A tasty gravy is always a nice accompaniment to a roast, but purchased gravy mixes are generally full of nasty ingredients such as preservatives, MSG etc, not to mention gluten products. I've made my own gravy from scratch for years, and it's very easy. The key thing with the way I do it though is this: when roasting meats - chicken, lamb, beef etc, I do it in a covered roasting dish, to prevent the fats splattering the oven, causing smoke and mess I have to clean up. This results in fats and juices from the meat being trapped in the dish, which leads to a more tender meat, but also presents the perfect opportunity to make gravy. However, if I wish to brown the roast at the end of cooking, I drain off this liquid into a pot first to make the gravy. Or if I don't have pan drippings, then I might make the gravy with home-made stocks which I keep in the freezer (these are made by simply boiling chicken frames or suitable bones in water with some salt for 2 or so hours). My daughter made gravy last night, and below is how she did it. You can vary this quite a bit - gravy is basically a flour mixed with a fat, with fluid, seasonings and flavouring added. Similar to making white sauce, but this time it's a gravy so stocks are used instead of milk.
Ingredients
1. About 2 cups fluid from cooking the chicken
2. A sprinkling of herbs (we used dried chives and oregano)
3. ¼ cup rice flour - top the measuring cup with water, and mix in the flour until smooth
4. Extra water if needed
5. A splash of soya sauce
6. Salt to taste
Method
1. Mix everything together in a pot.
2. Cook over low to medium heat, stirring frequently, until cooked and thickened. If mix is too thick, add more water.
1. About 2 cups fluid from cooking the chicken
2. A sprinkling of herbs (we used dried chives and oregano)
3. ¼ cup rice flour - top the measuring cup with water, and mix in the flour until smooth
4. Extra water if needed
5. A splash of soya sauce
6. Salt to taste
Method
1. Mix everything together in a pot.
2. Cook over low to medium heat, stirring frequently, until cooked and thickened. If mix is too thick, add more water.