Blake Makers, I need your help. I braised some pork chops this weekend, and made some amazing gravy to go with it. Although the flavor was right on, how do I make this gravy thicker and creamier?
Here’s how I made it:
I seared 3 pork chops in a hot, heavy-bottom pot with a little oil. I got a good crust on the chops and then removed them from the pan.
I added a little oil and a little butter to the pan, followed by a chopped onion.
I cooked the onion over medium heat for a few minutes until it started going translucent (and a little brown). I added a couple of cloves of minced garlic and cooked for about a minute longer.
Next, I added 1 cup of chicken stock, and then returned the chops – after which, I covered and cooked on low for about an hour (or longer).
Just before we were ready to eat, I added a few tsp. of minced Rosemary, some chopped Parsley and a splash of Dry Sherry (next time I’ll add Cognac).
The flavor was amazing, but the consistency wasn’t there. To thicken the sauce, I added a little flour-in-butter mixture (see left).
It thickened it a little, but not enough. Should I add more? How can I make it creamier? Add cream?
I’d love any help you guys could give.
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Well, a professional foodie would probably have much better advice, but here’s two-cents worth from someone who learned the art of gravy-making from her Appalachian Granny: From my experience, if you simply mixed in the flour/butter mixture (which it sounds like you did) that won’t do nearly as well, because in order to add in enough to really thicken, you get a floury taste. What I’ve always had to do with a too-thin gravy is basically start again from the beginning with your roux: melt your butter, stir in your flour, then after it cooks stir in your too-thin gravy the same way you would any other liquid used to thin the roux. You shouldn’t need much to thicken this, though – better to add less then let it simmer for a bit, in my opinion.
And yeah, cream gravy: Add the liquid to the roux, cook it a bit, then stir in a bit of cream or whole milk before serving. Just a touch, though – sometimes with a very flavorful gravy like this one, you don’t want the dairy to overpower all those other wonderful flavors!
I was just introduced today to your blog and I’m doing some serious drooling on my keyboard, so I know I’ll be back! I’m off to search to see if you’ve posted a recipe for New Orleans “barbeque” shrimp.
Hey, Leslie! I’m glad you found me! I’m on vacation at Disney World right now, so there won’t be as many posts this week. But I’ll be back next week, and back in the swing of things.
Thanks for the tips of thickening my gravy. I wish I had an Appalachian Granny. The best I have is a rural granny (which may be the same thing). She taught my mom, my mom taught me. Cook with your eyes and your heart.
No New Orleans BBQ shrimp, but I’m going to start doing more NOLA fare since I live here, work here, eat here.
Keep reading, I’ll keep cooking (and posting)! bk
Hey Blake,
Cool site! You should check out http://www.chow.com, a foodie site based out of the Bay Area. I’ve used it to throw all sorts of exciting dinner parties. At any rate, we’ll have to catch up soon. The simplest answer to your question about your gravy is just to add cornstarch to it instead of flour (unless of course you have jar of roux that you’ve made in the past sitting in your fridge, which by the way is something that I recommend). Its basically flavorless (although it has a very subtle sweetness to it), but it will really thicken up a gravy. If you can find a chicken demi glace (or make your own), then a small spoonful of that would really give your gravy flavor boost and will make it slightly thicker (but not much). Hope that Claire and I can meet up with you and Bridget when we come home for the holidays.
Thanks, Jason! It’s so great to hear from you. I hope we get to see you and Claire at Christmas! Until then. bk
You could try thickening it with xanthan gum which is a natural thickener that is used in most commercially produced bbq sauces, ketchups, etc. It can be found in most healthfood stores and is flavorless.
thanks, mike. xanthan gum sounds so unnatural. i’ll have to look for it.
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