Ingredients
- Ingredients
- 1 pound bulk breakfast sausage, as good as you can find
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 3 tablespoons flour
- 1 1/4 cups hot, rich homemade stock, such as our Smoked Ham and Chicken Stock
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1 teaspoon minced fresh thyme
- 1 tablespoon minced fresh sage
- Fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- Tabasco to taste
Preparation
Step 1
Directions:
1. Place the sausage in a cold skillet and cook over medium-low heat, breaking it up with a spoon, until the sausage is crisp and brown and the fat has rendered, 10 or 15 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the sausage from the frying pan to a stack of folded paper towels to drain.
2. Pour off all but 1 tablespoon of fat from the skillet. To this fat, add the butter and melt over low heat. Stir the flour into the fat and cook until golden, stirring constantly, 2 or 3 minutes. Add the hot stock in a steady stream and whisk until the flour and butter are blended into the stock. Stir in the milk. Increase the heat to medium-high and bring the gravy to a simmer. Simmer for 5 minutes, or until the gravy is the consistency you like.
3. Return the sausage to the skillet, add the herbs, and simmer until the sausage is hot and the flavors in the gravy have blended. If the gravy is thicker than you like, add a little milk. Season to taste with salt, freshly ground black pepper, and a few drops of Tabasco.
Makes about 1 quart. Serves 4