Liquid Gold

When it comes to the Thanksgiving meal, there is no such thing as too much gravy. It’s a saving grace for any bird that gets too dry, an indulgent complement for every carb, and an essential sauce for a hot day-after turkey sandwich.

When I’m a Thanksgiving guest, it’s not uncommon for a harried host to plead, “Can you make the gravy? Mine never turns out.” I get it: making a sauce while juggling the last-minute logistics of finishing and reheating sides, carving the bird, or avoiding an impending family drama is a tightrope challenge. I’m always happy to tie on an apron and do turkey triage.

Day of the Event Version

While the big bird rests, I carefully set the hot turkey roasting pan across two burners. I add a cup or so of broth or water to the pan, deglazing it by scraping up the delicious browned bits with a wooden spoon. Then, ideally, I pour this mixture into a degreasing cup that makes separating the fat from the dark jus a cinch. If no degreasing cup is available, pour the drippings into a small bowl or liquid measuring cup to settle and separate before skimming off the fat with a ladle or spoon.

The jus is added to a pot of turkey or chicken broth (½ to ¾ cup per person) to amp up the roasted turkey flavors. The reserved fat goes into a saucepan to be whisked with flour for the gravy’s thickening roux. If there aren’t a lot of drippings, add butter or a little bacon fat. There is a bit of wiggle room on the ratio of flour to fat, depending on how thick you like your gravy, but a good rule of thumb is 3 tablespoons flour and 2 tablespoons fat for each 1½ to 2 cups of liquid.

I like to cook the roux, stirring with my wooden spoon in a lazy figure eight into the corners of the pot, until it’s light nut brown and toasted. This adds deeper flavor and avoids a raw flour taste. Then the broth is whisked into the roux, brought to a full boil, and simmered to the desired thickness. Season with salt and pepper and serve hot.

Make-Ahead Version

When I cook the T-day feast, I avoid the last-minute gravy dance. My gravy philosophy: make it early and make a lot.

My gravy-making starts days or weeks ahead with a homemade stock. The basic ingredients are poultry bones, carrots, celery, onions, and herbs. The bones can be a mix of chicken or turkey, whatever you may have tucked in the freezer or available at the grocery. I add turkey necks and giblets — but no livers, as they make the stock bitter.

Roast the bones and vegetables to deepen their flavors. I deglaze this pan with water to get all those brown bits. All this goodness gets dropped into a big pot, covered with cold water, and set at a low simmer for 4 to 5 hours. I toss in aromatics: thyme, bay leaves, mushroom stems, and garlic cloves. If you have specific flavors to complement your bird, like sage with an apple stuffing, or ginger with a spice-rubbed bird, add them as well. Make it your own.

Cooking the gravy ahead follows the same route as the à la minute version above — make a roux and add this broth, strained. I make the base gravy and refrigerate it until it’s ready to receive the degreased turkey pan drippings once the day arrives. This gives me the presence of mind to add flourishes to take it to the next level: a splash of brandy, bourbon, cream, sauteed mushrooms, minced turkey giblets, or minced herbs such as parsley or thyme.

With all the potential stresses of Thanksgiving, the last thing you want to worry about is something as soul-soothing as gravy.

MAKE-AHEAD GRAVY
Yield: about 7 cups

8 cups homemade poultry stock (see below) or low-sodium chicken broth
8 Tbsp. unsalted butter
¾ cup all-purpose flour
Roast turkey pan drippings, degreased in a cup or bowl

1. Warm the stock or broth in a pan over medium heat.
2. In another large saucepan, melt the butter over medium-high heat. Sift or scatter the flour over the butter and stir together with a wooden spoon into a smooth, thick paste. Cook the mixture, stirring with a wooden spoon in figure 8s, making sure to get into the corners of the pan, until it’s light brown, 5 to 7 minutes.
3. Slip the pan off the heat and slowly pour in the warm stock, whisking constantly. Once again, make sure to get into the corners of the pot. Return to the heat, bring to a boil while whisking, then adjust the heat to maintain a brisk simmer to reduce and thicken, about 20 minutes. Set aside. (The gravy can be made up to this point one or two days ahead, cooled, covered, and refrigerated.)
4. On the day of, add the turkey pan drippings and return to a simmer over medium-high heat. Season with salt and pepper. Add a dash of Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, miso, or marmite to taste. Add finishes as desired (see tips). Serve hot.

For the homemade poultry stock (makes about 3 quarts)

3 lbs. turkey or chicken necks, wings, bones, and giblets
Oil or bacon drippings for brushing
2 or 3 celery stalks
2 onions, leek tops, shallots or a bunch of scallions (about 2 cups chopped)
2 carrots, snapped in half
1 small bunch thyme
Handful of parsley stems

1. Preheat oven to 400° F. Spread the bones and vegetables and out in a large roasting pan and brush lightly with oil or bacon drippings. Roast until golden brown, about 45 minutes.
2. Transfer roasted bones and vegetables to a stockpot. Add a splash of water to the roasting pan, stir to scrape up any brown bits, and pour the liquid into the stockpot. Add parsley, thyme, bay leaves, and enough cold water to cover the bones by a couple of inches. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce heat to keep stock at a gentle simmer for 4 to 5 hours. Skim any fat or foamy scum that rises to the surface.
3. Strain stock into one large or several smaller containers. Cool stock by placing container(s) in very cold water in the sink, or set outside if it’s cold. Cover containers tightly and refrigerate up to 5 days or freeze.

Pro tips:

• If time is limited, use a boxed broth, which can be fortified by simmering it on very low heat for 30 minutes with turkey giblets (except liver), vegetables, and/or herbs.
• I don’t care for a super thick gravy, but if your sauce isn’t thick enough, an easy fix is to mix 1 or 2 tablespoons each soft butter and flour into a paste and whisk it into the gravy (a.k.a. a beurre manié), then bring to a full rolling boil while whisking to thicken.
• Boiling the gravy is key. Flour-based sauces must boil, then simmer, so that the starches expand and do their job. Some cooks panic when they think the gravy isn’t thick enough and start adding more flour. Then, when gravy does boil it turns pasty and glue-like.
• Another pitfall is not whisking enough. Some blobs of flour will thicken before they are fully suspended in the liquid. But never fear lumpy gravy. That’s what strainers are for.
• Salt and pepper are the basic seasonings, but as with any great sauce, there needs to be an element of umami — that delicious savory taste that allows the flavors to fully bloom. Adding a little bit (anywhere from a ¼ to a full teaspoon or two) of Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, miso, or marmite to taste will do the trick. Start slowly and taste.