RealGravy

Wine, Beer and Cider Gravies

Bourbon Gravy

Sweet corn based bourbon cooked down with onion and a little maple, giving a smoky, vanilla edged gravy for pork, gammon and roast chicken.

  • Contains meat
  • bourbon
  • pork
  • smoky
  • American style
Illustration of Bourbon Gravy
Prep
5 min
Cook
25 min
Total
30 min
Serves
6
Difficulty
Easy

Bourbon is sweeter and rounder than Scotch because of the corn in the mash and the charred new oak barrels, and both of those show up in a gravy as vanilla and caramel. It goes brilliantly with pork. Keep the maple syrup to a teaspoon, since the bourbon is already bringing sweetness.

Ingredients

Makes about 500ml, enough for six plates

Scale

Kit

  • Heavy frying pan
  • Whisk

Method

  1. Melt the butter in a heavy pan and cook the onion over a medium heat for eight minutes until soft and beginning to brown at the edges.

  2. Stir in the flour and the smoked paprika and cook for two minutes, keeping it moving so the paprika does not scorch and turn bitter.

  3. Take the pan off the heat, pour in the bourbon, then return it to the hob. Let it bubble hard for three minutes until it has almost disappeared and the harsh alcohol smell has burnt off, leaving vanilla and caramel behind.

  4. Whisk in the hot stock in stages, keeping the gravy smooth as it loosens.

  5. Bring to a simmer and cook uncovered for ten to twelve minutes until it coats a spoon and has darkened to a deep amber.

  6. Stir in the maple syrup and the mustard, then taste. Bourbon and maple together can tip sweet very easily, so add the cider vinegar now to pull it straight.

  7. Season and serve over pork chops, gammon or roast chicken thighs.

Tips worth knowing

  • Bourbon is 40 per cent alcohol and considerably sweeter than Scotch, so 75ml across six servings is the sensible limit.
  • Smoked paprika is doing the work that a barbecue would. A quarter teaspoon more is fine, a full tablespoon will take over completely.
  • For a non-alcoholic version, use 75ml of apple juice with ½ tsp of vanilla extract and 1 tsp of cider vinegar. The vanilla is the key, since it mimics what the charred oak barrel gives bourbon.
  • This gravy is good on leftovers. Poured over cold roast pork in a bap it is better than most sandwich sauces.

Change it up

  • Add 100g of chopped smoked bacon at the start and serve it over a roast chicken tray bake.
  • Stir in 2 tbsp of tomato ketchup and an extra teaspoon of vinegar for something closer to a barbecue sauce for ribs.
  • Swap the maple syrup for a tablespoon of peach jam and serve with gammon.

Keeping and reheating

Four days in the fridge and three months in the freezer. Reheat gently with a splash of stock. Taste for vinegar again after reheating, as the sweetness comes forward when it cools and warms.

Questions people ask

What is the difference between bourbon and whisky in gravy?

Bourbon is made mostly from corn and aged in charred new oak, so it tastes sweeter, with vanilla and caramel. Scotch is barley based and drier, often with smoke. Bourbon suits pork and chicken, Scotch suits beef and game.

Can I use whiskey instead of bourbon?

Irish whiskey is the closest swap, being smooth and lightly sweet. Rye whiskey works too but is spicier and drier, so add an extra half teaspoon of maple syrup. Avoid peated Scotch here, it fights the smoked paprika.

Does the alcohol burn off in bourbon gravy?

Most of it, yes. Boiling the bourbon down until the pan is nearly dry drives off the bulk of the alcohol, and the twelve minute simmer that follows takes care of most of the rest. A trace always remains in any cooked alcohol dish.