Savory beef broth brown gravy has just the right flavor and is easy to prep in just 10 minutes with only 5 ingredients – perfect for meats, potatoes, and more!
This Beef Broth Brown Gravy is the best topping for Slow Cooker Mashed Potatoes and Instant Pot Pot Roast and Potatoes. Next, try my favorite Easy Chicken Gravy (without drippings). 
Thanksgiving is a mere month away. And, despite maybe some evidence to the contrary, I feel more “on top of it” than in past years. It might be because the weather has finally turned cold and I’m seeing Christmas decorations in the stores (okay I’ve been seeing those since the middle of the summer). But I’m not in denial that it’s coming up anymore. I can turn a blind eye to aisles and aisles of glittery ornaments, snowmen, talking Santas, and candy canes till about Halloween, and then, at some point, I just accept it. Game on.
Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays. I mean, you get to stuff yourself full of delicious food. Strike that. You are contractually obligated to stuff yourself full of delicious food. Every holiday has food but this one is specifically about eating everything in sight. Oh, and the pilgrims (remember them?). Although Thanksgiving should be full of tried-and-true, traditional turkey day fare, there are some things we like to tweak. And by “we” I mean me and my ginormous family. It’s okay to put a new spin on an old favorite. (I’m pretty sure the pilgrims didn’t put marshmallows on their sweet potatoes, after all.)
While some of us do veer more toward the traditional Thanksgiving staples, and some of us prefer to try some new dishes here and there, there is one thing we can all agree on: gravy. Specifically beef broth brown gravy. I know, I know, typically you’d make turkey gravy because, well, you have a big turkey and it’s the obvious choice. But — and hear me out on this — the beef gravy is what makes the turkey. Confused? Allow me to explain.
Although turkey gravy is good, I find it isn’t always dependable. There may not be enough drippings to make enough gravy to cover everyone at your table(s) and you don’t want to thin it out just to make enough. The flavors of the turkey don’t always shine through either. And, what if you’re frying a turkey? Well, there are zero pan drippings to make gravy with that method. That’s why we just go ahead and make beef gravy. It’s so easy to put together (10 minutes! Five ingredients!), so flavorful, and you can make as much or as little as you need for the big day (or any occasion that calls for gravy). It tastes so good, too!
Once you’ve made this gravy, you’ll wonder where it’s been all your life. Pour this deep, rich, flavorful broth over your mashed potatoes, your turkey, your rolls, smother your entire plate with it. Just promise me you’ll have it at your table.
WHAT SIDES GO WELL WITH GRAVY?
The first thing that comes to mind is mashed potatoes. Whether you decide to make them on the stovetop or in the slow cooker, mashed potatoes just aren’t finished until they are covered in gravy. They go together like chocolate and milk, apple pie and ice cream, burgers and fries…you get the picture. However, gravy is a great finale for a number of dishes, including:
- Slow cooker mashed potatoes and slow cooker buttery garlic herb mashed potatoes (because, let’s face it, slow cooker mashed potatoes are delicious and we’ll take freed up stove and oven space where we can get it).
- Turkey. Roasted, brined, dry rubbed, fried, or grilled — turkey is always made better with a big ladle of gravy. Don’t worry, beef gravy pairs excellently with poultry.
- Rolls. I like to tear off chunks of buttery dinner rolls and dip them into my gravy. Or, better yet, make a mini sandwich the next day out of leftover turkey, gravy, and whatever other fixings you want.
- Save some for a meatball sub or to pour over French fries or even pasta.
- Put gravy on top of a split open baked potato.
HOW DO YOU MAKE GRAVY FROM BEEF DRIPPINGS?
If you made or are making a beef roast soon, be sure to save the drippings. You can always pop them in the freezer for future use too. Substitute the drippings for the beef broth and then follow the recipe below as-is.
What people are saying about this Beef Broth Brown Gravy
“This is a great recipe I used 2 cups of Au jus instead of beef broth it turned out to be best gravy I ever made :)” – Harly
“This is very good. I mixed in some browned ground beef and green peas and served it over rice. Nice comfort food. It’s a regular in our rotation!” – Bobi
“I made this for the first time and it will definitely be my go to brown gravy recipe!
Thanks!” – Tonya
“Awesome! I made a huge batch and put it in the crock pot and added roast beef for a party! YUM! I did add one tablespoon of better-than-bouillion beef flavor since i used swanson 50-percent less sodium broth. people raved about it and i am convinced worchestershire sauce is the bomb! My new go to! Thanks!” – Mary
Beef Broth Brown Gravy
Ingredients
- 2 cups beef broth - (you can also use beef dripping from a roast)
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 tablespoon worcestershire sauce (optional)
- ¼ cup cold water + 3 tablespoons corn starch
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a medium sauce pan bring beef broth to boil over medium-high heat. Stir in garlic powder, onion powder, and worcestershire sauce.
- In a small bowl whisk together cold water and corn starch until dissolved. Pour into boiling beef broth and reduce heat to medium-low. Stir until thickened.
- Season with salt and pepper. Taste, add more salt and pepper if needed, and taste again to make sure it's just right. Serve hot over your favorite meats or potatoes.
Notes
Nutrition
Hi it okay if use beef stock instead of beef broth ?
Yes that works just fine!
Had a little too much worcestershire sauce for me.
It does say “optional”
For my version I substitute 2 cups of red wine and 2 crumbled beef bouillon cubes for the beef broth, replace the worcestershire sauce with low sodium soy sauce and add 3 tbsp heavy cream with the corn starch/water slurry. Before adding those, let the half finished sauce boil a little longer to evaporate the alcohol and reduce it slightly. What can I say, I like cooking with wine, and sometimes put it into the food too.
Sounds good. But You SHOULD make your own recipe PAGE, since it’s quite different.
This sounds so good. I love cooking with wine also. I’ve used teriyaki sauce instead of soy sauce. Yummmm.
Goood suggestion. I am goinG THAT ROUTE
That sounds incredibly delicious, i am definitely going to give that a try.
Too much garlic for my taste and I reduced it to 3 teaspoons when doubling recipe
OMG!! You mean there’s such a thing as too much garlic?
This is basically the recipe I’ve used for years, but I add a thickener to it — too runny as-is. I used to use flour/roux or corn starch. Now that I’ve gone low-carb, I use a tiny bit of a low-carb thickener – not enough to get gummy, but enough to make it feel like gravy and not just seasoned broth.