Brown Gravy Recipe

After cooking meat, pour drippings or stock into a cup or bowl; let stand a few minutes. Then skim off fat from top; measure 1/2 cup for recipe. Loosen any meat bits left in cooking pan by adding a small amount of hot water and stirring and scraping. Add to remaining drippings or stock; measure 4 cups, adding broth, bouillon, vegetable cooking water, or milk, if needed. Heat fat in saucepan; blend in flour; cook and stir until frothy, a few minutes. Remove from heat. Add liquid all at once, stirring constantly. Return to heat, and cook and stir until mixture comes to a boil. Simmer 3 minutes, stirring frequently. Season to taste. Strain, if desired. If darker color is desired, increase flour to 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons. Heat flour in dry pan over medium heat, stirring, until lightly browned. Add fat and proceed as above. Or use a commercial gravy browner (Kitchen Bouquet) according to instructions on bottle.