Biscuits and Homemade Sausage Gravy

Biscuits and sausage gravy are a traditional Southern breakfast and brunch dish. Southern chefs and home cooks alike smother tender, lofty buttermilk biscuits in a spicy, sausage-laden cream sauce. The cooking and baking methods for homemade biscuits and gravy are rooted in classical French cooking. And are entirely approachable and familiar, even if you've never stepped foot in the South.

The Story

Sending your fork through tender, flaky biscuits smothered in creamy, sausage gravy is an indulgent, soul-warming, and extremely Southen way to break the fast. Across the South, the traditional dish is enjoyed any time of day, for special occasions, and on holidays (hailing from New Orleans, we like to revel in the dish during Mardi Gras season).

Depending on where you look, biscuits and gravy recipes vary in complexity and flavor. And while most Southern biscuits are nearly identical in ingredients, the method depends on the individual. And you can certainly take help from the store on biscuits if baking ain't yo' thang.

By way of occupational hazard (as a chef), I approach biscuits and gravy with a cupful of tradition and a few spoonfuls of professional technique. Which makes for a plate of biscuits and gravy that tastes as delicious as it looks.

The Ingredients

• Buttermilk biscuits. Whether Southern biscuits from scratch or help from the store, fresh-baked are best.
• Ground sausage, spicy or mild. For moderately spicy gravy, use half mild and half spicy. Ground chorizo is a fun choice for a spicier, Spanish-inspired gravy.
• Garlic. Minced fresh cloves offer the freshest, most garlicky flavor. Use the type of garlic you like to buy or have on hand.
• Trinity (optional). This is a New Orleans term for an aromatic trio of diced onion, celery, and green pepper. A signature staple in Creole and Cajun cooking, the vegetables bring loads of flavor to any dish.
• Butter. Unsalted is the standard, salted works great, too.
• All-purpose flour. For gluten-free gravy, you can substitute cornstarch in half the amount.
• Whole milk. Reduced fat is fine to use, but I'd advise against skim milk or any plant-based alternative unless an allergy is at hand.
• Worcestershire sauce. A classic seasoning in the South adds umami and richness.
• Ground mustard, paprika, and other spices. A variety of ground spices play nicely with sausage gravy including my favorite, ground mustard. Celery seed, onion powder, garlic powder, ground paprika, chili powder, and ground cayenne pepper all take gravy from bland to grand.
• Salt. A chef's workhorse salt is coarse kosher. Sea salts are fun and widely available. If using table salt, use half the suggested amount.

For Homemade Biscuits

Quick and easy homemade biscuits require only five ingredients. The less protein in your flour, the lighter and more tender the biscuits. White Lily or pastry flour are both lower in gluten. And as long as you handle the dough as little as possible, all-purpose flour makes great biscuits. Most gluten-free flour blends work just fine, the texture will be quite different, of course.

• Soft wheat or all-purpose flour
• Baking powder and/or baking soda
• Salt
• Butter
• Buttermilk (or milk)

The Methods

To make homemade biscuits, you use the rubbed dough method. And that simply means rubbing cold fat into the flour with your hands, a tool, or pulsing it all briefly in a food processor. Then you add the milk to form a thick dough which you cut and bake.

Southern-style gravy is really an offshoot of béchemel, one of the five mother sauces in classical French cooking. A barebones béchemel is a moderately thick, roux-based white sauce flavored with garlic, bay leaves, and nutmeg. American sausage gravy for biscuits calls for browned ground sausage and traditional Southern spices and seasonings.

How to Make Biscuits

For the flakiest biscuits use very cold butter. Handle the dough gently and avoid using a rolling pin for the fluffiest batch possible.

1. Preheat and prepare. Pop the stick of butter in the freezer. Preheat the oven to 425° F. Measure the dry ingredients into a large mixing bowl and the buttermilk into a measuring glass. Put the measured buttermilk back in the refrigerator until you need it.
2. Mix the dry ingredients. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
3. Grate or rub in the butter. Cut the butter into tiny pieces or grate it with a box grater. Rub the butter gently into the flour until the mixture resembles coarse sand with pea-sized pieces. Alternatively, combine the dry ingredients in a food processor, add the butter, and pulse to the same consistency.
4. Add the milk. Make a well in the center of the bowl and pour in the milk. Stir with a spatula or wooden spoon until the dough just comes together (or drizzle it into the processor and pulse until it's barely cohesive. Then turn it out onto a floured surface.

5. Shape the dough and cut the biscuits. Shape the dough into a rectangle or circle that's between one-half and one inch thick with your hands. Avoid using a rolling pin, or use it sparingly. Cut individual biscuits with a two-inch cutter or a knife. Make Paul Hollywood proud and aim for same-sized biscuits however you cut them. Flour your cutting tool well before each cut.
6. Brush and bake. Place the cut biscuits on a parchment-lined baking pan half an inch apart. Brush the tops lightly with buttermilk or milk and bake at 400° F to 450° F until golden brown.

On Gravy

Bland sausage gravy is sadly all too common. So choose a flavorful sausage and add plenty of ground spices, aromatic vegetables, fresh herbs, or all three. You can certainly make a four-ingredient gravy with only sausage, butter, flour, and milk. But be sure to taste and season it well with salt to avoid a sauce that falls flat on flavor. A little bit of ground spice goes a long way, even if you skip adding garlic and the trinity.

The Steps

1. Brown the sausage. In a large skillet, cook the sausage over medium heat breaking it into small pieces with a wooden spoon.
2. Add aromatics (optional). Add any minced onions, celery, and green pepper to the pan and sprinkle a pinch of salt over them. Cook until the vegetables begin to soften, stirring occasionally. Add minced garlic and cook for a minute stirring constantly so it doesn't burn.

3. Make the roux. Melt the butter in and then sprinkle the flour all over. Cook for about three minutes stirring frequently. The flour will absorb the fat from the sausage and butter to form a roux. If the mixture is still somewhat shiny, sprinkle in another teaspoon of flour. Sausages vary in fat content. And the more fat that cooks out the more flour you'll need for a thick but pourable gravy.
4. Whisk in the milk. Add the milk slowly while stirring constantly. Add the bay leaf, if using, and bring the gravy to a simmer stirring occasionally to prevent the bottom from scorching. Reduce the heat to low and cook it for at least ten minutes and up to twenty. The longer a gravy or sauce simmers, the richer the flavors. And simmering for at least 15 minutes allows the raw starch flavor from the flour to cook away.

5. Season and taste. Once the gravy is thickened, stir in a few pinches of salt and your spices and seasonings and taste the gravy. Add more salt and seasonings until you are happy with the flavors. Garnish with sliced chives, or chopped fresh parsley or thyme leaves.
6. Serve warm. Serve the gravy poured over freshly-baked or warm biscuits.

Fixing the Consistency

If your gravy is thin or you see droplets of fat coming to the surface, stir in a teaspoon or two more of flour. Always bring the gravy to a strong simmer after adding more flour to activate its thickening properties. If the gravy is too thick, stir in milk a little at a time until you reach a pourable consistency.

Sausage gravy naturally thickens upon cooling. If it's too thick for your liking, add water as necessary when you reheat it. Water evaporation is likely what caused the gravy to thicken upon cooling, especially if you let it cool in the pot.

Storage & Reheating

Store sausage gravy in the refrigerator for up to a week. And the same goes for biscuits. To reheat gravy without it separating, warm it in a pot over low heat, stirring occasionally. A lower-heat oven is the best way to reheat biscuits.

Frequently Asked Questions

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