Mom’s Famous Turkey Gravy is made with rich, glorious turkey pan drippings and is the star of Thanksgiving dinner. Perfectly creamy and flavorful every time!
Our mother is the best cook we know. Everything she makes is perfection. But the thing she is most famous for her is her turkey gravy. Anyone who has shared her table over the years asks for this turkey gravy recipe.Until now, we’ve never even written it down; it was just made to taste. But we finally got our mom to tell us step by step how she creates this savory, creamy gravy. It’s delicious over just about anything!
Thanksgiving Dinner All Year Round
If you know our mom, you know she makes a traditional Sunday dinner. Every. Single. Sunday. When we were growing up, she would alternate weeks between roast and turkey. We would come home from church and know we had a famous feast to look forward to: turkey, potatoes and gravy, rolls, corn… seriously, it was like Thanksgiving every other week. We were beyond spoiled. And the show stopper was always this Turkey Gravy.
Using Turkey Drippings for Gravy
The most important ingredient in this creamy gravy is the turkey drippings. Some people throw out all but about half a cup. Please save those savory juices! We use every single bit of drippings we can get. It makes a ton of gravy, but it is so rich and flavorful, you can use it for so many things! Try it in these delicious recipes:
- Turkey Pot Pie
- Thanksgiving Leftover Casserole
- Drizzled over The Perfect Mashed Potatoes
- Our Best Dinner Rolls are so good to dunk in the turkey gravy
- Pilgrim Sandwiches
It All Starts with the Bird
Of course to get those flavorful drippings you have to make the turkey! Luckily, we have a fool-proof, step-by-step guide for Making the Perfect Turkey. Our Thanksgiving turkey recipe is full of parsley, sage, rosemary, thyme, onion, and celery. As a result, your gravy will have all those delicious flavors and herbs mixed in as well.
Can Gravy Be Frozen?
If you run out of potatoes before you run out of gravy (that’s happened to us many times) this turkey gravy freezes beautifully in a freezer safe container for up to three months!
How Long Will it Keep in the Refrigerator?
If kept in the fridge, turkey gravy should be used up in a day or two. If you don’t think you’ll use it all up in that amount of time, the freezer is your best option.
How to Reheat Turkey Gravy
Spoon the cold gravy into a skillet and warm over low heat and the turkey gravy will resume its creamy consistency within a few minutes.
Is This Gravy Gluten Free?
This recipe is gluten-free IF you leave out the gravy packet that comes with the turkey. The rest of the ingredients are completely GF and it will still taste delicious.
Thanksgiving Sides
Our Thanksgiving Recipes are some of our mom’s most special recipes that hold so many beautiful memories. We are happy to share them with you:
- Perfect Mashed Potatoes
- Cranberry Sausage Stuffing
- Slow Cooker Creamed Corn
- Green Bean Casserole with Bacon and Onion Straws
- Orange Cranberry Sauce
- Homemade Crescent Rolls
- Harvest Pear Salad with Cranberry Vinaigrette Dressing
- Pies – So many delicious pies to choose from! You can stick with the Traditional Pumpkin Pie or Dutch Apple Pie or try something new, like our Island Pecan Pie or German Chocolate Pie.
More Delicious Gravy Recipes
No matter what you’re serving, there’s a scrumptious, savory gravy to go with it. Try a few of these favorites:
How to Make Turkey Gravy
Ingredients
- 1/2 to 1 cup turkey drippings from cooked turkey
- 1 gravy packet included with the frozen turkey or turkey breast (optional, for a gluten free gravy, don’t use the packet)
- 1 tablespoon Wyler’s chicken bouillon granules
- pepper to taste
- 2 cups milk
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- 1/2 cup water
- salt (optional)
Instructions
- After roasting a turkey or turkey breast in the oven, remove the turkey and leave the drippings in the roasting pan. Place the pan on the largest stove top burner on medium heat. If there is less than one cup of liquid in the pan, add enough water to make about one cup. Whisk up any little browned bits that may have cooked to the roasting pan. This adds delicious flavor to the gravy. The heat from the stove helps loosen the browned bits on the sides of the pan.
- If you’ve used an aluminum pan to cook the turkey, don’t place it on the stove after removing the turkey. Add water to the drippings to make one cup. Use a whisk or spoon to loosen the browned bits from the bottom of the pan.
- Pour the liquid from the pan into a 2 cup or larger tempered glass measuring cup or glass bowl. The fat from the drippings will rise to the surface. Skim off the fat with a spoon.
- Pour the remaining liquid through a wire strainer into a medium-sized saucepan. This will remove any turkey bits or fat and make a smooth, creamy gravy.
- If a gravy packet was included with the turkey, add it to the saucepan. If you want a gluten free gravy, don’t add the packet.
- Bring the liquid to a simmer.
- Stir in the bouillon granules and pepper.
- Gradually whisk in the milk and bring back to a simmer.
- At this point, taste the gravy. Add more bouillon and pepper if needed for flavor. Do not add salt at this time.
- In a separate, small bowl, combine cornstarch and water. Stir until there are no lumps. It should be nice and smooth.
- Whisking the gravy constantly, slowly add cornstarch mixture a little at a time until the gravy is thickened to the consistency you desire. Make the gravy slightly thinner than what you prefer because it will thicken a little as it cools.
- Taste the gravy again. If needed, add a little salt for flavor.
- Pour into a gravy boat and serve.
Lisa says
Perfect recipe and great tips! It’s our new favorite for the holidays.
Ashley says
Was looking for turkey gravy and came across this. It’s perfect!
Brook Howe says
I’ve made this twice now and it’s simply phenomenal. Two thumbs up!!
Debra says
I will definitely try this…but wondering if you could help me ,,,at Thanksgiving last year, we deep fried our turkey…of course we all want gravy! any suggestions on how to make gravy without pan drippings ????
Erica says
Sometimes the turkey will come with a packet of drippings, if you can find one that includes the drippings in a separate pack, that is definitely the way to go! Otherwise you will probably be best off getting a packet of turkey gravy if you are frying the turkey. I’m not sure how you can make a true homemade turkey without drippings. :/
Jennifer says
Hi Erica!
Happy Thanksgiving! I just picked up one of these vintage Magnalite roasters (the 21″!) and for the price my husband is expecting his Thanksgiving dinner to be amazing. Could you help me out with a few questions I have about it?
-How do you monitor the temp of the meat inside the pot? Seems like if I keep opening the oven and the pot to take the temp, it will really throw the temp off.
-Would the small wire from a remote meat thermometer disrupt the seal of the lid enough to affect the roasting or could I use one?
-Any idea approximately how long I might cook a 20 lb. turkey? I have read by some that these cook much faster than normal and I would like all of my food to come out about the same time.
Thank you in advance!
Jennifer
Erica says
Great questions.. as a rule of thumb they say 20 minutes per pound of turkey(at 350-degrees) but that can vary because you are using the magnate. A small wire from a remote meat thermometer shouldn’t disrupt the seal of the lid… If you are worried about it you can place some aluminum foil around were the wire is to keep the good seal– but really, it should be ok. 🙂 The meat thermometer is definitely the best way to go to make sure it isn’t over/under done. Hope this helps! Let us know how it turns out.
We love that roasting pan– sometimes the turkey we get is too big to fit the lid over the top so we just cover the pan it with foil as best we can and place the lid on top of the turkey. You just want to trap in that heat/moisture as much as you can.
Jennifer says
What great advice! Thank you so much!
Jennifer says
I can’t seem to find the gravy recipe…. Only the turkey recipe. Desperately wanting to try this.
Erica says
Hi Jennifer– Thank you for pointing out that is was missing! I was able to fix the problem.. it should be there now 🙂
Jenn says
Oh wow! I MUST try this gravy! My girlfriend’s mother in law had the best gravy recipe ever but she passed away without ever passing it on and we’ve been searching for a replacement ever since. Nothing measures up! But, if you can eat this by the spoonful then I must give this a try!
I know you don’t do measurements but can you possibly give me any idea at all as to how many cups of turkey drippings you’re talking about? I always make a 20 pound turkey so I am not sure how many cups of drippings a “small” turkey makes! Please help because I am definitely trying this on Thanksgiving this year!
Thanks so much!
Jenn
Erica says
For a small turkey, I only keep about a cup or two– which is usually all of the drippings available. If it seems like there is excess drippings I will discard some but usually I use as much of the drippings as I can because it adds the best flavor. I hope this helps! Let us know if it turns out like your girlfriend’s mother-in-law’s!
Julia says
In the recipe for the turkey is that for fresh or dried herbs?
Erica says
Dried… if you use fresh, you will want to use at least twice as much. Hope this helps!
Grace says
This is probably a dumb question, but I should NOT be using ground herbs/spices? Looking forward to making this! 🙂
Echo says
You can definitely use the ground spices if you want. They will also taste great. When I use ground spices instead of fresh, I rub them between my hands before adding them to the gravy. This will bring out more of the flavors of the spices. Thanks for asking!
Grace says
You rub the powder between your hands?
Echo says
You rub the spices (parsley, sage, rosemary) between your fingers to break them up a little. This releases more of the flavor of the spice.
Grace says
I’d heard of breaking up dried herbs and spices to release more flavor, but not the already-ground-into-powder ones. I learn something new all the time! 🙂 Happy Thanksgiving!
Judy says
Do you take the grease out of the drippings before making the gravy?
Erica says
If there is excess grease, we will take it out but if there’s just a little bit we will leave it in… It adds a great flavor!
Connie Westgate says
Hi. I am using my mother’s Magnalite roasterfor full 17 lb Turkey. Do you leave the cover on until almost the end of the cooking time and then uncover to brown the turkey? Connie
Favorite Family Recipes says
Hi Connie– aren’t Magnalites the best? Yes, we will cover it for most of the time and then uncover to brown it for 15 minutes or so. It just holds in those juices beautifully! Sometimes the large turkeys don’t fit so we will cover tightly with foil and then place the lid over the top (because sometimes it shrinks and then the lid will fit in place as it is cooking). Hope this helps!
Liz says
Sounds good. Thank you
Leigh says
Please make sure you get the right roaster. The name ‘Magnalite’. Is now owned by a different company than the company who owns the formula for materials used in original cookware! Please research! The http://www.wagnerware.com site is the correct manufacturer to receive cookware equivalent to the original. I am a careful consumer, no way connected to the company mentioned. I found Amazon.com reviews concerning this cookware will confirm this and provide further information. Be careful before you buy. Good luck. 🙂
Kelli Wells says
Hi
I came across your blog from Pinterest and was hooked! Went to EBay and bought the Magnalite 12 Q pot. Tonight I made your turkey, mashed potatoes and gravy. OMGosh!!! Best meal ever! I have been making those for 20+ years and have never had it turn out so perfect. I “might” have even had a couple of spoonfuls of the gravy by itself! Thank you SOOOO much!
Erica says
I am SO happy to hear that you liked it!!!! I hear ya about the gravy.. I am frequently “tasting” spoonfuls of the gravy at a time! LOL I should seriously be a spokesperson for Magnalite because I can’t live without their roaster! So glad you found us! Please keep coming back for more recipes!
Janelle says
OH MY GOODNESS!!! My mom and I were trying to find something new and different for our thanksgiving dinner this year and so a couple of weeks ago, we tried this recipe, your rasp. cranberries, and your Island Pecan Pie. We were blown away! Now you have to know, we cook a lot and normally our thanksgiving food is pretty darn good, but this time, (I know we aren’t supposed to brag on ourselves) I believe this was one of the best meals I have EVER eaten. We have always used Magnalite roasters on our roasts and ham, and I have always wondered if you could do a turkey in one (we have always done ours in a bag) we just never have. Well we will never use a bag again! We passed on our knowledge from our attempt a few weeks ago to our extended family and they used the recipes yesterday too and everyone was raving about their dinners. You guys are A-M-A-Z-I-N-G! We also made your fruit salad recipe, the one with the pistachio pudding, and also your coconut cream pie and we now have the perfect Thanksgiving meal! Thank you,thank you, thank you for making this the best Thanksgiving EVER! ( Tell your mom hello from Sister Reary (my mom). Have a Merry Christmas, here is hoping you can make my Christmas as good or better than my Thanksgiving!! 🙂
Erica says
Janelle– Thank you so much for commenting! I am so glad that your Thanksgiving dinner turned out so great… and that you used so many of our recipes! I told my mom “hello” from your mom and she said “Oh I LOVE her! They are such a wonderful wonderful family”… then went on to tell me what a talented and amazing family you have! Sounds like our two families need to get together and have a huge feast of some sort! Promise me that next year you will add our cranberry-sausage stuffing to the mix.. it is life changing. 🙂 I am dying that you have never used your roasting pan for turkey before! We seriously don’t make turkey without it! I am glad we helped you to find another use for it! We even use it on the stove-top to make stews and soups when serving a lot of people. It just has such good, even heating. Sheesh, look at me… I should just be a spokesperson for Magnalite. Anyway– Merry Christmas to your family as well! Tell your mom that OUR mom says “hi” back 🙂
Karil says
Oh my Gosh!!! I know this is an older post but I’m hoping you see this. I was looking for a turkey gravy recipe and was confused by the “magic pot” comment. So reading on I discovered (I think) that you’re referring to the Magnalite roaster! Well my parents always had the large18” one and ALWAYS Cooked the turkey in it, my sister “borrowed “ it one year (as I ended up with it)
And wouldn’t give it back!! So my MIL. Bought us one. Now my SIL loves it and cooked a large turkey stock in it (which I never did)
Also my grandmother. Always made the pistachio fruit salad and I have never heard of that anywhere else until just now! How funny that those two things (which are not well known) are things we have in common as family recipes!!!
Anyway just wanted to write that and thank you for sharing!
Carolyn says
I have one of those roasters-it’s the size of a VW. Barely fits in my oven. But it is fantastic and they come in different sizes.
Jan says
What size is your “Magic Pot”? I’ve been looking into buying one on eBay! I’m guessing the 18″ would be best for turkey baking.
Erica says
Mine is the 15″ which is perfect for a turkey breast (we have a smaller family)… when my kids get older I will definitely be upgrading to the 18″ or bigger!
Tiffany says
Hi Erica, it’s your Cars Fast Pass line pal 🙂 I love your blog, what size of magic pot or Dutch oven should I get?
Erica says
Hey!! I am emailing you right now! 🙂
susan yakus says
Does it matter if it is whole milk or 2%?
Erica says
Nope! We usually just use skim!
Jen says
Where do you buy the magnalite roasters?
Lisa says
I’m interested in the “magic pot”. Can you buy it locally or is it online? Also what size of pot is yours? Thanks!
Erica says
I have only found them online. I will post a link to where you can buy them in this post in the next little bit…
Trisha says
This all sounds wonderful! What kind of bullion? Beef, chicken, another kind? Thanks!
Erica says
Whoops! Glad you said something! I fixed it on the recipe… it’s chicken bouillon..