Savory, smooth, and creamy from-scratch Country Gravy is the Southern staple we all know and love. The perfect dippable or pourable consistency, use this to top off your breakfast biscuit and chicken-fried steak, or dunk those crispy steak fingers!
Country gravy is king in the South and has a spot on just about every dinner menu around here. This 10-minute foolproof recipe lives up to its high standards as one of the best Southern dips out there. Check out our Southern recipes for more Southern staples!
Why This Country Gravy Recipe is Foolproof
No one wants a gravy with a raw flour taste or lumps floating around in there. Getting the consistency on point was always the hardest part of a country gravy recipe for me. That's why I developed a no-fail method for making sauces and gravies!
This simple method:
- Cooks out the raw flour taste,
- Ensures there are absolutely zero lumps, and
- Delivers the perfect consistency for dipping and pouring every time.
The fat-flour-milk ratio also comes into play in regard to consistency--don't worry, we nailed that one, too!
White Gravy Ingredients
- All- Purpose Flour
- Butter | You can use butter or meat drippings for this recipe you can use drippings from bacon, leftover grease from chicken-fried steak, or chicken-fried chicken--those all work! Just be sure to use the right amount.
- Whole Milk
- Salt + Pepper
How To Make Country Gravy from Scratch
Combine Butter + Flour | Melt the butter, sprinkle over the flour, and stir for about 1 minute.
Add Milk | One big splash at a time, whisking after each addition.
Simmer | Simmer until thickened, 4-6 minutes.
Season + Serve!
Pro-tip: If you aren’t sure if your gravy is consistency is where it needs to be, dip a wooden spoon in the gravy and use your finger to make a line down the back of the spoon. If the line remains and does not bleed back together, your gravy is ready. If it does, continue simmering until thickened more.
White Country Gravy with Meat Drippings
To use bacon drippings in the place of butter, use 2 tablespoons of bacon drippings in the place of the butter. Again, you need to adjust the seasoning if using bacon drippings as they will have a higher salt content than unsalted butter.
You can also make country gravy with breakfast sausage (e.g. sawmill gravy), a popular topping for biscuits and gravy.
What to Serve with Homemade Country Gravy
Country gravy may not seem super versatile, but it totally is. We have put together this roundup below of a few recipes where our gravy shines!
Speaking of versatility, have you heard of chocolate gravy? Dessert meets breakfast in the best way!
Frequently Asked Questions
Sausage gravy contains crumbled sausage, and the roux is made up of flour and meat drippings from the gravy. It is traditionally served over biscuits and is the topper for the beloved Southern breakfast biscuits and gravy. White country gravy is meatless, and the roux is most commonly made up of flour and butter.
There is definitely a huge difference in brown, broth-based gravy vs. white gravy--from the ingredients to how it's used as a topping. The liquid in white gravy is milk, whereas the liquid in brown gravy is broth. Unlike the dishes mentioned above where white gravy shines (Except mashed potatoes! There's always a debate there about which gravy is the best.), brown gravy is what you typically pair with pot roast, pork chops, etc. Thanksgiving Day gravy does combine both flour and broth for that topping, however!
Yes! Country gravy can be made up to 3 days in advance. Store in the fridge until ready to use and reheat on low on the stove top, stirring frequently.
Homemade Country Gravy
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2 cups whole milk
- 1 teaspoon Kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- In a small saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Add flour and whisk until combined. Allow to bubble for 1-2 minutes, but do not allow to brown.
- Add milk a generous splash at a time, whisking after each addition until all of the milk has been incorporated.
- Allow the sauce to bubble for 5-7 minutes, just until slightly thickened. Remove from heat and season with salt and pepper.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Sources: Food Network | Flour 101
Phil says
This worked exactly as written, thanks!