Carrie's Guide to the Ultimate Turkey Gravy

I am the queen of sauce in my house. Granted, the only other females in the house that could potentially vie for the crown are two 7-year-olds and a goldfish that has assumed a female identity (how do you know the sex of a fish? Do they even have genders? So many questions) ... but still. I like to make sauce. But I LOVE to make gravy. And, it isn't quite as simple as you might think, either. There's a little more to it than slamming some Bisto into a jug of hot water and stirring. In fact, proper good gravy doesn't involve Bisto at all. But there is Marmite ...

So, here are my top tips for the best turkey gravy EVER:

• Start early, and start with giblets. The best turkey gravy uses both the potato water and a stock made from the turkey giblets. You want a little salted water to boil the giblets in. Don't include the liver as this can make your stock taste bitter. In a litre of water pop your giblets, a chopped onion, chopped celery, chopped carrot and one tangerine rind. Bring to the boil and simmer for an hour. When it's ready, strain all the ingredients and add some potato water.
  
• When your turkey is cooked let it stand (I cover it in foil at this point) and use the roasting pan for your gravy-making. Skim most of the excess brown fat from the tin but leave a little as it adds to the flavour.
• CAREFULLY brown some flour on a baking tray in the oven - watch that it doesn't burn!
• Heat the roasting tin on the hob and get the fat bubbling.
• Add the flour to the fat and combine with a metal whisk. Make sure all the flour is combined with the fat and that it's nicely bubbling to avoid a starchy flavour.
• Add the stock one cup at a time and whisk continually. You want a high heat and lots of bubbling to really blend the flavours.
• Keep stirring and let the mixture reduce over a reasonably high heat.
• Give it a taste and add approximately one teaspoon of Marmite instead of salt. You can add more to taste, depending on your personal preference.
• If you like to sieve your gravy you can do this after about 10 minutes of the bubbling process.
• Pour all over everything and consume!
  

Flickr image from Dinner Series' photostream. Carrie hasn't made her turkey gravy yet, she's saving that for the weekend.