Nothing accompanies turkey, cranberry sauce and stuffing quite like creamy, savory gravy. Gravy is especially delicious when made from the turkey pan drippings left behind after roasting your bird, which are thickened with a roux (a mixture of butter and flour) and enhanced with turkey or chicken stock. You can also flavor the gravy with sherry, Madeira or other wine.

All-Purpose Pan Gravy

Melted unsalted butter, optional

3 Tbs. all-purpose flour

About 1 1/2 cups chicken or turkey stock

1/4 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. freshly ground pepper

Pour off the pan drippings Evaluate the pan drippings and darken them if necessary by cooking them over high heat for a minute or two. Pour the drippings from the pan into a fat separator and let stand for a few minutes until the fat rises to the top. Note: If you don’t have a fat separator, simply skim and discard any fat from the juices.

Degrease the pan juices Pour the light brown pan juices into a large glass measuring cup; reserve the fat in the separator. You should have about 2 cups of juices. If you’re short, add stock to the pan juices to make up the amount.

Make a roux Place the roasting pan on 2 burners over medium heat. Measure out 3 tablespoons of the reserved fat and add it to the pan. If you’re short, add melted butter to the pan to make up the amount. When the fat is hot, sprinkle in the flour.

Cook the roux Using a flat whisk, whisk the flour into the hot drippings until smooth. Let the mixture bubble until the raw flour smell is gone, about 1 minute.

Deglaze the pan Increase the heat to medium-high. Pour the stock mixture into the pan and bring to a boil, scraping up the browned bits on the bottom and sides of the pan. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer the gravy, whisking often, until it has thickened to the consistency of heavy cream, about 10 minutes.

Evaluate the consistency The gravy should be thick enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon. If the gravy is too thick, thin it with more heated stock or water. If it’s too thin, continue to simmer until the desired consistency is reached.

Adjust the seasonings Stir in the salt and pepper and taste the gravy. If it tastes a little dull, stir in more salt or pepper until it tastes nicely balanced. If desired, pour the gravy into a saucepan through a fine-mesh sieve to remove any undissolved pan drippings. Keep warm over very low heat until ready to serve.