No turkey drippings? No problem! You won’t be able to tell the difference with this No-Drippings Giblet Gravy.
No-Drippings Giblet Gravy
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We cook a lot of turkeys around here for the holidays. And I mean a lot. Between mid-November and the end of December, we probably cook 5-6 turkeys in our house. I am a huge believer in the brined turkey. I won’t cook a turkey without a brine ever again! I also roast our turkeys hot and fast – which means all the juices stay inside the turkey and there are very little pan drippings. And Farmer Doc has frying turkey down to a science – so no drippings there either!
But wait… with no pan drippings, how on earth do you make turkey gravy?
You need three main ingredients for gravy – fat, flour, and liquid. Traditionally, you would use the pan drippings as your fat. And those drippings are packed with flavor – that’s one of the things that makes turkey gravy taste so good! But without pan drippings, I needed to find another source of fat, and still get all that yummy turkey flavor.
My secret?
Instead of pan drippings, I use butter as the fat. Butter has tons of its own flavor. But it doesn’t taste like turkey. So then you need a way to bring that turkey flavor back, otherwise you just have butter-flavored gravy. (Although that’s a thought…) Instead, use the giblets to make a super-flavorful broth, and use that broth as the liquid. Ta da, instant turkey flavor!
Don’t forget to plan ahead when you’re getting ready to cook your turkey. Turkeys take a lot of time to thaw, so be sure to pull it out of the freezer early! And trust me, you’ll want to have an extra day to get your bird brined. Check out our video and let Farmer Doc show you how to carve your turkey and impress your family!
What are you waiting for? Go make an awesome No-Drippings Giblet Gravy to go with that super-juicy turkey!
Enjoy!
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No-Drippings Giblet Gravy
Ingredients
- Whole turkey thawed
- Turkey giblets - neck heart, and gizzard
- 1 stalk celery with leaves roughly chopped
- 1 small onion quartered
- 1/4 cup butter
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- salt to taste
- black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Thaw turkey and remove giblets. Discard liver; refrigerate rest of giblets until ready to use.
- Put giblets, celery, and onion in large saucepan. Cover with water (at least 3 cups). Bring to a boil, then simmer, covered, over low heat for 90 minutes.
- Remove giblets, set aside to cool. Strain broth. Discard vegetables and reserve broth.
- When giblets are cool enough to handle, dice heart and gizzard. Pull meat off neck and dice.
- In a saucepan, heat butter until melted and bubbly. Whisk in flour to form a paste.
- Add 2 cups of reserved broth, salt, and pepper. Cook, stirring continuously, over medium heat until gravy has thickened and is bubbly.
- Stir in diced giblets, heat through.
- Serve warm.
Just made this for a Thanksgiving. Easy! Turned out awesome…. no more worries about the gravy!!! Thank you!
So glad you liked it!
How many does this serve? Stupid question so thank you in advance.
It really depends on how much gravy your family eats! Probably plan on 6-8 people for this recipe.