Biscuits & Gravy

[Banditt]

My first memory of Biscuits & Gravy was during church camp as a kid. They had that every morning as part of the buffet & it was always tasty. I have only had it a few times since then. My wife does not make it so I thought I would try to fill my craving. Last weekend I made some from scratch & it went like this....

cut pork sausage into patties & fry them till they get brown & a little crispy. remove the patties & start putting flour a tiny bit at a time into the grease & keep stirring it constantly. my mom says you put the flour in slow & make sure it does not get lumpy. if you put too much flour at once it will taste like flour instead of gravy. iron skillet works for me. then when the gravy gets thick & gooey start adding milk about one cup at a time. I ended up putting 6 or 8 cups of milk because I think I put too much flour & keep stirring & stirring. wooden spoon worked for me. then put some pepper & a pinch of sage & stir & stir & stir. i crumbled up some sausage & put it back into the gravy after it thinned out.
That was first time I ever made gravy & never had any idea you put flour into it.
Then you pour the gravy over the top of the biscuits & make sure the biscuits & gravy are real hot when you eat it because it cools off fast. this is a good meal because you wont be hungy again until the next day.

I made the biscuits from scratch too but I cant remember what I put. I know there was flour & baking powder & some other stuff. They were a bit stiff, so what do I do?

If you are an expert at making this I would like to see how you make it & what you put in the biscuits & gravy because I want to make it again soon. I dont mind a hard biscuit but i think a more fluffy one would be better.

Thanks in advance.

[Abigail4476]

cut pork sausage into patties & fry them till they get brown & a little crispy. remove the patties & start putting flour a tiny bit at a time into the grease & keep stirring it constantly. my mom says you put the flour in slow & make sure it does not get lumpy. if you put too much flour at once it will taste like flour instead of gravy. iron skillet works for me. then when the gravy gets thick & gooey start adding milk about one cup at a time. I ended up putting 6 or 8 cups of milk because I think I put too much flour & keep stirring & stirring. wooden spoon worked for me. then put some pepper & a pinch of sage & stir & stir & stir. i crumbled up some sausage & put it back into the gravy after it thinned out.
That was first time I ever made gravy & never had any idea you put flour into it.

Sounds like you did pretty good...I usually drain all the grease out of the pan except for about 3 Tbs., and then add an equal amount of flour, maybe a tad more (3-4 Tbs.). The trick to no lumps is to use a wisk. Also, add the milk gradually, whisking the milk/flour until it thickens, and then add a bit more.


A large iron skillet is definitely the best pan to use.

Then you pour the gravy over the top of the biscuits & make sure the biscuits & gravy are real hot when you eat it because it cools off fast. this is a good meal because you wont be hungy again until the next day.

I made the biscuits from scratch too but I cant remember what I put. I know there was flour & baking powder & some other stuff. They were a bit stiff, so what do I do?If they were stiff, it could mean you overworked them. You want to be gentle with biscuit dough. Add enough milk or buttermilk to make a sticky dough, then turn them out on a floured surface, and pat them out with floured hands. (Don't roll them out.)

Here's my basic biscuit recipe:

3 c. self-rising flour
1 1/2 sticks butter (cut into the flour with a fork or pastry cutter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs)
3/4 - 1 c. buttermilk

Also, bake the biscuits in a very hot oven...400 or 425. (usually 15 minutes is about right)...as soon as they get lightly brown on top, take them out...brush them with some butter, and either serve them or cover them until you're ready to eat.

Fry your sausage first...then make your biscuits. Make the gravy while the biscuits bake, and everything will be done about the same time. Instead of frying sausage patties you can crumble up the sausage like you would hamburger, and fry it that way.

[Webmaster]

I don't know a thing about making them. I know a LOT about eating them!!! :D

[Deonna]

Here's how I make sausage gravy:
Go to Sam's Club - purchase BIG can of Sausage Gravy. Take home, open with can opener, pour into pan and heat thoroughly.

Bro Lent thought I was making the gravy homemade. Hehehe!

I do make homemade biscuits though. :D

[ddc101]

Sister Deonna the secret is out.

[Rose]

Biscuits: Purchase from the frozen food section either Walmart Brand Buttermilk Biscuits or Pillsbury brand... just like Mom used to make... big and fluffy and Delicious! :)

[Abigail4476]

Biscuits: Purchase from the frozen food section either Walmart Brand Buttermilk Biscuits or Pillsbury brand... just like Mom used to make... big and fluffy and Delicious! :)

You are RIGHT!!! The Wal-Mart brand frozen biscuits (they come in a bag in the freezer section--not the canned biscuits) are really good...they taste homemade. (I think it's the GV/Great Value brand....)

[Deonna]

Sister Deonna the secret is out.

Shhhhh! :D

[ddc101]

I like Mary B's Buttermilk B's and homemade gravy...lol....
I need to stop reading the food threads.

[Banditt]

Thanks Abagail for the whisk idea & recipe. I will keep working on the biscuits. I guess the kitchen aid mixer on high for 5 minutes beating the dough is not a good idea & why they turned out hard. Someone at church mixes biscuits pushing with her hands & she made me some a couple of times & they are real tasty. she said she just does it by feeling the dough & she knows when it is right.

Thanks everyone for the tips & time savers.

[crawfordcottage]

Hi All,

My mom and aunt make the best biscuits and gravy around (homemade) and they swear by using a brand of flour called: "Hudson Cream Self-Rising Flour". It is quite light and makes biscuits very light and fluffy.
My mom and her usually make up the dough by memory and the put it into a bowl of flour and knead it very lightly, with only enough flour so you can pick up the dough and knead it without it not being too sticky, and pinch off a chunk about the size of a biscuit and make it round somewhat and put them into a greased pan close together and then put a dab of shortning on each one and bake.
I can do this also, however, when I make my dough, I usually follow the recipe for biscuits on the package of flour and and a little more milk than it calls for and then put some flour on the counter and put the dough on it and very lightly knead it and then finish them the way they do.
My aunt also says another key to fluffy biscuits is NOT to handle the dough too much. ( I have also read that in a magazine or somewhere else) There must be something to it though because everyone raves about how tall and fluffy my aunts biscuits are, everytime.

Just thought I'd share!

[crawfordcottage]

Oh, I didn't say... they only use that flour in the biscuits, not the gravy. :-)
For the gravy they use just palin flou, not self-rising.
Sorry!!

[Christocentric]

I've noticed one area of the country that is exceptional when it comes to biscuits and gravy. East Texas. Other areas of the country has hashbrowns and eggs, grits and eggs, pancakes, etc., but in East Texas they have biscuits and gravy for breakfast. And they make 'em better there than anywhere I've seen. I'm not a Texan, by the way.

[crawfordcottage]

I've never heard of that brand flour. But I do make my biscuits from scratch, and basically follow the same directions. :tup: My whole family loves biscuits and Milk gravy and it's quick and easy to fix and very filling.

I'm not sure where the brand of "Hudsen Cream" is sold around the country, however, I live in Northeast Ohio and my aunt's in-laws are from around Northern West Virginia, maybe that's where they first heard of it. I'm not sure I'll have to ask my mom. At any rate, Gravy and biscuits are good, sometimes I get a craving for them and I'll make them for supper. My husband never complains about that. :-) Gotta Love It!

[Amos]

Hey I am East Texan and I will have to second that Statement from Christocentric.
Hope I got that right,

My wife makes a Chocolate gravy For the Kiddo's

They are always hollerin for it.
But I just like her Plain old Gravy.
It is great.

I was raised close enough to Louisiana Glad I'm from Texas easier to spell it.
We have rice a lot too.
Hey that Gravy on Rice is Great too.

Amos.

[Pressing-On]

Here's the biscuits that I make. My children love them! My husband is used to his mother being a terrible cook and still likes to eat canned biscuits. I think it's rather insulting, but, oh well, more for us. :D

3 cups Unbleached All-purpose Flour
1 T. Sugar
1 T. Baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 t. baking soda
1 cup Crisco
1 1/3 cup Buttermilk

Heat oven to 400. Mix first 5 ingredients. Cut in Crisco until it resembles crumbs. Stir in buttermilk until the dough leaves the sides of the bowl. Stir very lightly!

Put the dough on a lightly floured surface. I usually tape wax paper down so I don't have to clean up dough from the counter.

Turn the dough to get a little flour all over it. It is very sticky. Roll out pretty thick and use a biscuit cutter. Don't work the dough too much. They aren't good if you roll the dough out too thin.

Bake for about 12 to 15 mintues.

Note: You can use white flour if you want. I never use white flour for anything.

[Banditt]

mmmm
this is really good. I made it about 5 times now & it gets better every time. but this one sausage does not have very much grease so I have to go back to the first kind I used. I tried it once with bacon & that was ok but there is something about the pork sausage gravy & biscuit together that no other gravy can beat.

I am wondering if buttermilk does something to make those layers inside of biscuits or maybe it is in not pressing the dough too much. I bought a can of buttermilk ones last time & they had a bunch of layers, like you could peel the layers about 10 times.

[Pressing-On]

mmmm
this is really good. I made it about 5 times now & it gets better every time. but this one sausage does not have very much grease so I have to go back to the first kind I used. I tried it once with bacon & that was ok but there is something about the pork sausage gravy & biscuit together that no other gravy can beat.

I am wondering if buttermilk does something to make those layers inside of biscuits or maybe it is in not pressing the dough too much. I bought a can of buttermilk ones last time & they had a bunch of layers, like you could peel the layers about 10 times.
I think those are the preservatives. j/k! Down with canned biscuits! :down: :D

[modestmaiden]

We have made gravy with ground beef too.

My Mom would make a whole big round pan of biscuits when all us kids and dad were home. Like a big round pizza pan size.


My brothers and Dad are hearty eaters because they work hard,
My grandpa used to eat oatmeal, biscuits and gravy, 6 eggs and a big glass of buttermilk every day for breakfast.Sometimes some Jowl or smokehouse ham or bacon.