If you love Southern Cream Gravy but don't know how to make it-look no further! Learn how to make this easy Southern favorite with 3-ingredients and in 5-minutes!
There's nothing better than homemade cream gravy on a warm biscuit, over chicken fried steak, mashed potatoes or on a fried pork chop.
Why you'll love this recipe!
- Quick and easy - you can have sausage, bacon or cream gravy in about 5-minutes!
- Simple ingredients - all you need is fat, flour and milk; then season it with salt and pepper
- Flavorful - the best gravy from scratch is seasoned with bacon or sausage fat, salt and pepper; nothing fancy
Homemade gravy is one of those things you learn over time; it's all about the balance between the ingredients.
The secret is the roux-a combination of equal parts fat and flour.
What you'll need:
- Fat - which can be bacon grease, sausage grease, butter or oil; most Southerners use bacon or sausage for their gravy
- Flour - use all-purpose
- Milk - for the best flavor, us 2% or whole
- Salt & Pepper
How to make it:
- Heat a skillet on medium heat
- Add fat and let it get warm; then sprinkle in flour
- Whisk together
- Add milk; keep whisking
- Continue to cook 4-minutes adding more milk along the way
- Season with salt and a generous amount of black pepper
Expert tips for making perfect Southern Cream Gravy
- Always start with equal amounts of fat and flour
- Use low heat
- Add milk in ½ cup increments until you get the desired consistency
- If you add too much milk at once, you run the risk of having a watery, thin gravy; in this case, you'll have to add more flour
- Use a wire whisk to remove lumps
- Keep an eye on the stove- if the heat is too high, you'll burn the flour, in which case you have to start over (don't ask me how I know this)
- Once the gravy starts to thicken, turn the heat down and add a little more milk or lift the saucepan off the heat
- Season with a teaspoon of salt for starters; combine, taste, then add a generous amount of black pepper
Substitutions for milk:
No milk? No problem...
- Substitute milk with half-n-half, light cream or heavy cream
- Cream will make the gravy slightly sweeter than milk
- You can also use powdered milk or a 50/50 blend of water and evaporated milk (you may have to use more flour)
Make in advance and reheating:
White gravy thickens as it cools. If you make it ahead of time or if you need to reheat it, you will have to add a little more milk. For best results, reheat in a saucepan, not the microwave.
Troubleshooting homemade gravy:
- Too salty - yes, this happens frequently; the best way to remedy over-salted gravy is to add more milk and flour. Do this by adding ½ cup milk first, whisk, then add ¼ cup flour; keep adding milk and flour until the flavor is balanced and the consistency is right
- Too thick - add more milk
- Too thin- add more flour
- Too bland - add more salt and pepper
- Clumpy - if your homemade gravy starts to look like glue, use a wire whisk and add milk - whisking constantly
Related recipes:
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- Homemade Cream Style Corn
- Smothered Okra and Tomatoes
- Cooking Basics
- Father's Day Menu Ideas
- How to Fix Over Salted Foods
Southern Cream Gravy
White cream gravy made with fat, flour and milk. A Southern favorite!
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Servings: 1 cup
Calories: 832kcal
Equipment
- Cast iron skillet
- Wire whisk
Ingredients
- ¼ cup oil , bacon or sausage grease, butter or vegetable oil
- ¼ cup flour , all-purpose
- 1½ cups milk , 2% or whole
- salt and pepper , to taste
Instructions
- Heat skillet on medium
- Add oil and wait till it gets warm (about 1 minute)
- Sprinkle in flour; whisk for 30-seconds
- Add milk in ½ cup increments while continually whisking
- Taste for seasonings; add salt & pepper; serve
Notes
Can I use heavy cream instead of milk?
- You can substitute milk with half-n-half, light cream or heavy cream
- Cream will make the gravy slightly sweeter than milk
- Too salty - yes, this happens frequently; the best way to remedy over-salted gravy is to add more milk and flour. Do this by adding ½ cup milk first, whisk, then add ¼ cup flour; keep adding milk and flour until the flavor is balanced and the consistency is right
- Too thick - add more milk
- Too thin- add more flour
- Too bland - add more salt and pepper
- Clumpy - if your homemade gravy starts to look like glue, use a wire whisk and add milk - whisking constantly
Nutrition
Serving: 1cup | Calories: 832kcal | Carbohydrates: 41g | Protein: 15g | Fat: 68g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Cholesterol: 37mg | Sodium: 158mg | Potassium: 483mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 19g | Vitamin A: 593IU | Calcium: 414mg | Iron: 1mg
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