Christmas Eve deserves a post. As if there aren't enough things to do. But hey, that's kind of how I roll. I plan a million things to do and then I only get a portion of them done. My way of prioritizing I guess? Either way, this is going to be short and sweet. Cause I've got presents to give and to open, and a whole lotta food to eat. Which brings me to my point. Gravy. Gravy is always the point. It's the point of eating turkey, and potatoes and stuffing. These foods are all simply vehicles from which to carry gravy to my mouth. Gravy may be, dare I say, the point of Christmas dinner.
So last minute or not, I wanted to share the perfect gluten free gravy recipe. This is the first holiday that I've actually tried to make a gluten free gravy, and I'll never skip it again. I thought it would be a big hassle, that it would be lumpy or grainy, and that I would make my poor family suffer through an entirely unenjoyable gravy experience. I just didn't want to do that to them.
The solution was clear. My boyfriend and I would drive five hours in a snow and ice storm to visit my parents house out of town, and have a pre-Christmas, Christmas dinner. Dinner would consist of turkey and all the fixings, including gluten free gravy. And if it was terrible, well everyone could still enjoy real Christmas dinner a few days later anyways.
Now, it's the day of the real Christmas dinner and I've got my little jar of gluten free gravy leftovers to enjoy with dinner number two. I'm surprised I managed to get any home, I was licking it out of the pot. It's so good. It tastes just like real, regular gravy. Identical. That never happens!
Okay, here's the secret - use sweet rice flour, also called glutinous rice flour. I've blogged about this type of flour before. I found it in the ethnic section of my regular grocery store, and it comes in these small flat plastic bags, and it's only a dollar a bag. Other than that, my mom and I just followed our regular gravy recipe, and replaced the regular wheat flour with the sweet rice flour. Worked perfectly.
Perfect Gluten Free Gravy
Adapted from Gourmet Magazine
4 cups chicken stock (make sure it's gluten free)
Pan juices from & roasting pan
1/4 cup sweet rice or glutinous rice flour
Pan drippings, about 1/4 (or melted butter if you don't have enough)
Fresh rosemary (optional)
Salt and pepper
After your turkey is cooked and out of the oven, you can start the gravy. Move the turkey out of the roasting pan. Pour all of the liquid out of the roasting pan and let it cool, then separate the juices from the fat. Add the juices to the stock, if there are any. Take the roasting pan and straddle it over two burners. Add one cup of the stock to the roasting plan and heat while scraping the bottom to deglaze all of the juices and leftover bits of turkey.
In a saucepan, heat a 1/4 cup of the fat, then add the flour and whisk to make a roux. Let it brown for a minute or two, then gradually pour in all of the stock and juices, whisking constantly. Add a few sprigs of fresh rosemary, if desired. Bring to a simmer and let it cook gently for 10 minutes. Season generously with salt and pepper to taste. If you like, strain the gravy through a sieve before serving. Or if you're like me, just enjoy it as soon as possible!
