Preparing a meal and need gravy right now? How about a holiday-caliber recipe that doesn’t require cooking a turkey or a roast for hours? Here’s a mushroom herb gravy inspired by Budget Bytes you can whip up in a flash.
Gravy is, at heart, a sauce: a flavorful liquid, such as juicy meat drippings or meat-based stock, thickened with flour and seasoned with salt and pepper to taste. Homemade or canned broth is also a go-to liquid if meat drippings are unavailable. Fresh herbs and spices add gusto that can complement the rest of a meal.
MORE: It’s easy to make the best basic turkey gravy right in the pan – here’s how
A delicious twist from traditional meat-based gravy, this mushroom herb version is rich with earthy mushroom flavor and a fresh herb infusion. It’s a delicious option for the vegetarians at your table.
Ready to get to the gravy? Melt some butter in a large skillet and stir in minced garlic. (Butter and garlic make everything better!) Add mushrooms and sauté them until they’re soft. Mushrooms naturally release moisture as they cook down, so keep cooking until most of the moisture has evaporated. (Eating vegan? Simply swap in your favorite cooking oil for the butter.)
Sprinkle flour over the mushrooms and cook, stirring often, until the flour turns a golden brown. Whisk in the vegetable broth and scrape any browned bits up from the bottom of the skillet. Whisk until all of the flour is incorporated into the sauce. The flour will start to thicken the broth.
Stir in the fresh thyme, rubbed sage, salt, and pepper. Simmer the gravy, whisking often, until it reaches the desired thickness. Then, get this mushroom herb gravy to your table and serve it hot.
For vegetarian fare, generously ladle gravy over mashed potatoes, bread stuffing, rice, egg noodles, biscuits or roasted vegetables. It’s equally tasty over slices of turkey or roast beef.
A word about mushrooms
Button mushrooms and brown cremini mushrooms are the most readily available and bring a mild earthy flavor and pleasing texture to this gravy. To make an even more flavorful gravy, however, go for gourmet mushroom varieties such as morels, shiitakes and porcinis to impart distinct earthy flavors.
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Begin with whole mushrooms
Mushrooms are magical. So versatile, delicious and with the ability to add umami flavor to just about any dish, making it a good meat substitute in many instances.
Wipe mushrooms with a damp paper towel
Do not rinse your mushrooms under water; they will begin breaking down immediately. Instead, gently wipe the fungi with a damp paper towel to remove dirt.
Slice the mushrooms
Slice evenly for consistent cooking.
Add garlic to melted butter and saute until fragrant
Be sure not to overcook garlic as it can become bitter.
Add sliced mushrooms to garlic butter and stir until they become soft.
Allow mushrooms to cook down fully, releasing their water.
Sprinkle flour over softened mushrooms
Flour is what will thicken this dish, taking it from a sauce to a gravy. Give the flour a minute to cook and absorb the juices and butter.
Add broth to mushrooms and whisk until incorporated
A good quality broth can go a long way. You can either make your own or buy one from your local market.
Add herbs like thyme and rubbed sage
Earthy herbs work well here with the taste of the mushrooms.
As the broth simmers, it will thicken into gravy
Keep an eye on this as it cooks. It can easily turn to a boil, but you want to keep it at an easy simmer.
Mushroom and herb gravy simmering
Beautiful flavors melding together into a perfectly vegetarian gravy. Who knew?
Hearty mushroom herb gravy dress up mashed potatoes
We have a feeling even meat-lovers are going to dig into this one!
Mushroom gravy with mashed potatoes
Brilliantly simple gravy for any occasion, on your table in minutes!
Mushroom herb gravy
Yield 4-6 servings
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 8 ounces mushrooms, sliced
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2 cups vegetable broth
- Leaves from 3 sprigs of fresh thyme
- 1 teaspoon dried rubbed sage
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- In a large skillet over medium heat, melt the butter.
- Add garlic and sauté for 1 minute or just until soft and fragrant.
- Add the mushrooms and continue to sauté for 5 minutes or until the mushrooms are soft and dark and most of the moisture they release has evaporated.
- Reduce heat to medium-low and sprinkle mushrooms with flour. Continue to cook, stirring often, for 3 to 4 minutes or until the flour has turned a golden brown on the bottom of the skillet.
- Slowly whisk in the vegetable broth. Whisk well to make sure that all of the flour has dissolved off the bottom of the skillet and no lumps remain.
- Add the thyme leaves, sage, and some freshly cracked pepper. Stir to combine.
- Bring the mixture to a simmer. Allow the gravy to simmer for 7 to 10 minutes, whisking often, until it is the desired thickness.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Serve hot.
Courses Sauce
MORE: This citrus-infused lemon and rosemary turkey gravy will be the star of your holiday table