Even though biscuits and sausage gravy are about as Southern as you can get, I actually learned how to make this family favorite from a Californian. That Californian would be my sweet husband and since he pretty much taught me how to cook, I guess it comes as no surprise. After all, he does have a few (very few) Southern roots, which may be why he says my Sweet Yankee Cornbread is not “real” cornbread. Whatever! Anyway, what did come as a surprise to me was how fast and easy it is to make this dish. And the fact that it’s delicious was kind of a surprise too. I’ll cover homemade biscuits in a later post but right now I’m going to show you how to make sausage gravy that your whole family will love.
Biscuits and gravy is classic American comfort food. I’m not sure why my parents never made it since saucy, one-pot meals were the pinnacle of their culinary adventures. Southern food would have seemed exotic fare at my childhood family table and Heaven knows we could have used a little bit more of that. But for some reason biscuits and gravy escaped their notice and I would not discover it myself until I was well into adulthood. We eat it often around here, quite possibly because I’m trying to make up for lost time. Or maybe it’s just because it’s easy and my family gobbles it down. Either reason is okay with me.
You’ve gotta love a meal with only six ingredients. I especially love that this recipe is so forgiving. The small dose of real maple syrup was my idea and it was an improvement in my opinion but you can leave it out. I’ve been known to throw a diced onion in with the browning sausage and leave out the powdered. If you like it spicy you can throw in some red pepper flakes. You can use low-fat milk instead of full-fat although it won’t be as rich and creamy. You can even use different ground meats if you like. I’ve occasionally substituted out some of the pork for ground hamburger or ground elk although, if I have any southern ancestors, they were rolling over in their graves. You really have some freedom when it comes to sausage gravy so don’t be afraid to get creative and come up with your own family recipe.
This recipe is pretty fool-proof but I have learned a few tricks. After you brown the sausage don’t drain it. Add the flour and spices and stir to coat the meat. Now your going to continue cooking the meat for a few minutes at a medium-high heat. This is an important step because you need to brown the flour so the gravy doesn’t taste like, well, raw flour. Nobody likes the taste of raw flour. Once you’ve browned the flour/meat just add the milk, stir well and simmer until it thickens. Add the maple syrup at this point but do it gradually, tasting as you go, until it tastes just right. Serve over hot biscuits to your very appreciative family.
What I love about sausage gravy is that is freezes beautifully and I’ve adapted this recipe just for that purpose. This big batch will feed your hungriest crowd or can be divided up into several meals that will last in the freezer for months. It’s great to pull out for a lazy Saturday morning breakfast but more often than not we eat it for dinner. Pair it with fresh baked biscuits, scrambled eggs and fresh fruit and you’ve got a breakfast (or dinner) even the pickiest farm kid will love.
Sausage Gravy
3 lbs. sausage (I use country-style)
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
15 cups whole milk (1 gallon minus 1 cup)
3 tsp. garlic powder
3 tsp. onion powder
1 tsp. salt (or more, to taste)
1 tsp. black pepper (or more, to taste)
1/4 cup real maple syrup (optional)
In a large stock pot or dutch oven, cook sausage until not longer pink. Do not drain. Sprinkle flour, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper over the meat. Stir thoroughly while cooking over medium-high heat. Continue to cook meat for 3-4 minutes, stirring constantly so meat doesn’t burn. Don’t skip this step as browning the flour ensures the gravy won’t taste like raw flour. Add milk and simmer until gravy reaches desired thickness. Add maple syrup to the gravy, a little at a time, until desired taste is reached.
Yield: approx. 5 quarts
To Freeze: Place a meal’s worth of gravy in a zippered freezer bag. Remove the excess air. Lay flat on a cookie sheet. Repeat until gravy is gone and stack remaining bags on top of the first bag. Place cookie sheet in freezer until frozen. Remove bags from cookie sheet and store upright or flat in your freezer.
Rena Bucad says
I am so happy you posted this recipe. I have biscuits in my freezer but I have been waiting for a good recipe. Thanks Leah !!!!
Leah says
So glad I could help Rena! Always good to use up the stuff in your freezer. Have a great week!
–Leah
Sally Gribler says
I buy big pkgs of bacon ends and pc and freeze in smaller packs so I always have them on hand. fry some up then cut in smaller pcs and add to the mix really adds more flavor
Leah says
What a great idea Sally! I will definitely try that next time. Have a great week!
–Leah
Linda Loosli says
Oh my gosh, this brings back fond memories! I grew up on homemade sausage with gravy over biscuits! Yummy!
Leah says
That’s awesome Linda! Your parents were obviously more adventurous in the kitchen than my were. Better late then never, right? You’ll have to make it and remind yourself how good it is. Thanks for stopping by!
–Leah
Stephanie R says
Mmmmm I love sausage gravy but I have yet to make any that were really decent so Im going to have to pin this so that try making this!
Leah says
Hi Stephanie–thanks for stopping by. I’ve tried a lot of recipes and I think the secret is the touch of maple syrup. My family gobbles this up and it’s quite fast and easy to make. Definitely make extra to freeze. Have a fabulous weekend!
–Leah
Lisa says
That sounds delicious – we’re from another country altogether so our version of sausage gravy is often brown and onion flavoured. I’ll have to give this a go to see what it tastes like!
Leah says
Well heck, Lisa, now I want to know what country you’re from. Wouldn’t mind trying your local sausage gravy either. Sounds delish! I hope you try my American version and come back to let me know how it compares. Have a great day!
–Leah
Frank Ogle says
Leah…..So glad a Canadian can make Biscuits and Gravy, Good Job! We, in the deep south may make them a little different than yours, but what the heck at least you have done a great job! Your Biscuits and Gravy looks Outstanding, Congrats! Will try both recipes oh btw, I was raised on this same type food! Thanks so much for posting! Very sweet of you!
Sambia Gode says
What do I do when I take the sausage gravy out of the freezer? Do I let it thaw and add milk?
Leah says
Hi Sambia–thanks for your question. If you’re good at remembering to take it out of the freezer in time (I never seem to) then you can just let it thaw out, put it in a pot and let it heat through. You don’t need to add milk. If, like me, you always forget to take it out you can just put a couple of splashes of milk in the bottom of your pot, add the frozen sausage gravy and melt it over medium-low heat. The added milk will keep it from burning before it starts to melt. I like to freeze it in gallon bags which I lay flat on a cookie sheet. Once the bags are frozen I just stack them in the freezer which keeps everything organized and takes up less space. That flat gravy also melts a lot faster from frozen since there is more surface area. Hope that helps. 🙂
–Leah
Rachel Russell says
It was not fool proof for me. I was so excited that I found a recipe that I thought was going to be easy which was great since I had never made sausage gravy before. I followed your instructions exactly and the only thing I came out with was sausage soup. I guess I’ll stick to going out to eat if I want biscuits and gravy. I definitely will not offer to make it for the camping group.
I am sure that this recipe is great and my absolute failure is of no reflection on your recipe. Thank you for posting it.
Pamela says
Hi. This is great, a gravy recipe that I can make from scratch and have it taste good. One problem though; I’m only one person with an apt size fridge
that barely holds what I buy in frozen foods now. Could you cut that back for. Dividing the way it is doesn’t seem feasible.