Stylish, and well-dressed

OINK GRAVY – the best

 

I could drink gravy out of a cup, and consider it a beverage.  I like my gravy to have some personality, especially since sometimes it can carry the dish that it is lavished over.  I loved it as a kid ladled over a hearty slice of bread, we called it ‘Kansas Fillet’, and my little mind thought I was eating something exotic.  It sure was good!

If you’re from the south, then you know the world revolves around gravy.  My gram was from Lynchburg, Virginia, and you can’t get much more southern than that.

Tools:  cutting board, mixing/soaking bowl or saucepan, large fry/sauté pan

Base start:  (optional) Giblets, neck, removed wing tips, liver, gizzards etc. from turkey 
             (or bits of saved/frozen chicken – back, bones etc.) boiled in 1 qt salted water 
             and skinned, flesh removed from bone, meats finely chopped or minced.  
             Reserve broth to soak dried mushrooms (see below).  If you have concentrated 
             home-made ‘demi-glace’, this is a perfect use for it

1-2      chicken/turkey parts (3/4 to 1 pound) – leg,
     thigh, breast etc; boiled in same broth - skinned,
     boned, and chopped or torn to small bite-sized 
     bits. Should yield about six to eight ounces
     shredded/diced meat; continue to save same broth. 
     Deli prepared roast chicken is just fine here.

¼     cup drippings/fat from roasted turkey or chicken/
            turkey fat saved from making stocks or scrapings
            from pan and olive oil  and/or butter or
            heart-healthy (non-water based) margarine to make 
            fat/oil content equivalent to ¼ cup – plus about half
            a cup of demi-glace (to enrich the broth) if available

¼     cup flour

The broth, with the dried and reconstituted finely sliced
                       mushrooms, and finely minced flavor meats all together

¼     cup dry white wine, dry vermouth or sherry (wine
                       may be omitted, but the flavor is lovely) 
            1     small onion, finely chopped

      1     stalk celery, finely chopped

 1-2     cloves garlic, minced

 Sage, rosemary, thyme to taste (about half-teaspoon each,
                      dried, crushed; double that if fresh, minced)

          Salt, pepper to taste          

   1    oz dried mushrooms – excellent (shiitake, porcini,
                      wild etc), soaked in same hot broth till tender
                      (about 20 minutes), remove and sliced thinly,
                      remove grit from broth by straining or by gravity

            1    quart warmed milk; best to use four cans evaporated milk,
                      thinned with broth (or two percent milk is fine)  

   1    tsp each dry ground mustard (i.e. Coleman’s) and paprika
              added to flour

 

Optional: 

At the end of the simmer, a splash of good brandy (like cognac,
            armagnac, metaxa, grappa or calvados) 

        ½ to 1   lb fresh mushrooms, any kind/assortment, sliced/peeled
                     fairly thin and butter/garlic sautéed separately

    1     hard-boiled egg, cooled, grated fine

Preparation:  In large medium hot pan, in drippings/butter/fat, sauté onions and celery first, then garlic and other spices and a pinch or two of salt and pepper with them, till tender and liquids have evaporated and all is beginning to caramelize in fat/oil.  Sprinkle over with flour/dry mustard/paprika mix.  Sauté till flour is not raw and absorbed into the fat, about a minute.  Add wine first and cook out alcohol a minute or two, whisking constantly, then add that richly flavored strained broth along with any demi-glace you might have, and the reconstituted sliced dried mushrooms and minced meat bits, still whisking.  Mixture will be thick, which is easier to work out lumps.

Add milk, one whole can first, then half a can at a time – stirring to loosen and blend, add more after it comes to heat, until it reaches desired consistency.  Adjust salt and pepper (keep in mind – broth, meats and vegetables were salted in preparation).  Remember also, it will thicken as it cools.   Warm the gravy boat/dish first with very hot water poured out. 

Perfect over oink stuffing, rice and mashed taters – or try Kansas Fillet, or give up and ladle it over just about anything.

NOTE:  Some folks prefer their gravy to be smooth and un-chunky.  No problem – sauté the vegetables more thoroughly till quite well caramelized, leave out the larger cuts of meat and use only the flavoring bits (the dried mushrooms, the wing tips, organs, neck and scrap bones with attached meats, and the meat juices after resting, for example), prepare as directed then strain the gravy at the very last moment.  Mash every bit against the medium mesh sieve, extracting the maximum of flavor from the solids to the liquid.  Check thickness.  If too thin, simmer gently to thicken, don’t boil, (or use tapioca flour to adjust).  If too thick, add broth or milk cautiously to thin.  Taste to adjust seasonings.  The sautéed mushrooms, grated egg, and brandy splash should be added after straining the gravy if you like, and brought to heat.  The brandy may be used to deglaze/flambé the sautéed mushroom pan, if a milder brandy taste is desired.