Sauces

Best-Ever Turkey Gravy

A silky, deeply flavored gravy built on roasted drippings, aromatic vegetables, herbs and a rich turkey stock.

Glossy turkey gravy poured from a white ceramic pitcher over sliced turkey roulade on a cream plate

Prep: 20 minutes
Cook: 45 minutes (plus 3 hours for optional stock)
Serves: 8
Difficulty: Approachable

Make AheadBase can be made 3 days ahead; finish with drippings.

Cooking for

guests

Gravy is the dish most often left to the final chaotic ten minutes, and it deserves better. Build the stock a week early, make the base the day before, and finish with the roasting-pan drippings while the roulade rests. The last step then takes four minutes instead of forty.

Ingredients

Make-ahead turkey stock (optional but excellent)

2 lb turkey wings, necks and reserved leg bones
1 large onion, quartered
2 medium carrots, cut in chunks
2 ribs celery, cut in chunks
6 sprigs thyme
2 bay leaves
10 cups cold water

Gravy

6 tbsp unsalted butter (or half butter, half turkey fat)
1 small onion, finely diced
6 tbsp all-purpose flour
5 cups turkey or chicken stock, warm
¼ cup dry white wine or dry sherry
2 sprigs sage
1 tsp soy sauce or tamari, for depth
Kosher salt and black pepper to taste

Method

Stock (up to 1 week ahead)

1
Roast the turkey pieces at 425°F for 40 minutes, until deeply browned.
2
Transfer to a pot with the vegetables, herbs and cold water. Bring barely to a simmer and cook uncovered 3 hours, skimming once or twice. Never let it boil.
3
Strain, cool and refrigerate. Lift off and reserve the fat cap — it makes better gravy than butter.

The gravy base (up to 3 days ahead)

1
Melt the butter in a heavy saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook 5 minutes until translucent.
2
Sprinkle in the flour and whisk constantly 4 to 5 minutes, until the roux smells toasty and turns the color of light peanut butter.
3
Add the warm stock about a cup at a time, whisking each addition completely smooth before adding the next. This is the entire secret to lump-free gravy.
4
Add the wine and sage and simmer gently 20 minutes, whisking now and then, until it coats a spoon. Season carefully — it will concentrate again when you add drippings.

Finishing with pan drippings

1
When the roulade comes out, pour the roasting-pan contents into a fat separator. Reserve the fat for another use.
2
Set the roasting pan over two burners on medium heat, add a splash of stock or wine and scrape up every browned bit with a wooden spoon.
3
Whisk the deglazing liquid and the defatted juices into the warm gravy base. Simmer 3 to 4 minutes, add the soy sauce, and taste again.
4
Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a warmed pitcher for a glossy, restaurant-smooth finish.

Chef Dawn's Tips

Too thick: whisk in warm stock a few tablespoons at a time off the boil.
Too thin: simmer uncovered, or whisk 1 tablespoon softened butter with 1 tablespoon flour and beat it in a bit at a time, cooking 3 minutes after.
Too salty: add unsalted stock plus a splash of cream, or add a peeled potato chunk and simmer 10 minutes, then discard.
Lumpy anyway: an immersion blender, then a fine sieve, fixes everything and nobody will ever know.
Flat-tasting: a teaspoon of soy sauce, a squeeze of lemon or a spoonful of cider vinegar wakes the whole pot up.

Make Ahead & Storage

Refrigerate up to 3 days or freeze up to 2 months. Reheat gently over low heat, whisking, and loosen with warm stock; never boil, which breaks the texture.

Original recipe, testing notes and photography by Chef Dawn Creates.