Prepare for the BEST turkey gravy
I’ve been talking about the importance of preparing for the things that are most important to us.
You know, it could be preparing for a wedding, (lots of work ahead of the event!), or for a great vacation, or preparing our hearts for a worshipful Christmas or a heart full of gratitude for Thanksgiving.
Another HIGH priority in my life is good gravy.
(tee-hee,… my grandma used to say, “good gravy!” when she was surprised or astonished…
how cute is that?!)
Good gravy needs two basic things to be REALLY good gravy… 1. excellent broth 2. rich meat drippings.
So to prepare the excellent broth, I like to add that to my day before prep. Here’s how:
(This year I’m dry salt brining my turkey as I’ve read a lot about the benefits of that method… I’ll let you know how it turns out!)
In large soup pot, heat 2 Tbs. neutral oil to hot, (i use grapeseed oil)
add your turkey neck. (please don’t tell me you throw that thing out! It may be creepy but it is one of the keys to rich flavor in your broth) Salt the neck and sear it on each side.
Meanwhile, quarter 2-3 small onions, 3-4 big carrots chopped in quarters and 4 celery stalks also quartered. Toss them in with the neck and keep searing for a few more minutes.. Charring is welcomed.
Add several large garlic cloves and cook for a couple more minutes.
Deglaze with 1/4-1/2 cup chardonnay or other white wine. Cook until wine reduces, (4-5 minutes)
Add a lot of water… I pretty much fill my pot 3/4 full. The broth is going to cook and reduce through the day.
Toss in several clumps of fresh herbs: Parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme. Add a palm full of kosher salt and pepper, and 1 Tablespoon of whole pepper corns. Bay leaf too if you’d like. (I don’t even chop the herbs, no need… all these will be strained off and discarded.)
Bring to a boil, then lower heat and simmer all day, with lid slightly off to side so some steam can escape.
After half, to all day, you can strain the broth. I use cheesecloth lined mesh strainer, straining the broth into another large container. I usually wait to add additional salt until I’ve actually made my gravy… the meat drippings will add saltiness and it’s better to adjust it once you know where you’re at with that.
Cool then put in fridge until tomorrow and you’ll have great stock for your gravy.
**ALTERNATIVELY: If you didn’t get this done the day before, nor worries! Just follow these same steps first thing in the morning and simmer your stock on the back of the stove as ,ing as you can… it will be ready when you make your gravy. I’ve just found it’s nice to have that part out of the way and save precious real estate on my stove top!
