The encyclopaedia of gravy
Dark beer makes an excellent gravy for beef, sausages and pies, but it must be reduced and usually balanced with a little sweetness.
What it does¶
Dark beers bring roasted malt flavours that echo the Maillard reaction flavours in the meat itself, plus colour and a pleasant bitterness. Stout-and-onion gravy on a steak pie is one of the great British combinations.
The bitterness problem¶
Reduction concentrates bitterness as much as flavour. Two consequences:
- Reduce, but not too far. Take 200 ml down by about half, not to a syrup.
- Avoid heavily hopped beers. A modern IPA reduced in a gravy becomes aggressively bitter. Malty beers are the safe choice.
Balance what bitterness remains with a pinch of sugar, a teaspoon of redcurrant jelly, or well-caramelised onions.
Which beer¶
| Style | Character in gravy |
|---|---|
| Stout / porter | Deep, roasted, coffee-ish. Best with beef |
| Brown ale | Nutty, malty, rounded. The most forgiving |
| Mild | Gentle, slightly sweet |
| Bitter / pale ale | Usable; watch the hops |
| IPA | Avoid |
| Lager | Little to contribute; use wine or stock instead |
Quantity¶
150–200 ml in a gravy for four, replacing an equal amount of stock. More than that and the gravy becomes a beer sauce, which is a fine thing but a different one.
A stout and onion gravy¶
- Caramelise 2 sliced onions in butter for 25 minutes.
- Stir in 1 tbsp flour, cook 2 minutes.
- Add 200 ml stout; reduce by half.
- Add 400 ml beef stock, a bay leaf and a pinch of sugar.
- Simmer 15 minutes; season.
See onion gravy and gravy for pies.