Homemade Turkey Gravy Recipe
Making gravy for your holiday turkey is easy and quite effortless. You can use the roasting pan drippings if roasting the turkey but they're not essential to make gravy from scratch. Add it to your Thanksgiving dinner to complement the stuffing, mashed potatoes and other side dishes or use it with leftovers.
Servings 2 ½ cups
Ingredients
For the turkey broth (stock):
- 1 medium carrot cut into 4-5 pieces
- 1 medium onion in chunks
- 1 celery stalk cut into pieces
- 1 turkey drumstick or thighs with bone
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 allspice pods
- 4 black pepper pods
For the gravy:
- 2 cups turkey broth chicken broth also works
- ¼ cup roasted turkey drippings if available
- 2 tablespoons butter
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ⅛ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 pinch nutmeg freshly ground if possible
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme or rosemary optional
Instructions
For the homemade stock:
- Brown the chopped vegetables (1 medium carrot , 1 medium onion, 1 celery stalk) without oil for about 3 minutes over medium heat in the large pot you'll use to make the stock, moving them around frequently. You want them to brown, not burn.
- Add 1 turkey drumstick or thigh to the pot with the roasted vegetables, 22 bay leaves, 2 allspice pods, and 4 black pepper pods.
- Add water to cover the ingredients. The turkey drumstick should fit in the pot, but if it's too large, cover ¾ with water. Cook the broth for an hour or more.
- Check for seasonings and flavor and adjust if needed. If you'll be simmering the stock more, be careful with ingredients like salt. When you taste the stock and it's flavorful enough, strain the mixture into a bowl. You can use the boiled turkey meat as you wish.
For the homemade gravy:
- Have the broth barely simmering over low heat.
- Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a saucepan, sprinkle with ¼ cup all-purpose flour and cook for 2 minutes over low heat, stirring constantly. The mixture will brown and thicken.
- Slowly pour in ¼ cup roasted turkey drippings (if available) and 1 and ½ cups turkey broth as you stir with a whisk. Mix until all the flour lumps are broken up and the mixture is smooth.
- Add ¼ teaspoon salt, ⅛ teaspoon black pepper or to taste, 1 pinch nutmeg (or a pinch ground) and ½ teaspoon dried thyme or rosemary if using, and stir to integrate everything.
- Pour in the remaining ½ cup broth, stirring constantly over low heat until you get the desired thickness. Add more broth if necessary for a thinner gravy. Check seasonings and adjust if needed.
- You can use it immediately or let it cool down and refrigerate it for 2 days. If the gravy has cooled and thickened, reheat it over low heat before serving.
Notes
Turkey drippings: they'll be used as part of the liquid if they're available. If not, omit them and substitute them with more flavorful broth.
Turkey parts: drumstick and thigh with bone are recommended because they pack more flavor, but the breast can also be used if that's all you have.
Seasonings: taste and adjust to your liking. If you don't want allspice, don't use it. The same goes for the amount of black pepper. If in doubt, use less and adjust towards the end of the cooking time.
