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Deep, savory turkey gravy made from roasted turkey neck and wings, browned vegetables, chicken stock, and the drippings from the roast turkey.
Why This Turkey Gravy Recipe Delivers
The best thing about his recipe is that it can be made almost entirely a day or two before you need it.
I use the neck and wings from the turkey to essentially turn regular chicken stock into turkey stock ahead of time. The turkey parts and vegetables get roasted until they’re properly browned, then every bit of fond stuck to the sheet tray gets dissolved with water and added back into the stock.
When the turkey comes out of the oven, all that’s left is reheating the gravy, whisking in the drippings and adjusting for thickness. It’s a much less stressful way to make gravy over the holidays and I think it tastes better too.
Brian’s Pro Tips
Make the Base Ahead
Make EVERYTHING including the roux and stock a day or two before Thanksgiving, cool it down, and refrigerate it. It’ll be ready to pull from the fridge and quickly heat up when you’re reading to add drippings.
Brown the Turkey Parts
Don’t just warm the wings and neck in the oven. You want actual roasted color. Browning the turkey parts and vegetables gives you a deeply flavored stock without having to simmer bones for six hours.
Deglaze Every Bit of Fond
Once the turkey parts and vegetables come off the sheet tray, there’s going to be a bunch of dark brown fondy gold stuck to the pan. That’s some of the best flavor in this recipe. Don’t skip the step of scraping and deglazing it off the pan so you can add it to the stock.
Salt AFTER Drippings, Not Before
The gravy may taste slightly underseasoned before the turkey is done. BUT if you plan to add drippings, they’re going to bring salt and a concentrated hit of turkey flavor. Taste for seasoning only after you add the drippings and adjust as needed.
Strain It If You Want Restaurant Gravy
The gravy is perfectly good straight from the pot, but running the finished sauce through a fine-mesh strainer will give you that extra-smooth texture. I especially recommend taking this extra step if you’re serving potato puree.
Key Ingredient Notes
Turkey Neck and Wings
These are the backbone of the gravy. When you’re prepping the Roast Turkey, remove the wings and save them along with the neck instead of roasting them on the bird. Browning those parts gives otherwise ordinary chicken stock actual turkey flavor.
Substitute with a tablespoon of Turkey flavor Better Than Bouillon if you don’t have a spare turkey neck and wings.
Chicken Stock
We’re using chicken stock as a starting point rather than making gallons of turkey stock from scratch. The roasted turkey pieces, vegetables, herbs, fond, and eventually the pan drippings do the heavy lifting.
Onion, Celery and Carrot
These roast alongside the turkey parts and give the finished stock a touch of sweetness and a more rounded flavor.
Fresh Thyme and Bay
These help the gravy tasting Thanksgiving-y without turning it into herb sauce.
Turkey Drippings
This is the final ingredient. While optional, the drippings supply concentrated roast-turkey flavor and much of the final salt, which is why they go in last.
Full ingredient list and amounts are in the recipe card below.
How to Make Turkey Gravy
1. Break down the turkey neck and wings.
- Use a sturdy chef’s knife or cleaver to cut each wing into three pieces. Cut the turkey neck into similarly sized chunks.
- Smaller pieces mean more surface area for browning, which means more roasted turkey flavor going into the stock.
2. Roast the turkey parts and vegetables.
- Preheat the oven to 450°F / 230°C.
- Add the turkey pieces to a sheet tray (without parchment) along with roughly chopped onion, celery, and carrot.
- Roast everything for about 20 minutes, until the turkey and vegetables are nicely browned.
We’re not trying to cook these beautifully for eating. Color is the goal.
3. Deglaze the sheet tray.
- Transfer the roasted turkey parts and vegetables to a large saucepan.
- Pour 1 cup of water onto the hot sheet tray and scrape up all the browned bits stuck to the bottom with a wooden spoon. If they aren’t coming loose, set the tray over low heat for a minute while you scrape. Pour all of that liquid into the saucepan.
4. Make the fortified turkey stock.
- Add 1,500 g chicken stock, fresh thyme, and bay leaves to the saucepan. Bring it to a simmer and cook for 45 minutes.
- Strain out the turkey pieces, vegetables, and herbs using a fine mesh strainer.
5. Make the roux.
- In a clean saucepan, melt 115 g butter over medium heat.
- Whisk in 100 g all-purpose flour and continue whisking and until completely smooth, about 1 minute.
We’re not trying to take the roux super dark. Its job here is mostly thickening.
6. Turn the stock into gravy.
- While whisking, gradually pour in all of the strained stock. Bring to a simmer and cook for another 5 to 10 minutes, stirring regularly.
- It’s ready when the gravy has reduced by about 10% and is thick enough to lightly coat the back of a spoon.
- Taste the gravy, but DO NOT SALT IT YET. It should taste slightly under seasoned. Remember the turkey drippings you’ll add later will bring salt with them.
If you’re making the gravy ahead, let it cool at room temp then refrigerate it until you’re ready to add the turkey drippings.
7. Finish with turkey drippings.
- When the Roast Turkey is done and resting, pour the drippings from the roasting pan into a container.
- Reheat the gravy base over medium heat, then start whisking in turkey drippings gradually. Taste as you go. Depending on how salty your bird is, you may not want to add all of the drippings.
- Continue simmering over medium to medium-high heat until it reaches a gravy consistency. For me that means it coats the back of a spoon and leaves a trail when I run my finger through it.
- For an extra-smooth gravy, finish by straining it through a fine mesh strainer.
Serve This With…
- Best Roast Turkey – A turkey recipe your guests will actually want seconds of
- Potato Puree – A silkier, more luxurious version of classic mashed potatoes
- Sheet Pan Apple Pie – A better, less fussy version of the original
Turkey Gravy
Ingredients
- Turkey neck and wings
- 150 g onion, roughly chopped
- 120 g celery, roughly chopped
- 120 g carrots, roughly chopped
- 1 cup water, for deglazing
- 1,500 g chicken stock
- 3 g fresh thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- 115 g Tbsp unsalted butter
- 100 g cup all-purpose flour
- turkey drippings, to taste
Instructions
- Use a sturdy knife or cleaver to cut wings into three pieces and the turkey neck into similarly sized pieces.
- Preheat oven to 450°F / 230°C. Place turkey parts, onion, celery, and carrot on a sheet tray and roast for about 20 minutes, until nicely browned.
- Transfer turkey and vegetables to a large saucepan. Deglaze the sheet tray with 1 cup water, scraping up all browned bits. Add the deglazing liquid to the saucepan.
- Add chicken stock, thyme, and bay leaves. Bring to a simmer and cook for 45 minutes. Strain and reserve the fortified stock.
- In a clean saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Whisk in flour and cook for 1 minute until smooth.
- Gradually whisk in the strained stock. Simmer for 5-10 minutes, stirring frequently, until thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Do not salt. Cool and refrigerate if making ahead.
- When ready to serve, reheat gravy and gradually whisk in turkey drippings to taste. Simmer until reduced and desired thickness is reached. Strain through a fine mesh strainer before serving to get an extra smooth consistency.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, but I prefer roasting because it develops a deeper, toasty flavor that simmering alone doesn’t have.
Yes, this recipe works if you make it day-of, but cooking on holidays is stressful enough so I prefer making it ahead. Anything you can do to free up time, a burner, and make less dishes the day-of is a win.
