To gravy or not to gravy, that is the question

VeraBlue

Head Mistress
Gold Site Supporter
I'm fairly hooked on the pasture raised chickens from the farmer's market. I've gotten 1 a week since I moved here, always coming up with a different way to use either a whole chicken, or chicken parts.
This week is going to be fried chicken, mashed potatoes, corn on the cob, etc...
I haven't decided if I'm going to make a gravy or not. Honestly, I can enjoy fried chicken with or without the gravy. I can enjoy mashed potatoes with or without gravy. I like to think either can stand alone, sans saucing. However, gravy is good. It's always good and should be considered a food group unto itself.

Do you make a gravy when serving fried chicken? What about meat loaf?? Roast Beef?? Roasted chicken??
 

SilverSage

Resident Crone
For me, it's yes to the roast beef and roast chicken. But I don't make gravy for meatloaf, and I never fry chicken so I guess that's a no.
 

Adillo303

*****
Gold Site Supporter
Sort of like SS for me. I usually BBQ or broil chicken.

Mashed, Butter, basil, garlic, salt & papper for me. A bit of milk for consistency mashing.
 

FryBoy

New member
No to all of them. Largely a matter of healthy eating. Gravy is one of the worst options there is -- fat, flour, salt and liquid. Good, but best avoided except on special occasions, such as Thanksgiving.

Fried chicken is good on it's own, and I like it crispy on the rare occasions I make it.

Roast chicken doesn't need it, IMHO, if it's not overcooked.

As for roast beef, I prefer au jus.

Meatloaf with gravy? Oy, vey! Sounds like the school cafeteria.
 

VeraBlue

Head Mistress
Gold Site Supporter
Several years ago I had to do a cooking trail, instructed to make a soup, salad, main course and dessert. For the main course I chose a NY strip steak which I simply grilled, and served topped with sauteed mushrooms. The meat was just a hair over rare. When presented to the management the first question out of his mouth was "you didn't prepare a gravy?" I'm of the school that most meats don't require a gravy. I didn't get the job...
 

Sass Muffin

Coffee Queen ☕
Gold Site Supporter
I could make a meal out of just whipped potatoes and chicken gravy.

Normally I don't make gravy or have it around all that much- but love it with beef tips and mashed potatoes.

When I was growing up, there was always gravy on the table.
My grandmother used to make the best white creamy gravy with the bits left over in the bottom of a CI skillet in which she'd just fried Sunday dinner chicken.:wub:
She never measured anything, just added flour and milk and stirred until it was bubbly and ready for the constant crowd around her dining room table.

My Mother made a fabulous tomato gravy to go with meatloaf that we loved.
 

QSis

Grill Master
Staff member
Gold Site Supporter
If I never had gravy again, I wouldn't miss it a bit*. I only make it occasionally because QBro is a gravy fan.

Lee

*However, my favorite breakfast when eating out is Biscuits and Sausage Gravy.
 

VeraBlue

Head Mistress
Gold Site Supporter
I always loved how if you pressed the gravy ladle into the mound of mashed potatoes, and then simply tipped the ladle, the contents would fill the pool.
 

Guts

New member
VB I made the pool a little bigger.

Growing up with moms comfort food, whether it be chicken gravy or chicken fried steak. I had to have peas on top the mashed potatoes with gravy. The peas Had to be frozen never caned peas never ever! sorry got a little off topic here.
 

Sass Muffin

Coffee Queen ☕
Gold Site Supporter
I always loved how if you pressed the gravy ladle into the mound of mashed potatoes, and then simply tipped the ladle, the contents would fill the pool.

God Vera! that's poetic! :lol:
I know what you mean, the ladling of the gravy is almost as exciting as taking that first bite of drippy, hot loveliness.
 

GotGarlic

New member
I'm fairly hooked on the pasture raised chickens from the farmer's market. I've gotten 1 a week since I moved here, always coming up with a different way to use either a whole chicken, or chicken parts.
This week is going to be fried chicken, mashed potatoes, corn on the cob, etc...
I haven't decided if I'm going to make a gravy or not. Honestly, I can enjoy fried chicken with or without the gravy. I can enjoy mashed potatoes with or without gravy. I like to think either can stand alone, sans saucing. However, gravy is good. It's always good and should be considered a food group unto itself.

Do you make a gravy when serving fried chicken? What about meat loaf?? Roast Beef?? Roasted chicken??

I don't make fried chicken much anymore, but when I was growing up, my mom always made rice and gravy from the chicken drippings, and I LOVE IT! Sounds like Sass's grandmother's recipe :smile: I always make gravy with meatloaf - for the mashed potatoes, not the meat - and roasted chicken - ditto. Don't roast beef much.

I disagree that gravy is one of the worst foods there is. A cup of gravy has a whole 2 tbsp. of fat and 2 tbsp. of flour - 2 tbsp. of cooking oil contains 240 calories. I can deal with that occasionally.
 

PanchoHambre

New member
I grew up in a gravyless world... "gravy" was red and involved tomatoes and pasta. I was always grossed out by white and brown gravies. Then I learned to make them myself and had some homemade etc. Now I love the stuff. Not my strongest skill in the kitchen but now if it's not there I feel that something is missing.
 

Keltin

New member
Gold Site Supporter
It's hard for me to enjoy mashed potatoes without gravy! :lol:

No gravy for fried chicken or meatloaf. Gravy for roast and sometimes roasted chicken.

Gravy for chicken fried steak, biscuits, and cube steak. Oh, and a fav of mine is pork chops smothered in gravy.
 

buckytom

Grill Master
no gravy on fried chicken here. maybe a dipping sauce, but not gravy. it would seem to be fat and salt overkill on fried food.

but, roast chicken either gets gravy, or fancy mustard, or a finishing sauce, my lastest fave being chipotle pomegranite sauce.

ketchup goes on meatloaf; never thought of gravy for that.

roast beast gets au jus, as fry mentioned, but gravy is just as welcome there.

and depending on if the protein has a gravy, it becomes optional on mashed potatoes. that is to say that if the meat has gravy, then none on the spuds, and vice versa.
 

buckytom

Grill Master
oops, i meant pomegranate.

that sounds really good sass. i guess you mean dried onion bits, right? does it go on top before baking, or after, or both.

my mom just used ketchup doctored up with grated horseradish.
 

Sass Muffin

Coffee Queen ☕
Gold Site Supporter
oops, i meant pomegranate.

that sounds really good sass. i guess you mean dried onion bits, right? does it go on top before baking, or after, or both.

my mom just used ketchup doctored up with grated horseradish.

Yep, dried onions.

She always had it in a gravy boat on the table to use after the meatloaf was prepared. It was heaven to have a cloud of mashed potatoes beside the meatloaf on your plate, then adding the gravy over both. :wub:
 

VeraBlue

Head Mistress
Gold Site Supporter
Whenever I was working as the chef and meatloaf was on the menu, it was expected that I'd prepare a brown gravy to accompany it. However, I was raised with meatloaf served with a red gravy. The meatloaf was formed in a roasting pan. Diced onions and chopped garlic, and sliced mushrooms would be placed around the meatloaf. The, a couple of cans of delmonte tomato sauce would be poured around that. Covered and baked...the water that leached out of the onions and mushroom, plus the fat that dripped out of the meat would make an excellent sauce.

After several rounds of meatloaf with brown gravy that didn't move over much, I offered the meatloaf with a red gravy...sold out in an hour.

I've taken that Marianne recipe and changed it a bit, but mind you, just a bit. It really didn't need much help. The onions and mushrooms were cooked perfectly, the garlic all but disappeared. The red thick mass is amazing on mashed potatoes.
 
K

Kimchee

Guest
Never had meatloaf with brown gravy; we always made a ketchup based
glaze for it.
Bet no one else here uses dill pickle spears as toppers for their meat loaf.
I smash them into the top so each slice has one.
(You like pickles on your burger? You'll like them with your loaf, too.)

As for gravy in general, I like it with roast chicken, roast beef, pot roast and
mashed taters. HAVE to have it with potatoes, because to me, potatoes aren't
all that hot alone.
 

VeraBlue

Head Mistress
Gold Site Supporter
Well, I'm still debating whether to make a gravy for the fried chicken tonight. I never really considered it until the KFC showed up. Up till then, all there was for fried chicken was Chicken Delight or the diner. I don't think the gravy is as much for the chicken as it is for the potatoes and biscuits.
 

Keltin

New member
Gold Site Supporter
Well, I'm still debating whether to make a gravy for the fried chicken tonight. I never really considered it until the KFC showed up. Up till then, all there was for fried chicken was Chicken Delight or the diner. I don't think the gravy is as much for the chicken as it is for the potatoes and biscuits.


I'll agree with that whole heartedly!!! :clap:

Speaking of which, DW is craving KFC again (she craves it at least once a month), so she may be haiving that tonight while me and the guys do the Wings and Brats on the grill.
 
K

Kimchee

Guest
Saw some Diners, Drive Ins and Dives where they fried the chicken, then floated it in a gravy for a while before serving it. Might have been a spicy one; damn show comes on after my brain has mostly shut down, so I disremember...

sounded good though!
 

buckytom

Grill Master
lol @ disremember.


wow, vb, i haven't had chicken delight in years!!! we used to go to the one in douche-mont when i was a kid, near monument circle.

now i've got their jingle stuck in my head, "don't cook tonight, call chicken delight! i feel like chicken tonight, it's chicken delight, yeah chicken delight. ... " :dizzy:
 

VeraBlue

Head Mistress
Gold Site Supporter
Bucky, which town was 'douche - mont'? Pretty sure you can get chicken delight from one of the places in Hasbrouck Heights.
 
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