fucking gravy

[Nagoo]

The pissing Bisto wouldn't thicken, so i got in a massive huff, said very loud, very bad words and refused to eat my dinner as it had cornflour thickened gravy that tasted shite.

AIBU that I don't know how to make real gravy?

Nowt wrong with Bisto if it works and you like it.

at your rice pudding eating strop

I think what I do is juices from the pan, top up with veggie water and maybe some balsamic vinegar/apple juice/wine/whatever goes, simmer a bit then thicken with cornflour, simmer a bit more, taste it, add seasoning. I think. I don't do roasts very often.

never ever use Bisto-its an abomination

mix meat juices with a little flour to form a thick cream consistency.Add water veg cooked in[slowly]stir till thickens-add teaspoon Bovril or Marmite-at a pinch an Oxo cube.
Cornflour can make it a bit slimy so make sure it is well-a splash of Worcester sauce is good as is a bit of red wine.

Pan juices, blend in about a tablespoonful of plain flour (much nicer than cornflour) to make a roux, then gradually work in veg water, maybe a bit of wine or stock. Season to taste.

I make lush gravy with meat juices etc, but I always cheat with an oxo cube

Why the bisto snobbery? actually I use asda home brand gravy granules

People who are having cornflour issues - you do know to add cold water and mix first, right?

Easy way for Bisto lovers - take meat out of pan and pour away any excess oil. Add boling water and scrape up all the roasty meaty bits with a wooden spoon. Add gravy granules to thicken.

OR the fancier, yummy way with red wine etc as described abover. Doesn't take long at all and sooooooooo worth it.

Oh dear I use bisto all the time and we love it, I'm rubbish at cornflour gravy as well.

If you want to make gravy for sausages or a pie, i.e. when you don't have the juices from a roast, this is what I do.

Finely slice/dice/chop (whatever is easiest for you!) an onion and fry in about 4 tablespoons of oil. When it's really brown, add a tablespoon of plain flour, and stir it in/cook for a minute or so, then add water, a little bit at a time, till it's all absorbed and not lumpy.

If you're cooking vegetables, use the cooking water from these. You can also chuck in any wine if you like.

Taste it and then add any of the following:

soy sauce
Lea & Perrins
Marmite
cranberry sauce
red currant sauce

You're looking to create something savoury, with a bit of sweetness and plenty of depth

Sounds mad, but it makes nice gravy, and you don't have to resort to revolting gravy granules!

Nagoo, did you use boiling water? Bisto won't thicken if the water's not hot enough.

yes snorbs. I actually worried that the water was too hot, but it wouldn't have been once I added the next 100g or so of granules!

I actually found big starchy lumps in the pot that were not mixed in so I think that the granules are actually in the wrong here.

(like I've had a row with sentient malicious gravy granules)

Cornflour makes my teeth feel ick. I know how to use it I just can't stand it.

You can't trust those gravy granules you know. I made gravy once and it came out rather coffee-flavoured and it wasn't anything to do with me getting the jars mixed up

I have a really small sauce whisk for gravy emergencies - if you found granules at the bottom of the pan you aren't whisking/ mixing hard enough. Give it some welly!

at coffee gravy

Comptons gravy salt! Less than half a teaspoon for about 3/4 pint of stock thickened with flour/corn flour. Onion gravy made this way is very tasty with bangers or chops etc.

If I've got bones left over from a roast, I make stock, and keep it in the freezer. Otherwise stock from a Knorr stock cube will be fine (especially the reduced salt versions).

Worcestershire sauce is good to add, or soy sauce or, if you can get it, mushroom ketchup (adds a real meaty flavour).

I generally use a cornflour mix to thicken, rather than the roux method, as I'm trying to keep calories down....

lessnarkypuffinSun 06-Feb-11 17:32:41
Cornflour makes my teeth feel ick. I know how to use it I just can't stand it.

Are you simmering the gravy for at least 5 mins after adding cornflour. It generally takes the floury taste away.

Or use Arrowroot powder. Works the same way without too much flouryness.

I always roast my meats in dry cider covered with foil and then drain the fat off the meat juices and stock to make the gravy (with Bisto).

Tastes fab and the cider keeps the meat moist.

Oh FabbyChic someone who makes gravy in a similar way to me!

I do 3 heaped teaspoons of bisto and same of plain flour into a mug, mix, then add water and mix until smooth. In a saucepan I put about an inch of water, pour some stock off whatever I'm roasting into that, then pour in the stuff from the mug and keep mixing it until it boils (let it boil for 3 mins to thicken it). It's great as you can make it before everything else is ready (put a lid on it if you aren't using it right away and just heat it up again while you're serving everything else)

I too am a reasonably confident cook and know how to make "proper" gravy but rarely do - Bisto does us fine.

Last time I did "proper" gravy for a Sunday roast I burnt a hole in the lino (using oven gloves to hold roasting tin still while I stirred and they caught fire - I panicked and threw them on the floor to stamp out the flames, hence the damage to lino)

I still do "proper" gravy for Christmas lunch but that has its moments. The other year there were a few lumps so I grabbed the new magimix thing out of its box to use and didn't notice that it was all tangled up with the fixings for if you wanted to attach it to the walll. Just before serving I noticed some funny "floaters" in the gravy boat which turned out to be two screws and a rawlplug! Imagine if I had had to explain that to MIL if they ended up on her plate.