Easy gravy

The secret of a good gravy is in the drippings of fried or grilled meat. But did you know that you can make a good gravy without the fatty drippings? I know. It sounds like a sacrilege to the world’s most loved accompaniment for fried chicken. But when we consider that the base of the gravy is butter to which the fatty drippings are added, well… it doesn’t exactly sound heart-friendly, does it? So, what if there’s a way of cutting the fat in half without sacrificing flavor or aroma?

Yesterday, I seasoned a cup and half of butter and flavored it with basil. I used it to make some toast. When I was about to make some gravy for tonight’s fried chicken dinner, I realized that I had seasoned all the butter in the house. I had no choice but to use what I had to make my gravy. The result was fantastic.

Ingredients :

2 tbsps. of flavored and seasoned butter (recipe here)
2 tbsps. of flour
2 c. of broth (recipe here)
a dash of steak sauce
a pinch of ground pepper

Cooking procedure :

In a small saucepan, heat the butter until frothy. Add the flour, all at once, stirring continuously. Cook the flour gently for a few minutes. Do not skip this stage; cooking the flour sufficiently will remove all trace of the floury taste that ruins any gravy.

How long you cook the flour depends on how dark you want your gravy. You can stop when the mixture is a light golden color or you can continue cooking it until it turns a shade darker.

When the flour has been sufficiently cooked, pour in the broth a little at a time, stirring the mixture as you pour. Pour as much broth as you want until you reach the desired consistency. Some people like a thick gravy; others prefer it thinner. When the desired consistency has been reached, turn off the heat. Add the steak sauce and the pepper. Add more salt if necessary.

Serve with your fried chicken, pork or lamb chops.

Note: Gravy is best when freshly made. Reheating makes it lumpy.