Make-Ahead Gravy

You can use this anytime you want poultry gravy, just as it is, but I like to mix this in with the pan dripping gravy made from the roasted turkey, for truly outstanding gravy.


4  turkey wings (about 3 lbs.)
2  medium onions, peeled and quartered
1  cup  water
8  cups  chicken broth
3/4  cup  chopped carrots
1/2  tsp  dried thyme
1/4  cup  cornstarch
2  Tbs  butter or margarine
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

Arrange wings in a single layer in a baking pan. Scatter onions over top. Roast for 1¼ hours @400° until wings are browned nicely.

Put wings and onions into a 5-6 quart pot. Add the water to the roasting pan; put over two burners on top of stove, and stir to scrape up any browned bits. Add this to the pot, along with the chicken broth, carrots, and thyme. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, 1½ hours.

Remove wings to cutting board. When cool, pull off the skin and meat. Discard skin and save the meat for another later use (like turkey and dumplings).

Strain the broth into a 3-quart saucepan, pressing the vegetables against the strainer to extract as much liquid as possible. Discard vegetables. Refrigerate the broth, if time permits, and then remove and discard the hardened fat on top.

Whisk cornstarch into 1/2 cup (or more) cold water, and then whisk into the broth, stirring constantly until smooth and blended. Bring the broth to a gentle boil. Boil 3-4 minutes to thicken the gravy and remove the starchy taste. Stir in butter, salt and pepper.

Serve, or pour into a container and refrigerate up to one week, or freeze for up to 6 months. I use this gravy to add to my pan dripping turkey gravy. Warm it all together.  Yum!