With the festive season just around the corner, many are beginning to flock to the shops in order to get some of their Christmas food haul in early. When it comes to gravy, there has always been debate on what makes the perfect recipe. But according to chef James Martin, the simplest is in fact the best.
Speaking on ITV’s This Morning, the highly successful chef and TV host was asked about his go-to Christmas gravy recipe, and it’s probably much easier than you would think. The first thing James says to do is to go out and buy pre-made stocks, preferably chicken or veal. He stresses that now is the perfect time to go and buy this kind of thing as it will soon be gone from the shelves.
“The minute you hit the week before Christmas, you’ve got no chance! So buy it now,” James said on This Morning.
“Buy these big tubs of stock. This is what chefs are doing in restaurants, but on a bigger scale.”
James says the first step of the cooking process is to pour some red wine in a pan, explaining that if you are cooking for a lot of people you will likely need half a bottle.
“Doesn’t have to be anything fancy”, he continued. Then you put about a litre and a half of this stock, and then a good knob of butter in it – about a third of a block.
“Then you reduce it down. When the sauce is ready it all emulsifies into a gravy,” he added.
All that’s left of this incredibly simple recipe is to put the gravy into ice cube pots, pop them in the freezer, then take them out when you need them and warm them up in a pan.
“Two ice cubes for one person”, James added.
When asked about the addition of thing such as cornflour, James then doubles down on the simplicity of the recipe.
“You don’t use cornflour. You don’t use any of that”, he explains. “It’s all made the classic, classic way, by reducing stock.”
So if you want restaurant-style gravy this Christmas, ditch the extra ingredients and follow James’ simple steps.
