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Make ahead turkey gravy in a white gravy boat on a lace cloth, with a head of garlic and a browned seasoned poultry breast behind it.
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Make Ahead Turkey Gravy

You are done making gravy with one hand while the kitchen fills up behind you. Finish it weeks early, freeze it flat, and warm it Thursday while everyone assumes you were at the stove all morning.
Prep Time5 minutes
Cook Time15 minutes
Total Time20 minutes
Course: Side Dish
Cuisine: American
Servings: 8 (about 4 cups)
Calories: 148kcal
Author: Kita Roberts

Equipment

  • 2 to 3 quart saucepan
  • Balloon whisk
  • Glass liquid measuring cup
  • Measuring spoons
  • Airtight storage container
  • Quart zip-top freezer bags
  • Fine mesh strainer (optional, if you want it perfectly smooth)

Ingredients

  • 6 tbsp unsalted butter
  • 6 tbsp all-purpose flour
  • 3 cups turkey stock preferably homemade
  • 1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
  • 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 tsp soy sauce
  • 1/2 tsp onion powder
  • 1/2 tsp garlic powder
  • 1/2 tsp dried thyme
  • 1/4 tsp rubbed sage
  • 1/2 tsp kosher salt plus more to taste
  • 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper plus more to taste
  • 2 tbsp heavy cream optional

Instructions

Melt the Butter

  • Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat, about 1 minute, until it stops foaming.

Cook the Roux

  • Whisk in the flour and cook 2 to 3 minutes, whisking constantly, until it smells nutty and turns the color of raw peanut butter. It goes from wet-sand crumbly to a loose paste that slides around the pan.
    Flour added to the melted butter in the saucepan, before it gets whisked into a roux.

Add the Liquid

  • Pour in the turkey stock in a thin stream while whisking, then whisk in the chicken broth the same way. Get it completely smooth before adding more. It will seize up and look wrong the second the liquid is added. That is supposed to happen. Keep whisking and it will smooth out.
    The roux whisked smooth and pale gold in the saucepan after cooking for two to three minutes.

Season the Base

  • Whisk in the Worcestershire, soy sauce, onion powder, garlic powder, thyme, and sage until the gravy is an even golden brown.
    Dried herbs and seasonings scattered across the surface of the turkey gravy before they are whisked in.

Simmer

  • Bring it to a gentle simmer, a few lazy bubbles breaking the surface and nothing more. Cook 8 to 10 minutes, whisking every minute or so, until it coats the back of a spoon and holds the line when you drag a finger through it.

Finish

  • Off the heat, whisk in the heavy cream if using. Skip this if the gravy is going in the freezer.
    Heavy cream swirled into the finished turkey gravy before it is whisked smooth.

Season

  • Taste, then adjust salt and pepper.

Notes

  • Make ahead: up to 2 days for best texture; 4 days total in the fridge.
  • Freezer: 3 months in a zip-top bag laid flat, cream left out.
  • Reheat: low heat, whisking, adding broth a splash at a time. A hard boil after a freeze will cause the liquid to split. 
  • This gravy will firm up and thicken so make it a little thinner than you think if planning to reheat it in a day or two for Thanksgiving. 

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 148kcal | Carbohydrates: 8g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 11g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Trans Fat: 0.3g | Cholesterol: 29mg | Sodium: 335mg | Potassium: 143mg | Fiber: 0.2g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 324IU | Vitamin C: 0.4mg | Calcium: 13mg | Iron: 1mg