Mushroom Gravy

 INGREDIENTS

• 2 tablespoons olive oil or butter

• Seasoning of choice - such as fennel, thyme, rosemary, sage, parsley, chives, black pepper etc.

• 1 onion, finely chopped

• 5 cloves of garlic, minced

• 1 cup mushrooms, finely chopped (can omit, if making a sausage gravy or using meat drippings)

• 1 tablespoon soy sauce or Worcestershire sauce (or drippings from a meat roast)

• 2 tablespoons of starch (all-purpose flour, corn starch, potato starch, arrowroot starch etc.)

• 2 cups vegetable broth

• ½ cup milk, cream or plant-based milk (optional)

• Sea salt to taste
  

DIRECTIONS

1. Heat a pan over medium heat.

2. Add oil or butter.

3. Add seasonings to the oil to lightly toast. Add onion and garlic and cook to soften.

4. Add mushrooms and continue cooking for a couple minutes.

5. Add soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce or meat drippings and use a spoon to scrape off any browned bits from the bottom of the pan.

6. To this, add the starch of choice and mix to coat the onions and mushrooms, cooking for another minute or two.

7. Add broth to the pan, stirring the bottom to loosen any browned bits.

8. Add the milk or cream, and stir to combine.

9. If you’d like a smooth gravy, pulse this mixture in a blender until desired consistency, or use an immersion blender.

10. Serve the gravy warm with mashed potatoes or biscuits and a side vegetable.

VARIATIONS:

-For a sausage gravy, brown the sausage along with the garlic and onions. 

-For a classic gravy, leave out the mushrooms and add in meat drippings from a roast into the gravy in addition to the broth.

-For gluten-free gravy, use a gluten free flour or starch instead of all-purpose flour.

-For a dairy free gravy, use a milk alternative such as cashew milk or coconut milk (make sure it is unsweetened).