How to make a smooth and delicious brown gravy
Works well for roast of beef or a full
turkey
Years ago when you went to the butcher and got a roast of beef it was
"marbled", a medium-grade large steak roped together in a roll,
tied with string. Perhaps it was in a string bag, with a piece of fat tied to the
top. The extra fat in these cuts was designed to leave enough fat in
the bottom of the pan so you
could make your own gravy.
Nobody makes their own gravy anymore, they are probably afraid that it
will be "lumply"
Most meat you find in the grocery store today is very lean; and therefore
has little or no fat content. This is very efficient, since when you
cook your roast you do not "lose" too much volume; ie: the roast stays about
the same size after cooking as when it went in the oven.
Unfortunately, with an absence of fat, there is also an absence of
material to make a gravy (the fat left in he bottom of the pan).
If you do make a roast using a quality cut and want to make a gravy,
simply add 1 cup of water seasoned with beef stock per 2 lbs (1kg) of beef when
cooking and a few rough cut carrots, onion and celery. This will
keep you roast moist and give you some stock to work with later.
OK, now the roast is cooked, what do I do
now? Remove beef from roasting pan, place on cutting board
and cover with tinfoil. This allows the roast to "breath" after being
removed from the oven and allows it to cool in a uniform fashion; important
for maximum tenderness. Think about climbing into bed after a hot
shower for a few minutes before getting dressed in the morning. You
relax and get to the right temperature without effort.
OPTIONAL STEP - "DE-GLAZE THE PAN with wine"
Highly Recommended
After
you roast has cooked it probably has some bits of onion, carrot, meat, stuck
to the pan. You want to remove this, not only to make it easier to
clean but also because some of these "burned bits" are what are going to
make your gravy taste AMAZING !
If you add a cup of red wine to your roasting pan and heat on the
stovetop you will find that as the alcohol comes to a boil it also magically
removes any of these burnt on bits and pieces.
Let it boil for about a minute, stirring vigorously, trying to
remove the baked on bits. There is no fear of any alcohol remaining,
all is removed after boiling; even most of the taste. If you want a
red wine taste in the gravy add some near the end.
Make the Au jus Take a
strainer and pass juice through, removing large pieces of onion, etc.
Pour strained jus into a new saucepot. This is now your base.
If there is sufficient "volume" or amount of juice for your purposes, fine.
If not add enough additional beef stock until you have enough gravy for
everyone at dinner.
Season At this point
you want to taste your gravy. You may want to add some salt,
definitely some ground or cracked peppercorns and any other spices you may
want.
EASY In a separate bowl mix 2 tablespoons
cornstarch with 1 cup water and mix well.
Heat gravy mixture to boiling, add cornstarch/water mixture and boil for
1 minute, stirring vigorously. Remove from heat, continue mixing for 1
minute, serve immediately.
Cornstarch is fine for gravy that you will
consume right away, at the same meal. But it does not re-heat well; as
it tends to be a bit spongy and jelly-like once it's hardened.
A BIT HARDER BUT BETTER
If you intend to use some of your gravy later, then you have
2 options.
1. Use a higher quality wheat-based thickener designed for
gravies and sauces. Available in the spice asile (more
"making it taste real") this specialized flour is very fine-grained and made
specifically for this task. If you are making alot of gravy (or your
Mother-in-Law is coming over) it's worth the extra couple of dollars for
this specialized tool and is nice to have in the kitchen.
2. Start the thickening BEFORE you boil the juice. This
is the traditional method, but is a bit more difficult for beginners since
you have to gauge the amount of flour/butter (the "roux" or thickening
agent) AND the right amount of juice. It is not really more difficult
to do it this way, but is a bit more work, and you have to stay vigilant and
mix the butter/flour mixture well and quick, adding the juice without delay
and mixing well throughout, otherwise you will end up with the dreaded
"lumpy gravy" (bits of flour that did not get mixed with the butter
properly.)
Here is the way Grandma used to do it...
In a dry sauce pan add 1/4 cup unsalted butter and heat until liquid.
Gradually mix in about 4 tablespoons of all-purpose
flour, adding slowly, aiming for a smooth paste. If your "roux" or
paste is not smooth before adding the jus you get the dreaded
lumps; bits of flour not properly mixed with the butter before
you add the jus. Some folks use one of those parmesan
shakers for this purpose; it spreads the flour around evenly
instead of dumping it in clumps from a tablespoon.
Mix constantly until you have a smooth paste. Dash pepper/, add juice and bring
to a boil; mix constantly for 1 minute, remove from heat and mix constantly
for 1 minute until smooth, let stand and serve.
CREAMY GRAVY
Adding flour to your gravy will lighten it up, but if you want your gravy brown and not black
or a bit creamy perhaps add 2-4
tablespoons 32% cream to the sauce just before it boils.
DEMI-GLACE
Making Demi-glace is very similar to regular gravy, except that it is
"double reduced"; an therefore much richer.
Simply take your juice, reduce (simmer slowly until most of the water has
evaporated); add more water and do it again; thickening with flour the 2nd
time. This extra step gives you a superior and refined gravy; a French
cuisine staple.