Turkey Gravy

The Best Turkey Gravy

I am of the opinion that the very best Turkey Gravy is made from the renderings of a Roasted Turkey that was seasoned and brined. So hopefully you followed my Turkey Brine recipe or at least made one before you cooked your bird because this gravy recipe depends on it. There aren’t many additional ingredients to this recipe because most of the ingredients are already there, cooked into the turkey. So, if you’re getting exhausted and you’re looking for an amazing gravy recipe that is easy to prepare… this is the recipe for you!

Traditional vs. Gourmet Turkey Gravy

Traditional Turkey Gravy is made virtually the same with only a few subtle differences. Gourmet gravy has flavors most folks don’t think about that profoundly effect the flavor, like citrus. Some use lemon… I use orange, some use sherry or wine… I use beer but either way, these all produce gravy that is out of this world. All of the other ingredients, as I mentioned before, come from the marination of the brine and the added ingredients to the roasted bird.

My Roasted Turkey, for example, is stuffed with onion, oranges and seasoned butter stuffed under the skin of the breast meat. These ingredients, cooked down in the oven, produce drippings that create the most wonderful flavor and that’s why we use it to make gravy. Traditional gravy uses this method as well only the gravy base is usually started with butter and flavor to make a roux. You can do that too, if your prefer, but I keep the flour out of my recipe and I use a small amount of corn starch instead, to thicken the gravy. I also often start my gravy recipes with bacon grease instead of the butter, because that adds more flavor as well. Other than the addition of the fruit, tomato and rosemary, everything else is basically the same. It’s also common to make a stock, using the turkey giblets, and add that to the gravy for flavor but that will be up to you.

Turkey Gravy Ingredients:

1 Onion, chopped
2 Oranges, pealed and separated
1 Sprig Rosemary
1/4 cup Cider
Add all of the Roasted Turkey Drippings
1/2 can Beer
2 tbsp Corn Starch, mixed with 2 tbsp water
Salt and Pepper to taste, I use white pepper.

Be sure to follow the instructions in the Turkey Gravy video tutorial and I’ll show you just how easy this is to make.

Spicy Noodles

The Best Spicy Noodles

If you love Spicy Noodles, you’re in for a real treat. I’ve created a fusion recipe by combining both Italian and Asian ingredients. It’s sweet, spicy and only takes about 15 minutes to prepare and cook, from beginning to end. It isn’t time consuming and the results are tremendously delicious. Plus you can add Chicken, shrimp or more vegetables if you would like to make it an entire meal. It’s totally up to you and your creative control.

Spicy Noodles, Italian or Asian pasta

For this Spicy Noodles recipe, I used Angel Hair pasta but you’re going to have to go with your gut on this one or just use what ever you have. I’ve made this successfully with Fettuccine and Ramen noodles. So, that’s going to be up to you. In the past I have professed, religiously, that it’s a cardinal sin using Italian pasta to make Chinese recipes like Chow Mein or Lo Mein. But, since this is a fusion recipe, those commandments don’t apply. The secrets to cooking your pasta, to attain the correct texture, is explained in my video tutorial.

More Asian noodle recipes I’ve posted include my Garlic Noodle, Restaurant style Chicken Chow Mein, Eastern Chow Mein, Vegetable Lo Mein with Ramen, Rice Noodles(soft or fried), How to make Pasta or Egg Noodles and a whole slew of Italian pasta recipes, too. All of which have the correct Asian Noodles or Italian pasta for each one. So, look into those if you want more options.

Spicy Noodles Sauce and Ingredients

The Sauce for this Spicy Noodles recipe is very straight forward and simple because I just combine 3 pre-made bottles of sauce; ketchup, sweet chili sauce and sriracha. Originally Spicy Sauce only contains the ketchup and sriracha, if you want to try it that way, but the sweet chili adds so much depth it can’t be denied. You can add soy sauce too, if you like but it really isn’t necessary. Even the sriracha might be a bit too much for some because there are already chili flakes in sweet chili sauce. So, that will be up to you. The other bottled ingredient you will need is sesame oil. If you don’t have it, it’s okay. This dish still tastes great with out it. You can even add chicken broth to a bowl of Spicy noodles and eat it more like an authentic bowl of homemade Ramen noodles.

Spicy Noodles Ingredients: Serves 6 to 8

1 pkg Angel Hair or Fettuccine pasta
1/2 gal Boiled Water

1/2 tsp Ginger, grated or chopped
2 Cloves Garlic, chopped
2 Green Onions, chopped
5 Fresh Basil leaves, chopped

Sauce
1/2 cup Ketchup
1/2 cup Sweet Chili Sauce
1 tbsp Sriracha, optional

1 tsp Sesame Oil

If you want to add chicken or shrimp to this recipe, I recommend seasoning it first with salt, pepper and smoked paprika and you want to use red onion instead of green. Cook the meat with the garlic and ginger first, then add the red onion and noodles and proceed with the recipe as I have instructed in the Spicy Noodles video tutorial.

Beef Bone Broth

Easy Beef Bone Broth

Try to say that 5 times real fast, “Easy Beef Bone Broth Base”, and I bet you get tongue tied. But, having a good broth on hand will not only enhance the flavor of the food, it will nourish and strengthen your body more. There are so many healthy benefits to consuming homemade bone broth, I’m not even going to get into it. Just know that many recipes, that call for water, are usually getting replaced with broth or stock because Chefs know how much more body and flavor a dish has when its prepared with it. But there are many different ways Beef Broth can be prepared because so many different cultures use different seasoning and spice, so I’m just going to show you how to make a good base.

Raw or Roasted Beef Bone Broth

If you’re going to make a real good Beef Bone Broth, you really need a good balance between both Raw and Roasted beef bones. The Raw bones provide more nutrients and the roasted beef bones provide more flavor. Either way, the body will benefit from the minerals and compounds that support your immune system. The collagen alone heals your stomach lining and reduces inflammation in the intestine. And if you want even more flavor, you can roast the vegetables, beforehand, as well. The Roasted Beef Bones come from the Bone Marrow recipe I filmed and posted last week. So if you want to know how to cook the bones, take a look at that HERE!

Seasoning Beef Bone Broth

As I mentioned before, this Beef Bone Broth recipe is just the very base of Beef Broth. I’ve completely left out the seasoning because I don’t know what you’re making and I don’t know what herbs and spices you need to make your dish. Some cultures add ginger or turmeric and some add other herbs and spices or both. Just know that this base is the best start that anyone can offer and you can season your broth to your specific needs and tastes. This broth can be refrigerated for several days or several months if you freeze it.

Beef Bone Broth Ingredients:

5 lbs Beef Bones, roasted
2 Gallons Water, more as needed
1 Onion
2 Carrots
1 bunch Parsley

Salt and Pepper to taste and add other ingredients to suit your specific recipe needs.