The Best Roast Beef Gravy Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is the secret to good gravy? ›

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.

What are the best cuts of meat to use for oven roast beef? Some popular cuts include bottom round roast (like we used), rump roast, top round roast, eye of round roast, boneless chuck roast, sirloin tip roast, and more.

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.

Fortunately, Shannon has several suggestions for fixing bland gravy, starting by adding a bouillon cube, herbs or a splash of wine or cognac. But if you have time to spare, add pan drippings from turkey, bacon or bacon drippings, caramelized vegetables (like onions, leeks, carrots and celery), herbs or garlic.

Flour is a natural thickening agent and can be incorporated into your sauce with a few different methods (for a gluten-free option, you can also use arrowroot flour or a gluten-free flour blend like Bob's Red Mill's 1 to 1 or King Arthur's Measure for Measure). One way to thicken gravy with flour is by making a slurry.

It's bland.

The solution: The first thing you should try is adding a little more salt, as salt helps bring out the inherent flavors of the gravy that you didn't taste before. If that doesn't work, add umami (savory)-heavy condiments like soy sauce or Worcestershire sauce.

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

KFC Gravy Recipe FAQ

The restaurant uses a simple combination of gravy powder, water, and – their secret ingredient – chicken crackling. This is a collection of the browned bits and pieces leftover from frying their world famous chicken.

British gravy tends to refer to a narrow range of brown, au jus, styles, while America, as a larger, more populous and more diverse place has dozens of regional varieties of gravy.

Is it better to cook a roast at 325 or 350? ›

When roasting meat and poultry, set the oven temperature to 325°F (163°C) or higher. Explore the charts below to learn how to get great results every time you cook.

If you're up for some light math, here's a rule of thumb: For every pound of meat you're roasting at 350°F, it will take approximately 18 minutes for rare, 20 minutes for medium, and 25 minutes for well-done. But your cook time can vary widely based on the cut used.

Remember to reduce the temperature after 20 minutes and deduct the 20 minutes from the total cooking time - leave the oven door open for a couple of minutes to help it cool down. There's no need to cover your beef while it cooks; you want to get a good crust on the outside and foil won't help with this.

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 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.

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.

Simply adding a teaspoon or two of chopped rosemary or sage can elevate gravy while adding an extra layer of depth. But if you're going to add herbs, it's best to do so in the last few minutes of cooking, since they tend to be so delicate. That way you'll get the most flavor out of them.