Lighten your stress-load by making this Make-Ahead Turkey Gravy for your holiday celebration. It can be made a couple of days ahead of your meal using turkey wings.
Make Ahead Turkey Gravy
Contrary to popular belief, you don’t need a whole turkey to make gravy. However, you must slow-roast turkey to get good gravy. And now that so many us deep fry or cook our turkey in an electric roaster, we no longer have the drippings to make the gravy.
I have to admit I have witnessed some pretty seasoned cooks have complete breakdowns at Thanksgiving when it comes time to gravy making. There is just too much going on at that moment; the bird is out of the oven, they are trying to deglaze the pan, the side dishes are almost ready or are getting cold, there are too many people around…let’s face it, gravy anxiety is real.
However, all of this pandemonium can be eliminated with a little planning. The secret is turkey wings from the grocery store. Every store has them and they are so cheap. When you roast the wings with celery, onions and garlic, you have the makings of a perfect turkey stock, which you will make into the perfect gravy. This can be done months ahead and frozen, taking out the stock when you need it.
On Thanksgiving you can make the gravy while the juiciest bird is in the oven as opposed to when it’s out, which many of you know is a very stressful activity.
So relieve your stress this year and make gravy ahead of time.
Give it a try…
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F and in a large sauté or roasting pan (I use my large Dutch oven), roast (use a lower oven rack) turkey wings, celery, onion and garlic for 2 hours. Remove from the oven.
Add water and bring to a boil. Turn down heat and simmer on low for one hour, uncovered. Stock will reduce.
Strain the stock into a bowl with at least a 4 cup capacity. Place liquid into the refrigerator for at least 2 hours or overnight and remove the fat accumulated on top.
In a large sauté pan, melt unsalted butter and whisk in flour. Cook, whisking constantly over medium heat for two minutes. This will cook out the flour taste. Whisk in defatted turkey stock and cook until thickened. (The gravy should coat the back of a spoon.) Add milk, cider vinegar and salt to taste. If by some chance you cannot get your gravy as thick as you like it, don’t panic. It’s always possible you measured something wrong. In an emergency, you can always dissolve 1 teaspoon of cornstarch in one teaspoon of cold water and SLOWLY add it to the gravy while whisking. It will be fine. Just remember, gravy often thickens up a bit when it’s off the heat and you want a nice pourable liquid for all those lovely side dishes.
Pour the gravy into a warmed gravy boat and Thanksgiving dinner is ready!
Now doesn’t that look good?
More Thanksgiving Day Recipes to Enjoy
- Pumpkin Mac and Cheese
- Pumpkin Spice Moscow Mule
- Pecan Pie Cobbler
- Pretzel Bread Stuffing
- Mayonnaise Turkey
- Mini Pumpkin Pies
- Mushroom and Leek Bread Pudding
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Make Ahead Turkey Gravy
Ingredients
- 2 turkey wings
- 4 ribs of celery, roughly chopped, use leaves too
- 1 onion, cut into chunks
- 4 cloves garlic, smashed with the back of a knife
- 6 cups water
- 4 tbsp (1/4 cup) butter
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 cups turkey stock (the one you just made), strained and defatted
- 1/2 cup whole milk
- 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
- salt to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
- In a large sauté or roasting pan (I use my large Dutch oven 7.5 quart), roast (on a lower oven rack) turkey wings, celery, onion and garlic for 2 hours. (If you notice your wings and veggies getting too dark, feel free to cover with foil.) Remove from oven.
- Add water and bring to a boil. (If you used a roasting rack, you will need to transfer the mixture to an appropriate vessel for the stove.) Turn down heat and simmer on low for one hour, uncovered. Stock will reduce.
- Strain the stock into a bowl with at least a 4-cup capacity. Place liquid into the refrigerator for at least 2 hours or overnight and remove the fat accumulated on top.
- In a large sauté pan, melt butter and whisk in flour. Cook, whisking constantly over medium heat for two minutes. This will cook out the flour taste. Whisk in defatted turkey stock and cook until thickened. (The gravy should coat the back of a spoon.) Add milk, cider vinegar and salt to taste. Turn off heat.
Notes
Nutrition
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