Martha Stewart’s secrets to perfect Thanksgiving turkey gravy

Want to celebrate Thanksgiving a la Martha Stewart? That’s not happening unless you’ve raised your own heirloom Bourbon Red turkeys and fed ’em organic veggies out of your garden, like she does.

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But don’t lose hope. You can make Martha’s gravy this year, and the renowned doyenne of gracious living is ready to demystify the process, from producing a beautiful turkey stock, to keeping out lumps, to developing a beautiful dark brown color.

Stewart has a new book out this year, entitled “Martha Stewart‘s Cooking School” (Clarkson Potter, $45), and amidst the many lessons on how to simmer, steam, sauté and more, are succinct instructions for making this most dreaded and difficult Thanksgiving staple.

Says Stewart: “It’s not difficult to make a delicious gravy if you start with a really nice, rich stock.”

That means you shouldn’t throw out the gizzards, liver and neck when you put the bird in the oven. Instead, simmer these with some leeks, carrots and fresh herbs while your turkey’s roasting. The stock is then strained, and skimmed of fat. While you’re frantically mashing potatoes and carving the turkey, that is. But stay cool as a cucumber under pressure, like Martha. And follow her timetable.

“Gravy is always the last thing you make,” she says. “You want to deglaze the roasting pan with Madeira or white wine so you can scrape up all the dark caramelized bits into the pan. That gives your gravy a rich color. Without the brown bits, you will have a whiteish gravy.”

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Another common mistake most of us are guilty of: adding the stock to the flour too quickly. Gravy making takes patience – so don’t try to rush things.

Here are Stewart’s instructions for perfect gravy on Thanksgiving, which happens to be one of her favorite holidays. “It’s really a time to utilize American-grown products – wonderful cranberries and beautiful pumpkins and squashes,” she says. “It’s a time to create something new, to try a wonderful new recipe.”

This month, The Martha Stewart Show will feature regular weekly segments highlighting content from her latest book. On Thursday, November 13, she will teach how to sauté chicken piccata and how to pan-fry. On Wednesday, November 19, the show will have a Thanksgiving theme and Stewart will explain how to bone, roll and tie a turkey breast. On Tuesday, November 25, she will cover vegetable side dishes, and explain how to prepare Roasted Autumn Harvest Salad and Potato and Turnip Gratin.

One last tip from Stewart: wrap up all those leftovers and use them the Friday and Saturday after Thanksgiving. There’s nothing like a turkey sandwich over the holiday weekend – even if it’s not from an heirloom bird.

Perfect Gravy Makes about 4 cups

Reprinted from “Martha Stewart’s Cooking School” by Martha Stewart with Sarah Carey. Copyright (c) 2008 by Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc. Published by Clarkson Potter/Publishers, a division of Random House, Inc.

To make this delicious gravy, you will need to first make a flavorful stock with the reserved turkey giblets and neck (you can do this while the turkey is roasting). Also, reserve 3 tablespoons of the pan drippings from the turkey roasting pan (after the turkey has been removed to a platter), as well as the pan itself. Pour remaining drippings into a gravy separator and let stand until fat has risen to the top, about 10 minutes, or pour into a glass measuring cup and discard the fat that rises to the top.

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For stock:Reserved giblets and neck from turkey 3 tablespoons unsalted butter2 celery stalks, coarsely chopped1 medium carrot, coarsely chopped1 leek, white and pale-green parts only, coarsely chopped and well washed 1 medium onion, peeled and coarsely chopped3 sprigs thyme3 sprigs flat-leaf parsley1 sprig rosemary1 fresh or dried bay leaf5 whole black peppercorns1 quart water

For gravy:3/4 cup dry white wine3 tablespoons all-purpose flourCoarse salt and freshly ground pepper

Make stock: Trim fat and membranes from giblets, then rinse giblets and pat dry. Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat.

Cook celery, carrot, leek, and onion, stirring fairly often, until they begin to brown, 7 to 10 minutes. Reduce heat to medium. Add giblets, neck, herbs, peppercorns, and the water. Cover and bring to boil, then reduce heat to medium-low. Cook, uncovered, until reduced to about 3 cups, 50 to 60 minutes.

Pour mixture through a fine sieve into a clean medium saucepan and keep warm over medium-low heat. Roughly chop giblets and shred meat from neck with a fork (discard other solids).

Deglaze roasting pan: Place reserved roasting pan over 2 burners. Add wine and bring to a boil, stirring with a wooden spoon to loosen any browned bits on bottom of pan. Remove from heat.

Make gravy: Heat reserved 3 tablespoons pan drippings in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the flour, whisking briskly to combine, then continue whisking, cooking until mixture is fragrant and deep golden brown, about 9 minutes. Whisking vigorously, slowly add hot stock and bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a gentle simmer. Stir in reserved deglazing liquid, defatted pan drippings, and giblets and neck meat. Season with salt and pepper.

Simmer, stirring occasionally, until the gravy has thickened to the consistency of heavy cream, about 20 minutes. Strain through a fine sieve into a saucepan (discard solids) and keep warm over low heat. Season with more salt and pepper just before serving.

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