Tuesday, November 20, 2007

All purpose gravy


Ingredients
1 small carrot, peeled and chopped into rough 1/2-inch pieces (about 1/2 cup)
1 small rib celery, chopped into rough 1/2-inch pieces (about 1/2 cup)
1 small onion, chopped into rough 1/2-inch pieces (about 3/4 cup)
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
2 cups low-sodium beef broth
1 bay leaf
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
5 whole black peppercorns
table salt and ground black pepper

Cooking directions
1. In food processor, pulse carrot until broken into rough 1/4-inch pieces, about five 1-second pulses. Add celery and onion. Pulse until all vegetables are broken into 1/8-inch pieces, about five 1-second pulses.

2. Heat butter in large heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium-high heat. When foaming subsides, add vegetables and cook, stirring frequently until softened and well browned, about 7 minutes. Reduce heat to medium Stir in flour and cook, stirring constantly, until thoroughly browned and fragrant, about 5 minutes. Whisking constantly, gradually add broths. Bring to boil, skimming off any foam that forms on surface. Reduce heat to medium-low and add bay leaf, thyme, and peppercorns. Simmer, stirring occasionally until thickened and reduced to 3 cups, 20 to 25 minutes.

3. Strain gravy through fine-mesh strainer into clean saucepan, pressing on solids to extract as much liquid as possible; discard solids. Adjust seasonings with salt and pepper. Serve hot.

If you want to double the recipe, use a Dutch oven to give the vegetables ample space for browning. And increase the cooking times by roughly 50 percent.

The finished gravy can be frozen. To thaw either a single or double recipe, place the gravy and 1 tablespoon of water in a saucepan over low heat and bring slowly to a simmer. The gravy may appear broken or curdled as it thaws, but a vigorous whisking will recombine it.

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