Recipes

The Easiest Turkey Gravy

This thanksgiving turkey gravy is so easy to make with the leftovers from your roast turkey!

The easiest Thanksgiving turkey gravy! | Teaspoon of Nose
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First, a very important gravy question: are you a drencher or a drizzler?

Do you coat everything on your Thanksgiving plate with turkey gravy or strategically spoon it on your mashed potatoes and turkey?

I’m probably the latter: a drizzle is enough for me. Although the more i eat this recipe, the more I let it slip onto everything else on the plate!

This turkey gravy recipe makes a TON of gravy, perfect for Thanksgiving drenchers! It’s also pretty simple to make: essentially a series of stirring and reducing.

Hosting the big day? This is the quickest way to delicious Thanksgiving turkey! Both easy brining and roasting instructions!
This thanksgiving turkey gravy is so easy to make with the leftovers from your roast turkey!

Since the kitchen Thanksgiving day is a bit like conducting an orchestra, plan for the gravy near the end. You need the drippings from the roasting pan as a base. It takes 10-15 minutes to cook and then needs 5 minutes or so to rest and firm up before serving. You don’t want it sitting around for hours, though.

The most important step is reducing the turkey drippings. Cooking off the liquid here is easier than trying to reduce it at the final step, where it’s more likely to burn.


Once the liquid has reduced down by about half, set it aside and make a roux. The roux makes the magic happen – it thickens the whole thing up perfectly.

This thanksgiving turkey gravy is so easy to make with the leftovers from your roast turkey!
This thanksgiving turkey gravy is so easy to make with the leftovers from your roast turkey!

After combining everything, give it a stir for a few minutes. Stirring is crucial here to keep it from burning. When it’s nearly thick enough, turn off the burner and let it sit for 5 minutes. This usually thickens it up to the perfect pourable gravy we want to drizzle or drench, whatever your style may be.

If it’s really not coming together, you can always stir in a teaspoon of cornstarch. Think of it as your last resort – it’ll do the trick, but if you add even a tiny bit too much it’ll get gummy.

This recipe is a great basic gravy recipe in general! Cut the numbers in half and use the drippings from a roast chicken. It doesn’t need to reduce much with roast chicken because you start with so much less liquid.

One more important note: please please PLEASE taste. I tend to add almost no salt to this turkey gravy, but that’s only because I brine my turkey and the drippings are so perfectly salted to begin with. Give it a taste when you’re doing the final whisking and make sure the saltiness is what you want.

This thanksgiving turkey gravy is so easy to make with the leftovers from your roast turkey!
This thanksgiving turkey gravy is so easy to make with the leftovers from your roast turkey!

Tools you’ll need: roasting pan with drippings, saucepan and whisk.

Thanksgiving Turkey Gravy

Cook Time20 minutes
Course: Sauce
Cuisine: American
Keyword: Christmas, holiday, holiday meals, quick side, Thanksgiving

Ingredients

  • drippings from Thanksgiving turkey
  • 1 cup dry white wine
  • 5 Tbsp butter unsalted
  • cup flour all-purpose
  • 3 cups chicken broth

Instructions

  • Either put the roasting pan with drippings over two stove burners or transfer the drippings, including any bits, into a saucepan and cook. Reduce over medium heat for 10-12 minutes, until the liquid is nearly gone.
  • Add wine to the drippings and cook for 3-4 minutes, scraping the bottom of the pan as needed. Set the drippings aside.
  • In a new pan, melt the butter and add flour, whisking constantly. Cook until light brown, about 5 minutes, whisking regularly.
  • Add in the broth, then add the drippings liquid through a sieve. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer, stirring occasionally until thickened, about 8-10 minutes.

Homemade turkey gravy is so easy! You can see more on how I prep and roast my turkey if you need more guidance on that, or see my Thanksgiving master list for more inspiration!

This thanksgiving turkey gravy is so easy to make with the leftovers from your roast turkey!

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