This easy, homemade turkey gravy recipe made with drippings and turkey broth is like an early Christmas present for your mashed potatoes! This is THE BEST turkey gravy recipe that delivers deep, rich flavor every time! Pour it over your mashed potatoes, your stuffing, your turkey, or even dip your dinner rolls in it. You won’t be disappointed!
What are Drippings
Drippings are the juices, liquids, fat, and anything else left in the pan that the turkey was roasted in. Drippings are liquid flavor gold! For a silky smooth gravy, strain the drippings before whisking them into the roux.
What is a Roux
A roux is a thickener made with equal parts of butter, or some other fat, and flour whisked together in a warm pan. The longer the roux is cooked, the darker it will get and the less thickening power it will have.
When making a roux based sauce, a general rule of thumb is to use one cup of liquid for each tbsp of butter +tbsp of flour. For example, if you use 4 tbsp of butter and 4 tbsp of flour, use four cups of liquid.
How to make turkey gravy
Because the gravy is made with drippings from the roasted turkey, it can’t be made ahead of time. It is pretty quick and easy so it can be whipped up while the turkey is resting.
For a smooth gravy, strain the turkey drippings into a measuring cup and add enough turkey broth to equal four cups of liquid. It is important to warm the broth before adding it to the roux so that the gravy won’t be lumpy.
Over medium heat, add 4 tbsp butter and 4 tbsp flour to a pan and whisk together until there are no lumps. Cook 1-2 minutes, until it smells nutty.
Next, slowly whisk in the warm drippings and broth and continue whisking until it thickens. If the gravy becomes too thick, whisk in more warm broth until your desired consistency is reached.
Because this is a roux based recipe, the gravy will continue to thicken as it cools. However, be cautious about adding too much liquid because it is easier to thin out a thick gravy then it is to thicken a loose gravy.
Pro Tip: If the gravy becomes too thin, use a fork and mix together 1 tbsp butter and 1 tbsp flour and whisk into the gravy. If lumps develop, strain the gravy through a fine sieve.
Taste and season with salt, if needed. Generally, there is a lot of flavor from the pan drippings and the broth and it won’t require much extra seasoning.
It’s no secret that any good meal can be elevated by a great sauce. This turkey gravy will definitely take your Thanksgiving meal from good to great!
If you like this recipe, you might also like: Garlic Mashed Potatoes
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Turkey Gravy
Ingredients
- 4 Tbsp butter
- 4 Tbsp all purpose flour
- drippings from turkey
- 4 cups turkey broth or chicken broth
- salt to taste
Instructions
- Strain the turkey drippings
- To a measuring cup, add strained turkey drippings and enough broth to equal 4 cups of liquid
- Over medium heat, warm the drippings and broth and set aside
- Over medium heat, add butter and flour to a pan and whisk until combined and there are no lumps
- Cook 1-2 minutes
- Slowly whisk in the drippings and broth
- Whisk until thickened, adding additional broth if needed to reach desired consistency
- Taste and season with salt, if needed
This post makes me all excited and happy about Thanksgiving coming up this year. I can taste this gravy and my mouth is watering because of it. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you, Kristy! I hope you have a very happy Thanksgiving!