Thread: American biscuits and gravy

Originally Posted by sabaii sabaii

Originally Posted by Bettyboo

Biscuits dip in tea

These don't

Ginger Snaps?

Originally Posted by bsnub

MMM!! Biscuits and gravy.

Dad used to call it "shit on a shingle"... tasted mighty good though.

^yep sticks to your ribs good!! Look at those nice chucks of sausage in there...

Originally Posted by aging one

We yanks have actually invented a way to make gravy without pouring it out of a tin, a bottle, or a packet.

Chicken fried steak, easy way to take a tough piece of meat and make it nice.

I always enjoyed mom's chicken fried steak... I like the corn for color but where are the mashed potatoes and the heaps of gravy for that?

^ no doubt!! Got to have taters!! Oh I spy the bottle of Green River in the background!! Nice!!

Originally Posted by aging one

........ Oh and BB thats a biscuit up near the top.

Yup, that is a biscuit all right. and looking tasty.

[quote=aging one;1758525]

Originally Posted by Bettyboo

" An English Muffin". Which I believe is another type of scone but flatter and wider. This one we do eat for breakfast, jam, butter, marmalade whatever. .

I like the Thompson's English Muffins best myself. The slated butter dripping into all the open crevese, nooks and crannies of the sliced muffin. oh and a little jam or orange marmalade just makes it even better.

Originally Posted by misskit

Originally Posted by Koojo

what the yanks call biscuits are actually scones

They are much more savory than scones. No sugar.


Those biscuits hillbilly made are cat head biscuits. Not made with a cutter.
Just like home.

truth to tell the only time I've had American 'biscuits' was at an amercan fast food chicken outlet at HK airport and they were exactly scones.

By the way. If you're not cooking meat where does the gravy come from?

Originally Posted by Koojo

If you're not cooking meat where does the gravy come from?

Psssst! It's not really gravy....

That sludge looks like the by-product of a seasoned claret drinker's nostrils after a big night.

Originally Posted by Koojo

By the way. If you're not cooking meat where does the gravy come from?

It comes from Bisto.

I will never get used to the concept or taste of white gravy, never mind pouring it over scones. If I'm missing out, so be it- there's plenty of good food out there after all, no need to be unduly concerned about ones prejudice concerning one dish. I did try some of a friends scones & white sludge at a Roadhouse in Minnesota once, & can't say I was either impressed or appalled. It just didn't taste like much. I'll quite happily dunk my bread into a good 'proper' gravy though.

Originally Posted by sabang

I did try some of a friends scones & white sludge at a Roadhouse in Minnesota once

Was it lutefisk gravy?

I don't think so- I couldn't smell or taste anything 'fishy' about it. Actually I like seafood stock/ gravy, although my favourites have tended to have a pinkish hue, indicating the use of crustacea.

Should point out, the same place served one of the best burgers I have ever had. They really know how to do a good burger over there, and some of the best are to be found in a good roadhouse.

^you are obviously not Norwegian.

Originally Posted by sabang

good roadhouse.

Is that like a truck stop? My wife keeps her eyes peeled as we cruise in the states looking for good breakfast joints.

Yeh, exactly- this one was just outside of Austin (Spamtown USA), on the highway that takes you into Minneapolis. I liked their burger so much, I even popped in again on the way to the airport and had one for brekkie.

From a southern cooking website. Pretty much all you need to know about home made gravies.

Sorry for the length.

Roux Rules:Put the oil in a pan, add the flour to it, and stir it so the flour and butter or oil are thoroughly mixed. This mixture of oil and flour is known in the trade as the ROUX, which is pronounced ROO. Generally, for a white sauce, let the roux bubble over medium heat for about a minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat, add milk, turn heat back on, stir until thickened. Of the thin, medium, and thick gravies, the consistency I like best is when I use 2 tablespoons of oil or butter and 2 tablespoons flour to make the roux to thicken one cup of liquid.
Liquid. A liquid that is full of flavor will make a delicious gravy. Use your own homemade stocks or broth/juices from roasts or hams. If you are frying meat, you can deglaze the pan (pour water into the hot pan and stir vigorously so the flavor and bits of food are combined with the water) and make the gravy with the pan water. Milk is used for cream gravies like sausage and bacon. In a pinch, you can make a broth with bouillon and use that to make gravy.
Microwave gravy? No, you can't make roux in the microwave.
Measure! It is best to measure the liquid, oil, and flour. Yes, your grandmother did it by sight and yes you will eventually be able to do this too, but probably not at first. With these basic principles in mind, let's look at these gravy recipes. All of them are given as 2 cup final quantity.
Adding extra flavor to Gravies. You can always add extra flavor to gravies. Before adding the flour to the oil, add some sliced/chopped garlic, onions or shallots, and a chopped fresh or dried pepper. We especially like chipotle peppers in brown gravy. Sometimes we add dried mixed "Italian herbs" like oregano, basil, rosemary, and thyme, and of course black pepper. The amount of salt a gravy requires depends on the taste of the eaters. Be wary of adding too much salt.
Country Brown Gravies: With a simple white sauce, you don't let the flour brown. You saute it for just a bit and then add the milk. But with true country gravy, you want to let the flour brown. One of the old names for country gravy is "scorch gravy", and that's because you brown the flour right to the point where a bit of it is turning from brown to black BUT before it actually burns. Once you get to that point, you need to move fast - turn off the fire, add the liquid all at once, and stir like crazy, continuing to stir frequently as you turn the fire back on and cook it until it thickens to the consistency you want. Because deciding how much "brown" is enough is such a judgment call, you may not want to go that far in the beginning, only sauteeing the flour until it is a light brown. You need to stir the roux constantly when you cook it. After you have made gravy maybe 50 times, you will develop your own eye for how dark you will like the roux. Note that stirring "Constantly" means just that. Don't stop! Don't splatter any on you or anyone standing close by, because it is EXTREMELY hot and can raise a blister faster than you can wipe it off.

Originally Posted by Humbert

you are obviously not Norwegian.

Well, nope. I've got a 'fly in fly out' friend locally who is a norvie though, and whenever he comes over he brings me a few tubes of that 'Mills Kaviar'. Bladdy delicious.

Originally Posted by sabang

Well, nope. I've got a 'fly in fly out' friend locally who is a norvie though, and whenever he comes over he brings me a few tubes of that 'Mills Kaviar'. Bladdy delicious.

My Norwegian friends bring me that as well. Comes in a tube like toothpaste right? On saltine crackers. yummy.

AO, do you have a link for that southern cooking website? I have found some but not a real good one yet.

Originally Posted by Norton

Originally Posted by Fondles

Is that a PanCake under the top layer of scone ?

Heathen. It's a bladdy egg McMuffin. No connection to a biscuit and gravy breakfast. You folks have muffins or you have some quaint used in the commonwealth only name for them as well.



edit. AO beat me too it.

Artery clogging machine but it sure as hell tastes good, especially after a night of drinking.

Originally Posted by aging one

On saltine crackers. yummy.

Quail eggs are cheap and easy to get, and quail eggs with Mills kaviar (it's made from lumpfish roe really), on a green salad is scrumptious.

I've noticed American recipes are generally heavy on the butter, oil or lard.