Yes, Virginia, you can make gravy. It doesn't take years of practice or
the help of a magician. In fact, you can even whip up a batch a day or two
before the big event to avoid a last-minute hassle.
Here's how:
• Basic Chicken or Turkey Gravy
4 tablespoons fat from poultry pan drippings, or unsalted butter
3
tablespoons all-purpose flour
¼ cup white wine (optional)
2
cups liquid: canned or homemade turkey or chicken stock
Salt and
pepper to taste
To make ahead: Melt the butter over medium heat in a saucepan big
enough to hold all the liquid (see note). Sprinkle the flour into the pan
all at once and stir vigorously with a fork as the butter foams, for 3
minutes or more, until lightly browned. The flour will absorb the butter
and expand. Remove from heat.
Add the wine, if using, stirring constantly. Put the pan back on the
burner on medium heat and, continuing to stir, gradually add the stock.
If you wish, you can switch to a whisk. (Be warned: When only part of
the liquid has been added, this will look like a mess, but don't give
up!) Stir constantly until smooth.
At this point, add your choice of seasonings: sage, thyme, bay leaf,
salt, pepper and Kitchen Bouquet if desired. Simmer, stirring
occasionally, for at least 10 minutes to develop flavors. Remove bay
leaf if used.
There. It's done. Put the gravy in a bowl, let it cool slightly, cover
and store in the refrigerator until shortly before serving time. It will
congeal when cold.
|
What's the worst that could happen?
Lumps? If you
have a food processor, blend the gravy in batches until it's
smooth. Perhaps even easier, just pour it through a strainer
to remove the offensive lumps.
Too thick? Stir
in more stock, drippings or wine until you like the
consistency.
Too thin?
Cornstarch to the rescue. One tablespoon of cornstarch will
thicken 11/2 to 2 cups of liquid. Make a slurry by combining
a few tablespoons of cornstarch with enough water to make a
smooth, pourable mixture. Add a little to the gravy,
stirring, and bring to a boil. If not thick enough, add more
of the cornstarch mixture and return to a boil. Cornstarch
does not reach its full thickening strength until the
mixture reaches the boiling point.
|
|
To reheat: Put it back into a pan and bring back to a simmer over
medium heat, stirring occasionally. Or you could reheat it in the
microwave oven. By now, it's Thanksgiving Day and the turkey is out of the
oven. You could add some drippings from the turkey roasting pan for a
perfect finishing touch.
Now you can either strain the gravy into a serving boat for an elegant,
pristine presentation; or you can leave in all those pieces of herbs and
flavorings from the pan to proclaim that this is real, homemade gravy –
not from a can, jar or mix.
To make after the turkey is roasted: It's the same process to
make gravy on Turkey Day.
Remove the turkey and rack from the roasting pan. Pour off the juices
from the pan into a large glass measuring cup or bowl. Let cool until
fat rises to the surface. (Or use the special measuring cups that are
designed to let you remove the fat right away.)
Meanwhile, pour the wine into roasting pan and, over low heat on a
stovetop burner, stir to loosen the flavor-packed browned bits from the
bottom of the pan. This may look like the "before" in a detergent
commercial, but those browned bits are what give the gravy flavor.
Using the ingredient measurements given above, spoon fat from the glass
container back into the roasting pan. Proceed as directed, adding flour,
stock and seasonings. You may replace some or all of the stock with the
defatted pan drippings.
Makes about 2 cups.
Note: The recipe can be doubled or tripled, so choose a saucepan
big enough to hold the quantity of liquid, plus have room to stir.
SOURCE: The Fanny Farmer Cookbook
|
|
