Gravy can transform a meal into something more satisfying, whether you're drizzling it over chips or a Sunday roast, but it frequently ends up tasting underwhelming when prepared using only conventional ingredients. In Britain, most gravies derive their taste from stock, onions and herbs, which can be delicious, but they typically require extended cooking periods to properly develop in the liquid. Most home cooks prepare gravy towards the end of making a meal and don't fancy spending ages at the hob, which can result in it tasting watery and missing complexity.
Nevertheless, Lori Yates, a cook and founder of Foxes Love Lemons, has revealed that you can create an exceptionally tasty gravy in mere minutes if you add a teaspoon of soy sauce. Lori said: "This is the secret weapon. It adds salt, an umami oomph, and a deeper brown colour without making the gravy taste like soy sauce."
Why Soy Sauce Works
Soy sauce is commonly linked with East Asian cuisine, but it also performs brilliantly in British dishes because it can introduce depth without needing prolonged cooking periods. It proves especially useful at boosting the flavour of meat, helping to intensify the taste of meat drippings or stock in gravy. It contains glutamates and amino acids created through fermentation, which enhance savouriness and provide gravy with a more complete and harmonious flavour.
Colour and Appeal
Incorporating soy sauce can also enrich the colour of gravy, making it look darker and more lustrous, which can make it seem more appealing. In short, soy sauce helps to recreate the richness of slow-cooked meats and pan juices in next to no time, boosting flavour with minimal effort.
How to Make Tastier Gravy
You will need:
- 475ml of broth, stock, or roast drippings
- Four tablespoons of unsalted butter
- Four tablespoons of plain flour
- One teaspoon of lemon juice
- One teaspoon of soy sauce
- A quarter teaspoon of chicken seasoning
- Salt and pepper
Method:
- Place the butter in a large frying pan over a medium heat. If you have fatty drippings from roasted meat to hand, add these to the frying pan too.
- Add the flour and cook for four to six minutes, whisking continuously throughout. Within just a few minutes, you should have a golden-brown mixture.
- Once you've achieved the buttery mixture, gradually pour in the broth, stock, or drippings from any roasted meat. Turn the heat up to medium-high and cook for approximately two minutes until the gravy begins to thicken.
- Should your gravy appear too runny, continue cooking on a medium heat, stirring constantly until you reach a more desirable consistency. If the gravy is too thick, simply add a splash more water or broth to the mixture.
- Next, reduce the heat to low. Add the soy sauce, lemon juice, chicken seasoning, salt and pepper. Combine everything thoroughly and your wonderfully flavoursome gravy will be ready to serve.
