Follow our complete, step-by-step, instructions to make this Giblet Gravy from scratch. An old time favorite for your mashed potatoes, turkey or dressing. We make this using the giblets from our turkey, just in time for the holidays.

How To Make Giblet Gravy

If you’re thinking “I can’t make gravy,” then we feel your pain.

It does take a little practice, but it’s much easier than you might think it is. You can even make it without lumps. No kidding, you can do this.

I love a good gravy. Pour it over mashed potatoes and I can make a meal off of just that. Sorry, it’s just me I guess.

Mama always made sure we had giblet gravy at Thanksgiving after she roasted a turkey for hours and hours. It just didn’t get much better than that.

Getting rid of the lumps is always a big concern when someone thinks about making gravy from scratch. Hopefully, we can show you how to avoid that.

We’re making giblet gravy using the giblets from a turkey we recently cooked.

Giblets are generally included with most turkeys when you purchase them at the store. You’ll get a neck bone, which has lots of meat, a gizzard, liver and maybe the heart.

I’ll show you how to cook those up to make your own broth, then put it all together to make a really delicious giblet gravy you’ll be proud to serve anyone.

You could make it using some of the fat and pan drippings from your turkey, or you could substitute butter instead for the fat part. Canned broth and water can also be used instead of making your own.

Either way though, you’ll need to cook the giblets, so why not use that broth?

This old fashioned giblet gravy has a bit of a different taste than what you’ll find if you use gravy from a jar, or even use those seasoning packets that you add water too. It’s tempting to do either, but I’m certain you’ll love this homemade giblet gravy should you be willing to try it.

Ready? Alright then, let’s head to the kitchen, and… Let’s Get Cooking!

Giblet Gravy recipe, you’ll need these ingredients.

I’m using the giblets from my Thanksgiving turkey to make this recipe. I’ve posted the recipes for cooking turkey several ways here on Taste of Southern. I’ll give you the links to those below.

Giblets are usually included with most turkeys when you purchase them, but not always. Check the packaging on your turkey to see if they are included before you purchase one.

You’ll usually find the neck bone inside the bird, and a packet that includes the gizzard, liver and heart, inside the neck cavity. You will want to remove those before you roast your turkey.

I also used the backbone, tail and wing tips from my Spatchcock Turkey in this recipe, although they’re not required.

Place the giblets in a medium sized sauce pot.

Cover the giblets with about 2-3 inches of cool water.

Add the sage.

Add the salt.

Add the black pepper.

Place the sauce pot over Medium heat on your stove top and let it come to a boil.

Reduce the heat down to a low boil, then cover the pot.

Let this slowly boil for one hour, checking about halfway through to be sure all the water isn’t boiling away.

The water will reduce down, leaving most of your spices clinging to the inside of the pot. Don’t worry about them though. You’d want to skim off any dark stuff that might be floating on top of your broth anyway.

Remove the giblets from the broth and let them cool a bit. Save the liquid though.

I’ve got the neck, gizzard, liver and tail here, but I decided not to include the tail. Didn’t need it as you’ll see below.

I saved the broth from cooking the giblets (left) and the pan drippings and fat (right) from where I roasted my turkey although there wasn’t much fat. You might have more depending on how you roast your bird.

I also had placed this in the refrigerator overnight so the fat has risen to the top as you can see.

You’ll need to chop up the giblets.

The neck bone has a lot of meat on it if you work at removing it. That’s what you see on the left in the photo above. I also have chopped up the gizzard and the liver as you see on the right. Chop it up into smaller pieces and set it all aside.

Don’t tell anyone, but I failed to chop the meat from the neck bone. I really should have though. Smile. It’s just a matter of preference.

You could also just run this through a food processor to cut it up but why have another appliance that needs to be washed… right?

Place a skillet over just below Medium heat on your stove top. Once the pan gets warm add about 4 Tablespoons of the fat and pan drippings.

You could also just use butter for this part if you desire.

Add 3 to 4 Tablespoons of flour.

All purpose or self rising flour will work just as well for this. Just sprinkle it over the fat in the pan.

Quickly stir the flour and fat together so it doesn’t begin to burn and stick to the pan.

We’re making a “roux” with the fat and the flour. Continue to stir this and let it cook for about two minutes to cook away the taste of the flour. Generally, the longer it cooks the darker it gets which makes for darker gravy.

Mine is a bit darker because of the pan drippings that I had from my spatchcock turkey.

Everyone worries about having lumps in their gravy. Here’s where you solve that problem

Add a small amount of broth to the pan, then stir vigorously until it all blends together. If it’s still too thick, with lumps, add a bit more broth.

After stirring, it all should come together lump free.

Bring the gravy to a low simmer, just until you start to see some bubbles forming. Stir it often though.

Add the giblets to the gravy.

Stir it all together, then gradually add the remaining broth.

Continue to stir everything together over a low simmer and let the gravy reduce down until it reaches the thickness you desire.

It’s better to leave it a bit “watery” because it will thicken more once it’s removed from heat and begins to cool.

You’ll also want to taste it to see if it needs any more salt or pepper.

Serve the gravy while it’s warm.

Enjoy!

Follow our easy, step-by-step, instructions to learn how to make our own Dark BBQ Sauce. We used this for our beef ribs during our restaurant days. It’s really easy to make.

This is a great sauce for pork ribs or beef ribs. This is the sauce we used at my brother’s restaurant years back. You probably have all the ingredients on hand, and it goes together quick and easy.

I started calling this my Dark BBQ Sauce years back when I created it to go on the Beef Ribs we served at my brother’s restaurant. Captain Gordon’s was a seafood restaurant, but we started running a lunch buffet during the week for the folks that worked in the numerous plants near where the restaurant was located.

We have our Eastern North Carolina Vinegar based BBQ sauce that we use to make our pork barbecue, and I needed some way to differentiate this sauce when talking about sauces. It is a bit on the dark side in color as it contains Worcestershire sauce, dark brown sugar, and liquid smoke which gives it a slightly darker tint.

We only ran the beef ribs on Thursdays, but we soon had a good following of folks that made sure they arrived early so they could get their fill of beef ribs for lunch. It was one of our more popular items on the buffet.

You probably have most of the ingredients in your pantry to make this. We made it by the gallons at the restaurant. The only thing you might not have is a 32oz bottle of ketchup.

Everything can be mixed together right in the sauce pot, then it needs to be stirred constantly for about 10 minutes as it heats up so you can make sure the brown sugar gets dissolved. We didn’t spend all day making sauce at the restaurant, but as mentioned, it was very popular for us.

I’ve also had great success with it on Baby Back Ribs and it’s really good on chicken, especially chicken on the grill.

I hope you like it and that you’ll share a Comment with us in the section at the end of the recipe to let me know how it turns out for you.

Ready to give our sauce a try? Alright then, let’s head on out to the kitchen, and… Let’s Get Cooking!

Gordon’s Dark BBQ Sauce Recipe – You’ll need these ingredients.

We start out by adding an entire 32oz bottle of Ketchup into a good sized stock pot.

Since this is the base of the recipe, you will want to use a good quality ketchup.

Add one cup of Dark Brown Sugar.

Add 3 Tablespoons of Yellow Mustard.

Add 1/4 cup of Worcestershire Sauce.

Add 1 Tablespoon of Texas Pete Hot Sauce.

Add 1/4 cup of Apple Cider Vinegar.

Add 1 teaspoon of Garlic Powder.

Add 1 teaspoon of Onion Powder.

Add 1 Tablespoon of Liquid Smoke.

You can omit this if you don’t have it. Liquid Smoke is generally found in the spice section of most grocery stores, probably near the ketchup and Worcestershire sauce. Smile.

Add 1/2 teaspoon of Smoked Paprika.

I prefer the smoked paprika, but use regular if that’s all you have. I like the smoky flavor the liquid smoke and the smoked paprika add to the sauce.

Place your sauce pot over Medium heat on your stove top. Stir all the ingredients together as the sauce heats up and continue to stir it for about 10 minutes. The sauce is thick, so if you walk away from it, you’ll probably have a lot of those min-volcano’s popping up in the pot as it heats up. And, you know it’s going to erupt with bubbles all over the top of the stove. Don’t ask me how I know that. Smile.

You just need to heat the sauce enough to meld the flavors together. Remove it from heat after about 10 minutes.

Enjoy!

Follow these easy, step-by-step, photo instructions for making our Beef Tips with Rice and Gravy Recipe.  A longtime Southern favorite, Beef Tips with Rice and Gravy is just comfort food at its best.  Mom and Pop restaurants throughout the South feature this on their menus and, now you can enjoy the same great flavors in your home kitchen.  Quick and easy to prepare, we’ll show you how, step-by-step.

Beef Tips with Rice and Gravy Recipe:

Here’s a really simple recipe that just needs about an hour to slow simmer before its ready to serve.  You can take advantage of some cheaper cuts of beef anytime you find them on sale and, whip up some great Southern comfort food that can be served with rice, mashed potatoes or even noodles.  It’s your choice.

Stew beef works very well for this recipe or, you can use eye of round steak like we did.  You can even go all out and make it with a finer cut like Ribeye steak.  The really great part is, whatever you find on sale, can probably be used to make our Beef Tips.  Buy it while its on sale, freeze it and have it ready for a quick and easy lunch, dinner or Sunday dinner.  I think you’ll like it about any time of the day.

Around the south, just about all the local mom-and-pop style restaurants feature Beef Tips with Rice and Gravy on their menu.  It’s an old diner favorite that is also usually one of the cheaper menu choices because it can take a somewhat tougher cut of beef, slow simmer it to make it tender and, then serve it up with a large portion of rice and gray to cut costs.

Its so versatile in that it tastes great when served over rice, over mashed potatoes or, even over noodles.  I really think you’ll love it once you try it and I’ll look forward to hearing from you after you do.  You can follow our step-by-step, photo illustrated instructions below or, skip on down to the bottom for our printable recipe.  Ready to get started?  Alright then… Let’s Get Cooking!

Beef Tips with Rice and Gravy:  You’ll need these ingredients… and some rice of course.

I’m using this eye of round steak so I needed to cube it up first.  You can use stew beef that is already cut into pieces if desired.

Use a medium size sauce pan to cook in.  Place it on the stove, over medium heat and, add some cooking oil.  I like to add a little extra flavor by using about a Tablespoon of bacon grease.  It’s not required, olive oil or any other type of cooking oil or shortening will work just as well.

I even tossed in a Tablespoon of Butter.  It’s optional of course.

Add the beef to the sauce pan.

Peel and slice the onion and, toss it in on top of the beef pieces.

Stir it around as it cooks, let the beef brown a bit and until the onions start becoming translucent.

Add the Beef Broth.

Bring the mixture to a good rolling boil.

Cover the pot, REDUCE THE HEAT down to a low simmer and let it slowly cook for about one hour.  Now, lets make the rice.

Prepare the rice:  After the meat has simmered for about an hour, go ahead and prepare the rice.  You’ll need some good rice and a little salt.

You’ll find lots of different ways to prepare your rice.  I’m using one of my favorites here.  About any type of rice will work, just use what you have available.  I like to rinse my rice first so here I’m adding one cup of rice into a small sauce pan.

Place the pot under cool running water and just let some water run into the pot.  The rice usually stays on the bottom and I swish it around a little to help remove the dust particles and a lot of the starch that rice contains.  Once the water starts to run clear, you’ll need to drain that water off.

Rinsing rice is a choice and not always necessary.  It seems to keep your rice from being so sticky and clumping all together.  Of course, Instant Rice or Boil-in-Bag types of rice are other choices that usually turn out pretty much perfect.  Again, its all your choice.

Once the water starts to run clear, drain off the excess by just tilting the pot carefully and letting the water run out.

Now, add two cups of cool water back into the pot.  You need about a 1cup rice, 1-1/2 cup water or, 1 cup rice and 2 cups water ratio.  I added just a little over a cup and a half back into the pot.

Add the salt but, don’t stir it.  Stirring the rice in the water will release more of the starches and that will just cause it to be sticky.  Instead, gently swirl the pot a time or two and place it on the stove over Medium-High heat.

Leave the pot uncovered and bring the rice to a good rolling boil.  Let it boil for about 2 minutes at a rolling boil and then reduce the heat.

REDUCE THE HEAT:  Reduce the heat down to about Medium-Low and let the rice simmer.  DO NOT STIR.  We want to let it cook long enough for most of the water to be absorbed by the rice or evaporate out.  This could take 5-10 minutes or so.  Just keep a close watch on it.

Once most of the water has cooked out of the rice, you’ll start seeing little open pockets in the rice.  Watch it closely, without stirring and, without letting all of the water boil away completely.  You’ll need just a little of the water in the bottom so the rice doesn’t burn and stick.  Burnt and sticky rice is NOT a problem you want to have.  You can thank me later.

Now, cover the pot with a tight fitting lid and remove it from the heat.  It needs to sit for about 10 more minutes.

While the rice is resting, add about 2 Tablespoons of Corn Starch into a small cup or bowl.  We’re going to thicken up our gravy.

Add about 3 Tablespoons of cold water.

Use a small whisk or fork and, mix it up well until it is all liquid.

Slowly add the cornstarch and water mixture into the pot with the beef.  Add it slowly, stirring constantly.  This mixture will thicken up the liquid in the beef and make a gravy.  It just needs to cook a few minutes longer to thicken up properly.  If its still too thin for you, make up about half a batch more of the cornstarch and water combination and add it into the beef.

After the rice sits for about 10 minutes, remove the lid.

Use a fork and gently lift the rice from the bottom of the pan.  Gently lifting the rice will fluff it up and separate the grains.  It’s now ready to serve.

You could even toss in a pat of butter for a little added flavor but… its optional.

Place a serving of Rice on each plate, top it with some of the Beef Tips and Gravy.  Ummm… good.

If I have leftovers, I just mix it all together and store it in the refrigerator for later.  This will keep your rice from drying out once it goes into the refrig.  How easy was that?  Enjoy!

Follow our step-by-step, photo illustrated recipe to make this traditional Southern favorite of Country Ham and Red Eye Gravy.  The gravy may be somewhat of an acquired taste, but it’s too easy to make to not give it a try.  We’ll fry up the Country Ham, make the gravy and show you how to take breakfast up to another level.  Printable recipe included.

Country Ham with Red Eye Gravy Recipe:

Through the years, many a person has started their day with a breakfast consisting of Country Ham and Red Eye Gravy.  Country Ham itself is a cured ham, first mentioned in print back in 1944, and referred to as a method of curing and often times smoking of pork meat.  It’s typically very salty.

According to the online encyclopedia known as Wikipedia, Red Eye Gravy is mostly associated with the Southern United States and is made from the pan drippings left from cooking country ham, or bacon, and is normally made using black coffee to deglaze the pan.  The name itself comes from the appearance of the gravy once it’s been placed in a serving bowl.  The dark coffee and meat bits sink to the bottom, a layer of grease is usually visible on top, and the result gives the appearance of a human eye.  And, so ends our History lesson for the day.

The December issue of Our State Magazine contained an article about Henry West down in Duplin County here in North Carolina, and told about his Westwater Country Hams.  It’s an interesting read and brought back lots of memories from my childhood as I watched my dad rub salt all over a ham or two right after we had killed hogs on Thanksgiving Day.  Later, he’d hang them up in an old storage building out back of our house where they would remain for months before we ever had the chance to enjoy their distinct flavor.

I’ve been telling my older brother lately, that I’ve recently developed a “hankering” to try and cure a ham myself.  I’m not sure where the urge is coming from other than all the cookbooks and stories I’ve been reading over the past few years, and the many stories my brother tells me while we travel the roads of North Carolina and beyond delivering his custom built pig cookers.  He thinks I’m a bit wacky, but he’s offered his tool shed to let me hang it up in.  We’ll see.

I do hope you’ll give our Red Eye Gravy recipe a try.  If you enjoy Country Ham and ever cook it at home, the gravy is just too quick and simple to not try out at least one time.  I’ll be waiting to hear from you in the Comment section below and feel free to share your memories of Country Ham with us as well.  So, if you’re ready… Let’s Get Cooking.

Country Ham and Red Eye Gravy:  You’ll need these ingredients.  Yep, there’s some coffee in that cup.

Most center cut slices of ham are pretty large.  It will be easier to fry if you’ll cut the slice in half.

Cut through the layer of fat around the slices about every three inches.  This will help keep the ham slice from curling so bad while it cooks. Some folks also like to remove the “rind” or outer skin layer from the ham slice prior to cooking.  That’s an option that’s entirely up to you.  I left it on this slice.

Country Ham is usually very salty.  I prefer to soak my slices in water for 30 minutes to an hour to try and reduce some of that salty taste.  It’s still going to be pretty salty even after you soak it.  Soaking is not required but I highly recommend it.  A glass pie dish comes in handy for soaking one or two pieces. Just place the ham in the dish, cover with water, and let sit for for about 30 minutes or longer.  Some of the water will also absorb back into the ham and cause it to plump up a bit.  Some folks soak in milk, but water will work just fine.

When the ham is ready to fry, remove it from the water and pat it dry with some paper towels.  Then, place your skillet over medium heat on your stove top.  When the pan gets hot, drop in about one Tablespoon of Butter.

Place the ham in the skillet.  As you can see, this is one slice of ham and it fills up my 10 inch skillet.

Country Ham will cook pretty quick.  Turn it after about two minutes and let it cook until the fat around the edge is translucent.  Do not overcook the ham, it can get really tough and dry if you do.  Most folks that don’t like Country Ham have probably only had ham that was over cooked.  Having said that, my late wife would order a ham biscuit at a drive-thru and tell them she wanted the hardest, dryest piece of ham they had.  If they didn’t have one, she’d ask that they “burn it” for her.  To each his own… right?

Just cook it until you get it the way you like it.  When it’s ready, remove it from the pan.

Don’t throw out the good stuff though.  We’re going to use the pan drippings from the cooked ham to make our Red Eye Gravy.  You will need about two Tablespoons of the grease.  If you have more than that in the pan, pour it out but save all the hard bits and pieces inside the skillet.  Place it back on the heat.

Pour the cool coffee into the skillet.  It will steam up and start to deglaze the pan.

Use a spatula and scrape the bottom of the pan as you stir the liquid.  You want to break all the bits and pieces free from the bottom of the skillet.

Then, add in the water.  I’m using cool tap water, straight from the faucet.  Stir that around some more.

Continue to stir and scrape the bottom of the skillet as you let the liquid come back up to a low boil. Then, reduce the heat and let the gravy simmer and reduce. You’ll need to taste it to see if it needs anything. You could add a little more Salt or maybe some Black Pepper if need be. The gravy needs to reduce down to about half it’s volume and the flavors will become more intense and concentrated in the process.

Your Red Eye Gravy should be ready in just a few minutes.  Remove the pan from the stove and pour the gravy in a small serving dish or gravy boat.

Serve the Red Eye Gravy as a side with your Country Ham slices.  Some folks like to dip a biscuit into the gravy and use it as an au jus.  It’s great to drizzle over the ham slice itself, or to add a bit of gravy to your cooked grits.  You might also like to keep a bit of Jelly handy to help offset the saltiness in the Country Ham, but either way you try it… Enjoy!

Follow our step-by-step, recipe to make this tender, and mouth watering, pork loin roast recipe. We’ll even show you how to turn the pan drippings into some great gravy to serve along with the roast.

Pork Roast with Gravy Recipe.

Pork Roast may be one of those cuts of meat that you’ve shied away from in the grocery store. But, it shouldn’t be. There are lots of delicious ways to prepare it, and I think you’ll find this a great way to get started.

First, let’s not get confused between a Pork Loin Roast and a Pork Tenderloin. They are two entirely different cuts of meat. Both are delicious though.

We’re using a Boneless Pork Loin Roast for this recipe.

A pork roast will typically be between two and five pounds in size, while a Pork Tenderloin cut is usually around a pound in size. Both are sold whole, but the Pork Loin Roast can often be cut down into smaller pieces which is what sometimes causes the confusion.

Pork Roasts are often stuffed and cooked, or as in this case, rubbed with spices and then cooked.

I love a good Pork Tenderloin Biscuit. Around here, I can generally find a restaurant that serves them for breakfast. It’s just tenderloin that has been cooked and sliced with a couple of small slices placed inside a hot buttermilk biscuit. Add a little Duke’s Mayonnaise, and I’m happy. But, we’ll save the tenderloin recipe for later, today, we’re talking about Pork Roast.

Pork Loin comes from the area of the pig between the shoulder and the beginning of the leg. It can be sold bone-in, or as we have here… boneless.

While it’s really best on the grill in my opinion, I find it is still very tasty and delicious when properly roasted in the oven.

I’ve got a simple rub that we coat the roast in, then cook it for about 20 minutes per pound. I’ll even show you how to make some delicious gravy to serve along with it if you’re having it for Sunday dinner, or just supper with the family.

It’s totally awesome simply sliced and placed in a bun, or between a couple of slices of white sandwich bread. Just don’t forget to add the Duke’s Mayonnaise. It’s a Southern thing.

If you’ve been passing the pork loin roast in your grocery store and never bought one, now is the time to correct that. You’ll find this recipe very easy, with great results. You can just thank me later. Smile.

Ready to give it a try? Alright then, let’s get in the kitchen, mix up a rub, and… Let’s Get Cooking!

Boneless Pork Loin Roast recipe:  You’ll need these ingredients.

Remove the roast from the packaging.

This is about a 4 1/2lb boneless pork loin roast.

Gently rinse the roast under cold running water.

There’s very little fat attached to this roast, so I’m going to leave it all on.

Pat the roast dry with paper towels.

Tie the roast with kitchen twine if desired.

While it’s not necessary that you tie the roast, doing so will help it hold its shape during the cooking process.

I’m not showing you how this is done because it takes two hands, and it would be difficult to take photos of the process at the same time. I suggest you search for some of the videos that are available online for better instructions on how to tie your roast than I could provide here.

It’s pretty simple to do and I think you’ll like the presentation of it all if you take the time to add this step.

Place all the spices together in a small mixing bowl and mix well.

Rub a generous coating of the spice rub all over the roast. Pat it into the meat to help it stay on.

If you don’t have a roasting pan with a rack, just roll up several pieces of aluminum foil like this.

Place the rolled up foil inside a foil lined baking dish or pan.

I’m using a 13x9x2 metal pan that I’ve lined with aluminum foil. Then, I placed the rolled up foil inside the pan, shaping as needed. This will support the roast and keep it from sitting directly on the bottom of the pan while it roasts. This way, it’s not sitting in juices as it cooks.

Place the roast on top of the rolled up pieces of foil.

If you DO have a regular roasting pan with a wire rack, just place the roast on the rack. It will work just as well either way.

The roast needs to be about room temperature before you place it in the oven. I let this one set out for about an hour after I added the rub, then I placed it in the oven.

Place the roast inside the oven, which has been pre-heated to 350F degrees.

The roast will need to bake for about 20 minutes per pound, or until the meat reaches an internal temperature of 145F degrees.

Bake the roast until it reaches an internal temperature of 145F degrees.

I say it all the time, a digital thermometer is one of the best tools you can have in your kitchen.

Just be sure to check the temperature of the roast at several points, from one end to the other, as the temperature may vary from one side to the other in your oven. Make sure each temperature reading is at least at the 145F degree mark to be certain it’s fully cooked.

Remove the roast from the oven when done, and just let it rest on your counter top for 10 minutes before slicing.

Letting it rest for this short period of time lets the juices redistribute throughout the meat.

While it’s resting, we can go ahead and make our gravy.

Place a medium sized sauce pot over Medium Heat on your stove top.

Add about 3 Tablespoons of Butter, or about 3 Tablespoons of drippings from your meat pan.

My roast had very little juice and drippings. I scrapped out some of the brown bits from the bottom of the pan, and then added a couple of Tablespoons of butter to equal out about 3 Tablespoons of fat in order to make the pork gravy.

Place a medium sized sauce pot over Medium Heat on your stove top.

Add about 3 Tablespoons of Butter, or about 3 Tablespoons of drippings from your meat pan.

My roast had very little juice and drippings. I scrapped out some of the brown bits from the bottom of the pan, and then added a couple of Tablespoons of butter to equal out about 3 Tablespoons of fat in order to make the pork gravy.

Let the butter fully melt, then sprinkle 3 Tablespoons of flour on top of the melted fat.

You will always want to work with equal parts of fat and flour when making gravy. This part is called making a roux.

Stir the butter/fat and the flour together constantly to make the roux.

Don’t let this mixture get too hot, but do let it cook for a minute or two, stirring constantly. You want to cook out the taste of raw flour and let the roux darken and brown a bit.

Continue to stir as you gradually add in the broth. A wooden spoon works well but so does a whisk. Just keep stirring quickly and constantly to stir away any lumps that might start to form.

I’m using regular chicken broth, but you can also find “ham base” in cubes or granules that will give it more of a pork flavor.

Continue to stir and cook the gravy until it begins to thicken.

Constant stirring will decrease any lumps that might try to form while making gravy. Once you “get the hang of it” gravy making becomes much easier. Still, you can always run your gravy through a strainer to remove any lumps if you need too. It happens to all of us.

Slice it while it’s still warm and… ENJOY!

Place a couple of pieces on a plate and top it with some warm gravy. Serve it with some of your favorite sides and you’ve got a great meal for any time of the day.

And you should know me well enough by now to know that this makes a great sandwich as well. Especially with a little Duke’s Mayonnaise and a couple of slices of plain white bread. Now that’s just good eating. Smile.

Follow our step-by-step, photo illustrated recipe for making Sausage Gravy from scratch.  Just a few simple ingredients are all you’ll need to prepare a delicious breakfast of Sausage Gravy and Biscuits.  This quick and easy pan gravy is sure to please all the family.

Sausage Gravy Recipe:

NOTE:  This recipe originally appeared here on Taste of Southern on January 28, 2013.  Cooler weather has started to return to the heart of North Carolina and this is a great way to start your day.  I hope you’ll give this recipe a try.  When you do, be sure to leave us a comment or two in the section at the bottom of this page and let me know how it turns out for you.  I’ll be waiting to hear from you. 

Are you looking for something quick and easy to fix for breakfast for the family?  I think you’ll really enjoy topping some, fresh out of the oven,  hot biscuits, with our Sausage Gravy Recipe.  It’s really quick and easy to make and, you can do it all right in one skillet.

When you need something to warm you up on a cool winter morning or, something fast on a warm summer morning, this will surely become one of your favorite things to make.  Of course, if you’re like me, sometimes breakfast-for-supper is just as good.  Either way, I do hope you’ll give our Sausage Gravy recipe a try.

If you don’t make your own biscuits from scratch, there are some pretty good ready-made biscuits in the refrigerator case of your favorite grocery store.  They’ll work just about as good and, if you don’t tell…I’m not going to tell.

I can only imagine what a big old pan of hot biscuits must have smelled and tasted like after being pulled from an old fashioned wood stove oven.  I’ve had some delicious brick oven pizza that was fired with wood and, it just gives a little smokey taste to that…so….imagine what a pan of biscuits would have tasted like baked in a wood stove oven.  It’s my dream one day, when I have the room for it, to have a wood stove of my very own.  My family had one in the early days of my youth but I really don’t have any memory of it.  Of course, daddy made his own sausage too.

You just need a pound of sausage and a few other items to stir up a big old pan of hot Sausage Gravy.  Open up a biscuit or two, ladle on a great big spoonful of gravy and….you’re in for a real treat.  You can buy all the gravy mixes you want but, go ahead and learn how to make your own, you’ll never be disappointed.  Ready to give it a go?  Then….Let’s Get Cooking!!!

Sausage Gravy Recipe:  You’ll need these ingredients.  Simple huh?

Open up your package of sausage and place it in a skillet set to medium heat.  As it begins to brown, use a spatula or spoon and, start to break up the meat.  Spread it around in the pan so it can cook evenly.

Continue to stir the sausage around and crumble it as it cooks.  You’ll need to let it brown just to the point of where it’s fully cooked.

Once the sausage is cooked, use a slotted spoon and remove it from the pan.  Place it in a small bowl and set aside.

You’ll need to remove most of the excess fat from the pan.  I used a spoon to skim it out but, you could just pour it out as well.  You DO want to leave all of the brown bits and any smaller pieces of sausage that might be in the pan.  We’re going to need all the flavor from those.  Don’t remove all of the fat, leave a couple of Tablespoons in the skillet.  We’ll need that to begin making the roux for our gravy.

Toss in a couple of Tablespoons of butter and stir it around as it begins to melt.  The butter should melt slowly and, not start to brown or burn.  Adjust the heat of your pan accordingly if it’s cooking too fast.

We’re using 4 Tablespoons of Flour for our roux.  You always want to have an equal amount of fat and flour in the pan when making a roux.  So, we had a couple of Tablespoons of fat from the sausage and, we’ve added a couple of Tablespoons of butter as well.  Start slowly by adding about half of the flour.  Sprinkle it around the pan as opposed to just dumping it all in one spot.

Grab a spoon and begin to stir the flour into the liquids.  You’ll need to constantly stir this as you go.  It shouldn’t just dry up right away and get thick.  If it does, your pan is probably too hot so, reduce the heat.  Let it slowly blend together as you stir.

Add more of the flour and just keep stirring.  Continue to sprinkle in the flour until it’s all in the pan.

Keep stirring and let the mixture cook for a minute or so.  You have to let it cook a little so it loses the taste of just flour.  Also, the longer it cooks, the more brown it becomes and, that determines whether you have a light gravy or dark gravy in the end.  If you happen to see any lumps, try breaking them up with your spoon and continue to stir them until they’re all gone.

Gradually begin adding the milk.  You will need to add just a little at a time and work it into the mix.  Don’t get in a rush or you’ll be disappointed with the final results.  Just let it happen…but keep stirring the whole time.

This is what it looks like when it starts getting too thick…too fast.  This is where you’ll start to see lumps that you can’t stir away if you aren’t careful.  I stepped away for a minute to adjust the camera and almost messed up.  Fortunately, I was able to stir it out and continued to add the milk until I had it all incorporated into the skillet.  Whew.

Just keep stirring to avoid any lumps as it begins to thicken.

Add the remaining milk as you stir.  Then, add a little salt.  Start out lightly with the salt though and, then you can taste it later to see if it needs more.  Don’t forget there is salt in the sausage and we’re going to add that back into the pan shortly.

Then, add some pepper.  I know you’re thinking this looks like a lot but…I may like a little pepper.  Of course, if you have White Pepper, all the better.  White Pepper doesn’t show up as little black specks in the finished product.  Reminder to self….add White Pepper to the shopping list.

Place the cooked sausage back in the pan.  Give it all a good stir.

Let the gravy simmer on a low heat for a few minutes.  Basically, we just need to warm the sausage back up but, it also helps to bring all the flavors together.  Time to get those biscuits ready.

Split open a couple of biscuits and ladle on a big spoonful or two of your Sausage Gravy.  Enjoy!

The gravy can be refrigerated for a couple of days if you have any leftover.  It’ll be a little thicker but still tasty.  I’m sure you could even add a little more milk and heat it up in a saucepan if you had a bigger amount leftover.