How do you make your "Gravy" ?

[Rovers]

I also don't measure.... my batch sizes are often different. I use a combination of paste, crushed, whole (which I cut up a bit) and diced tomatoes. Bay leaves, basil, oregano, garlic, crushed cayenne, and onion.... but the onion.... I don't like diced onion in my saauce. I take one or more (batch size dependent) onions, and peel them. I cut them across the middle from the sprout end abouut ten times, but never all the way through, similar to the way you might cut them for dicing... but leaving the onion whole. The whole but sliced onions cook in the sauce and are later discarded.

 

I have overcooked sauce... yes it can be done. I now simmer about 3 hours instead. The sauce remains a brilliant red this way... if it darkens too much, I don't like it. Some sugar works well to remove excess acidity. My secret ingredient is.... anchovy paste. Everyone hates anchovies, but that is essentially what worchershire sauce is. Used in moderate amounts, it is undetectable but adds a lot of flavor.

 

If you are willing to spend the time.... the best marinara sauces have no tomato seeds. Buy whole peeled tomatoes, and remove all the seeds by hand. Use only the meat of the fruit. Seeds bring a slight bitterness that doing this removes.

[Guest Cherni]

I.know..I know the red stuff is sauce..But ill never call it that..How do you make your gravy? (sauce) Im always interested in seeing different ways to make a pot. What kind of meats do you put in as well?

 

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Check out the prison scene in the middle of Goodfellas. They'll tell you how to do it right. I usually add either small pork ribs, flanken, short ribs. You want something with bones so that the flavor gets transferred to the gravy. I keep it on extremely low heat for around 5-8 hours and then I let it sit overnight to cool down and so that all the flavor out of the meats. Cook it on Saturday it's perfect for Sunday dinner.

[Cunning Linguist]

Whomper, you brought up my favorite thing, cooked from scratch gravy. My best friend is 100% paisan. He calls me his kraut/mick friend, ala the godfather. He and his Italian wife love my gravy.

 

It starts with the usual, extra virgin, galic and onion (sweated, not sauteed). I try to get fresh Roma tomatoes that i peel and gut, but if i can't get em, canned will do but i always drain the water/sauce.

Then the usual suspects:

Sweet or hot Italian sausage (not put in till last). Sometimes ill use the grease from the sausage to sweat the garlic, then drain. Its a bit greasy, but the flavor the garlic absorbs is awsome.

a bit of red wine, ususally a hearty Chianti

tomato paste

finely diced green peppers

a bit of sugar to cut the acid, but not too much

herbs: FRESH ONLY!! basil, oregano, thyme, a pinch of cumin, black pepper, kosher salt

simmer for about 1-1/2 hrs, then add a couple teaspoons of capers

sometimes anchovie paste or fresh mashed anchovies 2-3 will do.

at the end i add the crumbled sausage.

 

somtimes if i can get fresh calamari, ill clean and slice rings, add some red pepper and it becomes a nice meditteranian spicy sauce. Occasionally diced black olives too.

For a cream sauce, add heavy cream and a couple shots of vodka or juniper flavored Gin.

 

So what was your moms secret ingredient?

[whomper]

Check out the prison scene in the middle of Goodfellas. They'll tell you how to do it right. I usually add either small pork ribs, flanken, short ribs. You want something with bones so that the flavor gets transferred to the gravy. I keep it on extremely low heat for around 5-8 hours and then I let it sit overnight to cool down and so that all the flavor out of the meats. Cook it on Saturday it's perfect for Sunday dinner.

 

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Good info here..My mother makes her gravy with "neck bones" I love it..Also good call on the goodfellas scene.."Paulie has a way of cutting the garlic so it liquifies in the pan"

[Czarina]

Brown sweet and hot italian sausage in a hot pan with a little olive oil, add finely chopped onion and pepper. Maybe throw in some meatballs. I generally go with a combo of crushed tomatoes and sauce...not a fan of tomato paste. I like sauteed fresh mushrooms in my sauce too. Lots o garlic, roughly chopped. Simmer a few hours. Add a pinch of this and that, oregano, basil, etc.

 

I've discovered that homemade sauce just doesn't work for me if I don't throw some red wine in. Aside from the darker color that's just gorgeous, it adds great flavor. I'll pretty much throw in whatever I have on hand. Oh, and more garlic.

 

The sauce has to cook pretty well all day. Which makes the house smell terrific.

 

And Bier, I frequently will do the vast majority of the cooking of meatballs and sausage in the sauce. They come out tremendously more tender and the sauce is so much better.

[Guest Cherni]

Paulie has a way of cutting the garlic so it liquifies in the pan"

 

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I didn't put too much onions in the sauce.

How many onions you put in the sauce?

Just three, three small onions.

Edited December 7, 2005 by Cherni

[Bier Meister]

And Bier, I frequently will do the vast majority of the cooking of meatballs and sausage in the sauce. They come out tremendously more tender and the sauce is so much better.

 

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when i go with meatballs, i'll sear them seperately (either in a pan or in the oven) then add them to the sauce..... i'll go at least 50% before adding.....

 

i'd be very cautious of cooking them raw in the sauce. different people do their sauces differently. some do sliced sausages (in the case)...usually these are partially cooked, so less risk..... going raw is much more risky. imo, seared meat is much more flavorful..... browning early then adding the misc ingredients will tenederize (braising technique) the meat.....

[Rovers]

I also brown the meatballs, and par boil and fry the sausages. I usually drain the fat, and deglaze the frying pan with a little water.... add that to the sauce. Er, um.... gravy. Searing the meat, just like a pot roast, seals in the fat.... and makes it all taste better. I might have to try some neck bones next time around...

 

So, Cunning L also knows about the anchovie paste.... it really does make a difference, and no one will ever know.

[Cunning Linguist]

So, Cunning L also knows about the anchovie paste.... it really does make a difference, and no one will ever know.

 

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Yeah, the anchovies give a salty, yet earthy depth to the tomatoes. I always add it but my wife doesn't know about it. She wouldn't eat it if she did! Try capers sometime too, its adds a bit of texture and salt also.

 

I gotta try the turky neck thing, that sounds really good

[jaxfactor]

I had to bump this thread back up as alot more Huddlers on board and would love to here more ideas. I have to get down to business and do this myself as my mom and grandmother are deceased and so ended the Italian home-cooking in my life as I never took notice of how it was made except for a couple minor things.

The only thing I would like to point out is that my mom and grandmother would also use leftovers to put in the sauce. Whether it be pork roast or chops, veal, or chicken. It would be included in the sauce along with the meat and/or meatballs.

Thanks Tim C. for bringing up this thread in spain's cruise thread. I never saw it.

[Seth]

My girlfriend do it for me. She adds a lot of herbs and spices...

[SheikYerbuti]

My girlfriend do it for me. She adds a lot of herbs and spices...

 

Good info here!

[gilthorp]

I feel much shame....

 

I've never made a pasta sauce from scratch.

[jaxfactor]

My girlfriend do it for me. She adds a lot of herbs and spices...

 

 

Good info here!

 

[Skippy]

Bump.

 

I love some good gravy. I am very picky and have a very hard time finding what I like but when I find it I will eat it over and over. I have two restaurants that love me as I am there a few times a week.

 

Now for what I have been doing:

1 lb of sweet sausage

1 lb of good ground meat

2 cans of crushed tomatoes - 28 once

1 can, medium, of tomato sauce.

3 six ounce cans of paste.

1/2 cup of water

 

1 tea - oregano

1/2 tea - fennel seeds

1 and 1/2 tea - Italian seasoning

1/2 cup of onion

1 entire head of garlic

2 tablespoons of sugar

 

Brown all the meat then add the garlic and onion a little before the meat is done. Add all the other ingredients and simmer away for at least 3 hours.

 

This seems pretty basic but has been yielding me some great sauce. I wish that I understood the flavor of the spices better as now and then the sweetness that I prefer in my sauce tastes a little like sugar. I know there are better ways to get the sweet taste that I want without the sugar taste. I also like my sauce thick and wonder if there is a way to thicken without just more and more paste?

[Kid Cid]

Skippy, the best way to thicken is via reduction. That is gonna take time. Part of the deal is starting with crushed tomatoes. There is a lot of water mixed in there and that needs to be driven off in order to thicken up the sauce.

 

One thing you could try is to use whole canned tomatoes instead of crushed. Take the tomatoes and drain off the juice (reserve some just in case you need it later). Put the whole tomatoes on a baking sheet and bake at 275 degrees for up to five hours. This will drive off the remaining water and concentrate the flavor of the tomatoes. Run the tomatoes through a blender or food processor and then use that as the base for your sauce. Everything that you have up there will need to be adjusted due to the different amount of liquid. You may find that you would need to use an additional can of whole tomatoes.

 

The most important thing here is that you would most likely not need the tomato paste. The paste can be very bitter and that is the reason you need to add so much sugar, to counter act that bitterness. Also, instead of that much sugar add some salt. Salt can also tone down the bitterness of the paste.

[dmarc117]

finely shredded carrots also reduce the bitterness. they cook down and are all natural sugar.

[Skippy]

Thanks Kid. I will try to work with that a little to see what I get out of it. In all honesty my post is making me some great tasting sauce that is pretty close to what I love. I just know that there is some spice combination that or maybe just the reduction that you are talking about that makes the little difference that I am looking for.

[keggerz]

I.know..I know the red stuff is sauce..But ill never call it that..How do you make your gravy? (sauce) Im always interested in seeing different ways to make a pot. What kind of meats do you put in as well?

ditto on never calling it sauce...fwiw, my family has always put meatballs, braised beef and pork in the gravy

[Big Country]

Skippy -

 

After reading your Tailgate post, I don't think I ever want to try any of your "gravy" or "sauce".

[HowboutthemCowboys]

ditto on never calling it sauce...fwiw, my family has always put meatballs, braised beef and pork in the gravy

we never called it anythig but sauce... ditto on the meats. Brascoile (sp.) and sometime rabbit also

[Skippy]

Skippy -

 

After reading your Tailgate post, I don't think I ever want to try any of your "gravy" or "sauce".

I honestly don't blame you. I would not tell that story to any of my cook out friends as I think my cook outs would be a thing of the past.

[Bier Meister]

kid is right on... either reduce or blend a lot of those other ingredients first. also... for sweetness i like using honey.

[buddahj]

I usually pop in a pron film and it takes about 10 minutes...

I'm surprised it took 15 posts for this type of response.

[SheikYerbuti]

1/2 cup of onion

 

Brown all the meat then add the garlic and onion a little before the meat is done. Add all the other ingredients and simmer away for at least 3 hours.

 

For years I took onion completely out of my red sauces (sorry guys, to a non-Italian it's sauce), because it was giving the final product a bitter taste, even with long simmering time. Then I started with the onion, before any other ingredient and what a difference. By carmelizing the onion in some butter and salt before working with the other ingredients, it added sweetness from the natural sugars in the onion.

 

So what I'm saying is, maybe going onion first, THEN browning your meats, then garlic a few moments before piling on the rest of the ingredients will give you the sweetness without sugar you're looking for.

 

Also, take fresh raw chopped basil and add it to your finished sauce just before serving. Gives the whole thing a sweet, herbal brightness that's awesome.