Make Ahead Cider and Sage Gravy is a no-drippings gravy tailor made for cozy fall dinners, and it’ll be in our Thanksgiving gravy boat this year for sure!
make ahead gravy is the secret to stress-free meals
Why do I swear by this cider + sage gravy?
- Make-ahead ~ it actually gets better as it waits in the fridge.
- No drippings ~ pantry-friendly; no bird required (yes, that means gravy on tenders and fries if the mood strikes!).
- Cider + sage ~ fresh apple cider adds gentle sweetness that balances savory browned onion, garlic, sage, and black pepper ~ and it gives a naturally golden hue.
- Big batch ~ makes about 1 quart, so you can ladle generously.
If your holidays are anything like ours, there’s nothing that causes more tension than the last minute gravy making. Any kitchen’s a stressful place to be minutes before a big holiday meal, but no one has a more nerve jangling job than the gravy maker. Or I guess I should say gravy makers, because there’s usually at least 2 or 3 hovering over the pan as it bubbles away on the stove. And of course there’s always a problem ~ why is it so pale, or lumpy, or greasy?? Or the worst problem of all…there’s not enough!
how to make no-drippings cider + sage gravy
No drippings? That just means there’s no roasted bird or joint of meat to donate flavorful drippings and fond. So how do we build that critical flavor without the bird? We build it right in the pan, from scratch.
- Maillard browning without the bird ~ it’s the fond you create as onions cook down, the nutty depth from browned butter, and the savor of a rich brown roux. In a make-ahead, no-bird gravy you simply build those browned bits instead of borrowing them. Get things as brown as you can without burning ~ each shade deeper = more flavor.
- For body I whiz the gravy in my food processor; the soft browned onions blend right in and give a silky, spoon-coating texture.
how I boost flavor in my no drippings gravy
- I use a good quality chicken stock.
- Often I’ll add a fortified dry wine like sherry, marsala or vermouth. In this case I use fresh apple cider. Hard cider would work well too.
- Fresh herbs like sage add a brightness you can’t get from dried.
- Be sure to taste before serving, often an extra dash of salt or pepper is needed. I’ll sometimes finish with a splash of Worcestershire sauce, vinegar, or lemon juice to wake up the flavor.
- A no drippings gravy also means you can make it ahead, and that’s good because it allows the flavor to develop and deepen.
how to cook with fresh sage
Sage is a hardy fall herb and gives my cider and sage gravy a soft woodsy flavor
- Sage has a beautiful earthy perfume, I can’t resist rubbing my fingers over the velvety leaves and drinking in that scent. It works really well with chicken, pork, and of course, lamb. Fresh sage features in my Homemade Chicken Apple Sausage, and I make a delicious Hard Cider Braised Pot Roast with lots of fresh sage.
- It adds a nice note to fall root veggies like carrots and parsnips, etc. (See my Roasted Rainbow Carrots with Browned Butter and Sage) It pairs perfectly with pumpkin and all other winter squash, andI love it in cream sauces and gratins. One of my favorite recipes on the blog is my Instant Pot Cheddar Risotto with Sage ~ it’s a super simple quick meal and the flavors are amazing.
- To use fresh sage remove any tough stem ends, and then either finely mince it, or stack the leaves, roll up like a cigar, and finely slice them into shreds. the fancy term is chiffonade, and it’s the same way you’d slice basil.
- Sage is one of the strongest and most pungent of all the herbs, so use a light hand with it at first. Some people find too much sage off-putting, but I can’t get enough!
what to serve with cider and sage gravy
- roast chicken or fried chicken
- roast pork
- ham
- beef pot roast
- your favorite meatloaf or salisbury steak
- roasted or mashed potatoes
- biscuits
- stuffing
- try using it as a base for casseroles, pot pies, cottage pie, or shepherd’s pie
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Cider and Sage Gravy
Make-Ahead Cider and Sage Gravy is a delicious no-drippings gravy for holidays or every day!
Servings: 1 quart
Equipment
- food processor, blender, or immersion blender
Ingredients
- 4 Tbsp unsalted butter, divided
- 1 1/2 cups finely diced onion, about 1 medium onion
- 1 large clove garlic, finely minced
- 1/3 cup all purpose flour
- 1 cup apple cider
- 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- salt to taste, depending on the salt levels in your stock
- 3 cups chicken stock, (use vegetable stock for vegetarian)
- 1 large handful sage leaves tied in a bundle, or about 1/4 cup (loosely packed) chopped fresh sage
- Fresh ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Add 1 tablespoon of butter to a heavy bottomed pan, and sauté the onions for about 30-40 minutes, over low-medium heat until they are soft and nicely browned. Take your time here and let them get nice color, it will result in great flavor later on.
- Add the garlic, and sautee for 1-2 minutes more.
- Add the rest of the butter to the pan, and while it is melting, add the flour, stirring as you go to avoid lumps.
- Cook the roux for about 10-15 minutes, you're going to want to stir often, until it's a rich amber brown color, but not burnt!
- Slowly stir in the apple cider, Worcestershire sauce, and salt, and continue stirring until everything is smooth.
- Add the chicken stock and the sage, stir until everything is evenly incorporated, and gently bring the gravy to a simmer.
- Simmer for about 10 minutes or until thickened. This gravy isn’t super thick, but it should definitely coat the back of a spoon. Taste to adjust the seasonings.*
- If you are serving right away, remove the sage leaves (if you left them whole), and you can either serve the gravy as is, strain if you want a very smooth gravy, or blend it like I do for lots of body.
- If you are making this gravy ahead, refrigerate and then re-heat when ready to serve.
- This recipe makes 1 quart of gravy.
Notes
* If your gravy is a bit too sweet add a small touch of cider vinegar to counteract it. If you would like a darker gravy add a small drop of gravy browning (natural caramel color.)
Recipe adapted from Rachael Ray.
Nutrition
Serving: 0.25 cup · Calories: 64 kcal · Carbohydrates: 7 g · Protein: 2 g · Fat: 3 g · Saturated Fat: 2 g · Polyunsaturated Fat: 1 g · Monounsaturated Fat: 1 g · Trans Fat: 1 g · Cholesterol: 9 mg · Sodium: 106 mg · Potassium: 91 mg · Fiber: 1 g · Sugar: 3 g · Vitamin A: 90 IU · Vitamin C: 1 mg · Calcium: 8 mg · Iron: 1 mg
Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. This information comes from online calculators. Although The View from Great Island attempts to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures are only estimates.
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This looks so gorgeous- however my local store doesn’t do fresh sage- do you think its possible to use dried or maybe something else such as basil which I grow? Thank you
Well, I think you could use dried, just use a light touch. I’m not sure basil goes, flavor wise, but I could be wrong!
This was great even without the sage.
Good to know 🙂
So delicious. I make it just to have in the freezer. I can’t have stuffing or mashed potatoes without gravy so this is perfect to have and reheat quickly!
This looks and sounds absolutely SCRUMPTIOUS!! I think I’ll make it tonight to serve tomorrow with a rotisserie chicken, asparagus, and mashed potatoes… Thank you for this recipe!!
I made this yesterday as an accompanyment to a pork loin roast (a lean cut). It is time consuming for a gravy. The flavors did develope nicely. The War sauce is key. We press our own apples so I used what we call apple juice. We don’t filter or pasturize it, which some sites say is the difference between cider and juice. In the end I think I will add apple juice to the dutch oven along with sage leaves to roast with the pork and thicken it as a normal gravy. Thank you for the inspiration.
Can you use vegan butter?
That should be fine.
Is the apple cider an alcoholic cider or a hot apple cider?
It’s a regular apple cider, but you could certainly use the alcoholic version, that would be delicious!
Could this be canned in a pressure cooker?
I don’t think gravy is appropriate for canning, sorry!
It’s not safe to can anything with flour in it.
I have made gravy the day before I needed it but not ever frozen it. I shall try that next time.
I find sage quite a strong herb so would probably leave it whole and remove at the end. As I like a thickish gravy I would probably ‘stick blend’ to keep the onions in the gravy and not strain. Also for the flavour. I do use ‘booze’ in my gravies but I don’t think I have ever used cider but will do next time. Thanks Sue for more good ideas. :))
Awesome recipe, Sue! I’ve never made the gravy ahead of time, but this sounds so tasty, I’m determined to give it a try this year. I agree, no one needs all that last minute stress!
Could this be frozen ?
Yes, gravy freezes nicely.