Nothing makes a meal feel more complete than gravy. It’s the perfect finishing touch to mashed potatoes, a glorious addition to beef, and an absolute must on most holiday tables. Gravy by itself can elevate a meal from boring to amazing, yet a lot of people avoid making it.
Most people seem to think that their Grandmother’s brown gravy recipe is something steeped in mystery. A family secret that has been passed down in whispers through generations. I mean, it always seemed to take her hours upon hours to make it, and it was always served with great fanfare. It had to be difficult to make, right?
Not hardly. In fact, she had you fooled. It was probably one of the simplest things she made that day.
But it was still that final, glorious, perfect finishing touch. A boat full of deep flavors that made mom and dad smile, could make Aunt Vicky’s roast taste good, and would make the pickiest kid at the table happy to eat.
That is the mystical power of a brown gravy recipe. And I’m going to show you how it’s done. The right way.
What is brown gravy, exactly?
Every brown gravy recipe is, at its heart, an elevated version of a simple pan gravy. The main difference between the two and the part that elevates brown gravy to an art form is that the gravy is not cooked in the original pan. All the components are moved to a fresh, clean pot for finishing.
This one simple step makes for a smoother, more refined gravy that only includes the best of your ingredients and allows complete control over flavors. Yes, you’ll dirty up an additional pan, but it’s worth it. so let’s get to making brown gravy, shall we?
Do I need meat juices to make this brown gravy recipe?
The answer here is… Yes, and no. You can make a brown gravy with just some form of fat and a good quality beef stock. But it won’t be as good as a brown gravy made with beef fat and drippings from the pan. It just won’t be. So for this recipe, we’re going to go with a very classic version of the brown gravy recipe and use pan drippings and fat from freshly cooked beef.
And that’s where we start.
Cook up some beef. It can be a roast, some steaks, stew meat, whatever you have, as long as it’s got a fair amount of marbling. (Read: fat.)
Once you’ve finished cooking and set the meat aside to rest, it’s time to make the gravy.
Pour all the drippings and fat into a measuring cup or bowl. Be sure to scrape as many browned bits left in the pan as possible with the mix.
We’re looking for 4 Tablespoons of fat and 2 cups of juices here, but don’t worry if you don’t have that much. In my case, I got about 1 Tablespoon fat and 1/8 cup of concentrated beefy goodness out of the pan. This was more than enough to get some massive flavor out of the gravy.
Measure out 4 Tablespoons of beef fat. If you don’t have that much, add enough vegetable oil or canola oil to make 4 tablespoons. Pour that into a small saucepan over medium heat and cook until it shimmers. (It may pop a little, that’s normal.)
Add four Tablespoons of flour and stir. The flour will soak up the oil quickly and turn into a paste. This is a good thing.
Keep stirring until the flour smells nutty and has turned a nice rich brown color.
Now comes the good part. Grab a whisk and start stirring. Pour in about 1/2 cup of the reserved juices and whisk until smooth. Then pour in the rest and stir to combine.
Bring your gravy to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for about 2 minutes. Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper in small amounts until it’s seasoned enough for you.
As a final and optional touch, add a Tablespoon of butter just before serving. This gives the gravy an additional sheen and makes it just a little silkier.
And there you have it, folks. A completely classic brown gravy recipe that couldn’t be simpler to make.
Just imagine what you can do with this simple recipe!
Gorgeous, isn’t it?
Brown Gravy Recipe
Brown Gravy Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 Tablespoons beef fat, or reserved beef fat plus enough oil to equal 4 Tablespoons
- 4 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2 cups reserved meat juices, or reserved juices with enough beef stock to equal 2 cups
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1 Tablespoon unsalted butter, Optional
Instructions
- Heat beef fat and oil over medium high heat in a small saucepan. Add flour and stir occasionally until mixture is golden brown and smells nutty.
- Pour in 1/2 cup liquid and stir until smooth. Add remaining liquid and stir until combined.
- Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Reduce heat and simmer 2 minutes.
- Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- Stir in 1 Tablespoon of butter if desired for a silky sheen.
- Serve immediately.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
8Serving Size:
1/2 cupAmount Per Serving: Calories: 229Total Fat: 15gSaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 8gCholesterol: 43mgSodium: 156mgCarbohydrates: 12gFiber: 0gSugar: 8gProtein: 10g
What I would have done differently:
If this brown gravy recipe is anything, it’s versatile. Add mushrooms if you’re using it over beef. Add onions and peppercorns for a richer finish. Add more stock for a thinner, more saucy gravy that would be perfect on a more elegant meal. The options are endless.
Consider this an American mother sauce and feel free to experiment!
More like this great brown gravy recipe from around the web:
- Southern White Gravy
- Homemade Gravy (Without Meat Drippings), from Chocolate Moosey
- Cube Steaks and Gravy in the Slow Cooker, from Eat at Home
Let us know what you think!
https://www.facebook.com/unclejerryskitchen/We’d love to get your opinion on this recipe and if it worked as well for you as it did for us. let us know in the comments or drop by and like Uncle Jerry’s Kitchen on Facebook. You’re the reason we keep posting recipes, so let us know if there’s anything you’ like us to tackle.
I love gravy! Thanks for you tips on how to make the perfect and simple gravy!
Renee,
Gravy is a passion of mine. I hope you find the recipe useful!
I love it,Thank you for nice and easy recipe of making Gravy. but I would like to know how can I make Gravy without beef sauce?
Gregory,
If you mean without the beef stock, you can just add water. If you’re looking for a completely meatless gravy, just sautee some vegetables in butter or oil, remove the veggies, then add the flour and brown. Finish off with water or vegetable stock.
If you’re looking for a strictly vegetarian gravy, check out my quick mushroom gravy recipe in the Good Gravy Cookbook on Amazon.com.
What a delicious homemade gravy and great photos! So glad I dropped by.
Allie,
Thanks for the wonderful comments! We work hard to get great recipes out to you guys. I hope it inspires you.
This looks really helpful. I was wondering if it is 4 T. Flour as in the written explanation, or 2 T. as in the ingredient list? Thank you! ( P.S. I found your 5 minute pizza dough when I needed a quick recipe. It was great!)
Karla,
It should have read 4 tablespoons. Thanks for catching this! It went past myself and two editors. The recipe has been updated.
(Of course, if you want a thinner gravy, you could cut the flour. But that’s personal preference.)
Thanks so much for your recipe!!
?I can’t believe how easy it is. I am blown away!! I have been cooking from scratch all
My adult life(in my mid 50’s)☺now and just couldn’t get the Brown gravy down.. Not any more!! Thanks To your simple and easy guide.!! Thanks again ???✌
Kelly,
You are incredibly welcome! I struggled with this for years myself. It’s simple once you’ve mastered a few basic techniques, but if you, like most of us, tried and failed early on, it becomes scary as heck.
I’m glad you’ve got it down. Now go have some gravy!
I have been making homemade gravy for years, but never like this recipe. Thank you for the careful directions given in an easy to follow astep by step manner. This is a game changing recipe. I plan to use it often !
I need a lot of gravy. I have plenty of beef fat and beef juice, can I double this recipe?
Kay,
It can be doubled, tripled, whatever you need. Gravy is made by proportion.
Made this last night… Just as the meatloaf was out of the oven, I realized I needed brown gravy for it and the potatoes I’d mashed..
DUH on me.. I blame old age…
A quick google brought me to your site.. Very quickly I had a rich, delicious brown gravy…
Now to check out the rest of your blog…
Thanks Jerry… :O)
Ross,
Glad we could help! And I hope that you find other recipes here helpful.
Made this tonight and it was perfect! I’ve never successfully made gravy before but had saved the leftover juices from a roast I had made-this recipe was perfect!
Whitney,
So glad it turned out well! Good luck in the rest of your culinary adventures.
I have never made good gravy, I followed this to the T and it turned out so good. Thank You I will come back here for reepies
For many years I’ve failed at making gravy thanks for this recipe I’m trying to make steak and gravy tonight;)
Shyne,
As long as you’ve got enough fat, this gravy recipe will work. I hope it turns out well for you!
It did! Thank you Jerry! Have a blessed Thanksgiving!
I love this brown gravy recipe.
Can I also use this recipe with ham drippings to make a ham gravy?
Diana,
You COULD. But I’d be very aware of the amount of salt going into it.
Better, I think to use ham drippings, a splash of wine, some stock, a touch of apple juice, then thicken with cornstarch instead of flour. (just a few teaspoons dissolved well in some water.) It’s a thinner gravy, but one that will accent pork better than the strong flavors of a brown gravy designed for beef..
Made this gravy tonight. It was a huge hit! My wife gave it the “Donna” seal of approval. Normally I cheat and use packet gravy (sorry, I am ashamed) but I wanted to try something new. Thankfully your recipe came up in the search results. Will definitely make this again.
Gene,
You are my hero, brother! Get in there and try something. Even if you fail, you’ve learned. But you rocked this!
wow i made this last night it was terribly unbelievable nice dish, i,m still young in culinary but your recipe is perfect. i loved the outcome thanks!
I think you’ll come to find this true as I have, but gravy is not a science. Gravy is an art. It’s always adjustable, malleable, and open to interpretation. Just tonight I made pizza for my mother-in-law who cannot have red sauce. (allergy) So I whipped up a bechamel with a clove of toasted garlic in it for the sauce. When it comes to sauces and gravies, be bold. Experiment! Go forth!
And from my heart, good wishes on your studies and future career.
Always remember. The biggest lesson is that food is love. Share that love and you can’t fail.
My Mom always made the best brown gravy from her roast. I’m a gravy fanatic and have to admit I’ve used the packets to increase my amount mixing with beef drippings. Instead of using package mix what do I need to make larger amounts of the deep tasting brown gold ?
Hi Jerry. This brown gravy looks absolutely delicious! Some questions. If you have to start off with the beef fat first, then add the meat juices, how do you separate them if you poured all the drippings in the same measuring cup? I’ve never been good at dealing with fat, like when you have to skim fat from juice. I somehow always leave too much behind. Also, do the brown bits go in the pan in step 1 with the fat? Thanks! I really want to try this recipe and conquer it!
Cris,
One easy way to separate fat and juices is just to stick the drippings in the freezer for about 15 minutes. The fat should rise to the top and harden, making it simple to remove and measure.
In this case, the brown bits are not necessary. We’re making brown gravy, not pan gravy. In a pan gravy, you definitely want the browned bits (or fond).
Hint: for a great pan gravy recipe, try this one
Thank you very much! I really liked the recipe, I took it to my recipe book)
My Mom always made pan gravy, so I have as well. Normally I use packet brown gravy mix but it’s become so salty to me. Tried your recipe and it was so good! It’ll be my go to from now on! Mashed potatoes have never tasted so good! Thank you!!!
Thanks for what looks to be an excellent recipe. I’m curious about something though. I realize that you augment the meat juices with beef stock to get the correct amount but, what would you have to cook to end up with 2 cups of meat juices? Not being sarcastic, just honestly curious. Thanks for any info you may provide.
That was my first question too!
Simple yet amazing. Perfect gravy! I added sauteed onions at the end. Thanks bunches!
Robin,
It took me years… And I mean YEARS, to perfect that gravy recipe. I’m so glad you enjoyed it. And the onions sound like a great touch, too!