How to Make Gluten-Free Gravy That’s Rich, Smooth, and Satisfying

Learning how to make gluten-free gravy is one of those kitchen skills that can make a simple meal feel special. Whether you’re serving roast turkey, chicken, beef, or a big bowl of mashed potatoes, a rich homemade gravy brings everything together. And with this simple, reliable method, you'll be stirring up smooth, lump-free gravy with confidence — every time.

On This Page:

The Best Way to Make Gluten-Free Gravy

How to Make Gluten-Free Gravy Without Drippings

How to Make Gravy Without Flour

Pan Gravy vs Gravy vs Pan Sauce: What’s the Difference?

Gluten-Free Gravy Ratio Chart

How to Fix Common Gluten-Free Gravy Problems

Make-Ahead, Storage, and Reheating

What to Serve with Gluten-Free Gravy

Frequently Asked Questions

The Best Way to Make Gluten-Free Gravy

The best way to make gluten-free gravy is the traditional way — by making a roux with fat and flour, then whisking in flavorful drippings and broth.

The only difference between this and the gravy you grew up with is that you’ll be using gluten-free flour.

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Ingredients You Need

• Pan drippings from your roast turkey, chicken, beef, or pork — This is the flavorful fat and liquid left in the roasting pan. You’ll need about 1 tablespoon of fat for each cup of gravy. If there isn’t enough fat, add a little butter.
• Gluten-free flour — I use my regular all-purpose gluten-free flour blend. Sweet rice flour also works well.
• Gluten-free broth or stock — Use chicken broth for turkey, chicken, and pork. Use beef broth for beef.
• Salt and pepper — Add at the end to taste.
• Optional herbs — Rosemary is lovely with pork. Thyme works well with beef. Parsley is nice with chicken.
• Optional lemon juice or gluten-free Worcestershire sauce — A small splash can brighten the flavor if your gravy tastes a little flat.

Tools You Need

• A small saucepan
• A whisk
• Measuring cups and spoons
• A gravy boat or bowl (I often use my measuring cup)
• A rubber spatula to scrape out every last drop

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Step-by-Step Gluten-Free Gravy with Drippings

1. Separate the drippings. Pour the drippings from your roasting pan into a measuring cup or fat separator. Let the fat rise to the top.
2. Measure the fat. Add 1 tablespoon of fat to a saucepan for each cup of gravy you want to make. If you don’t have enough fat, add butter.
3. Whisk in the flour. Add an equal amount of gluten-free flour and whisk until smooth.
4. Cook the roux. Cook for 1 to 2 minutes, whisking constantly. This removes the raw flour taste.
5. Slowly whisk in the liquid. Gradually add the drippings and enough broth to make the amount of gravy you want. Use about 1 cup of liquid for every tablespoon of fat and flour.
6. Simmer until thickened. Bring the gravy to a gentle boil and whisk until it is smooth and thick.
7. Taste and season. Add salt and pepper as needed. If the flavor seems a little flat, add a small splash of lemon juice or gluten-free Worcestershire sauce.

Optional but worth doing: If there are browned bits stuck to the roasting pan, place the pan over low heat, add a splash of broth or water, and scrape them up. Stir this flavorful liquid into your gravy.

How to Make Gluten-Free Gravy Without Drippings

Don't worry, you can still make gluten-free gravy even if you don’t have drippings from a roast. Simply follow the recipe above, but use butter instead of the fat from your roast and use a good-quality gluten-free broth for the liquid. You'll end up with a rich, flavorful gravy that you'll be every bit as proud to serve.

How to Build More Flavor

Because you don’t have the concentrated flavor that comes from roasted meat and browned bits in the pan, you may want to boost the flavor a little.

Here are a few easy ways to do that:

• Add finely diced onion or shallots and cook them in the butter before adding the flour.
• Use homemade stock if you have it. Reduce the stock to intensify the flavor.
• Add fresh herbs such as thyme, rosemary, or sage.
• Season with salt and pepper.
• Brighten the flavor with a small splash of lemon juice or gluten-free Worcestershire sauce.

My Favorite Method for Extra Flavor

When I’m making gravy without drippings, I often take a slightly different approach.

I put about 4 cups of gluten-free broth in a saucepan with:

• ¼ onion
• A chunk of carrot
• 2 bay leaves
• A few peppercorns
• A sprig of thyme (optional)

I let it simmer until it reduces by about half, then strain out the vegetables and thicken the broth with cornstarch.

This is my no-stress gravy method for when I have company and no pan-drippings. It takes a little longer, but that doesn't mean extra effort. The broth can quietly simmer while you prepare the rest of dinner.

How to Make Gravy Without Flour

The most common way to make gravy without flour is to use cornstarch (cornflour in the UK).

Mix cornstarch with cold water to make a slurry, then whisk it into your simmering broth and drippings. As a general rule, 1 tablespoon of cornstarch will thicken 1 cup of gravy

If you’re avoiding grains, here are a few other ways to thicken gravy:

• Pureed vegetables – Sauté onion, garlic, and carrot in butter. Add broth, then puree with an immersion blender.

• Mashed potato flakes – Whisk in about 1 tablespoon of instant mashed potato flakes per cup of gravy.

• Arrowroot starch – Mix equal parts arrowroot and cold water to make a slurry, then whisk it into the simmering gravy. This is a grain-free alternative to cornstarch.

Pan Gravy vs Gravy vs Pan Sauce: What’s the Difference?

The terms pan gravy, gravy and pan sauce are often used interchangeably.

Pan gravy is simply gravy made from the drippings and browned bits left in the roasting or frying pan. In other words, it starts the same way as a pan sauce.

The difference is that a pan sauce is usually left fairly thin and finished with butter, while gravy is thickened with gluten-free flour or cornstarch until it is rich enough to pour over mashed potatoes.

You can make pan gravy in two ways:

• Build a roux with gluten-free flour and the fat from the pan (add butter if needed), then whisk in the drippings and broth.
• Make a pan sauce first, then thicken it with a cornstarch slurry.

Making Gravy in the Roast Pan

My preferred way to make homemade gravy from a roast is to make it right in the roast pan (so technically, it's pan gravy). This lets you capture all the flavorful browned bits stuck to the bottom of the pan.

If you use this method, remember to separate the fat from the liquid drippings then follow the traditional gravy recipe above.

How to Fix Common Gluten-Free Gravy Problems

Gravy is Too Thin

The best fix for thin gravy depends on the thickening method you chose.

If you thickened your gravy with a roux, make a paste out of equal parts butter and gluten-free flour. Add pea-sized pieces of the paste to your gravy and stir until cooked. Repeat until desired thickness is reached.

If you thickened your gravy with a slurry, add more slurry. Stir until cooked.

If you used the puree method, add more pureed vegetables.

Gravy is Too Thick

Add a little more broth or water and stir it into the gravy.

Gravy is Lumpy

Whisk vigorously to break up the lumps. If that doesn’t work, then strain your gravy through a mesh strainer or blend it in the blender or with an immersion blender. If using a blender remove the knob in the lid to let steam escape and cover with a towel.

Gravy is Bland

If your gravy is bland it may need more seasoning. Try adding a little salt and pepper. If it’s already salty enough, a little acid like lemon juice, apple cider vinegar or gluten-free Worcestershire sauce will brighten it up.

Gravy is Too Salty

Taste your sauce before adding salt. There may be enough in the drippings from cooking your meat. If your gravy is too salty, a squeeze of lemon juice can mask the saltiness. You can also try adding a bit of unsalted broth or butter. If you add broth, you may need to add thickener as well.

Gravy is Greasy

If there is a layer of grease on top of your gravy, you can skim that off, or use a gravy separator.

There is Not Enough Drippings in the Pan

If you don’t have enough drippings, use butter and a good quality broth. Build flavor with herbs and aromatics like garlic, onion and carrot. Reduce the broth to intensify the flavor.

Make-Ahead, Storage, and Reheating

Gravy is an excellent make-ahead item, especially for holiday meals when there is already plenty to do. You can prepare it a day or two in advance and store it in the refrigerator. It will thicken as it cools, but that is perfectly normal.

To reheat, warm it gently over low heat, whisking often. If it seems too thick, add a splash of broth until it reaches the consistency you like.

Gluten-free gravy also freezes well for up to three months. Thaw it overnight in the refrigerator, then reheat gently and whisk until smooth. If the texture looks a little uneven after thawing, a small amount of broth and a good whisking will bring it right back.

What to Serve with Gluten-Free Gravy

Gluten-free gravy is wonderful over just about any roasted meat. It’s a natural partner for roast turkey, roast chicken, pork, and beef, and of course it’s hard to beat spooned generously over a pile of mashed potatoes.

In our family, one of the best uses for leftover gravy is a hot roast beef or hot turkey sandwich — an open-faced sandwich with slices of meat on bread, covered with warm gravy and served with soup or a salad on the side.

Gravy also turns simple dishes into something special, like my beer-braised sausages with rich onion gravy.

If you’d like more ideas for cooking meat to juicy, flavorful perfection, see my  Complete Guide to Gluten-Free Meat Cooking

Frequently Asked Questions

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Patty Maguire is a George Brown College culinary graduate whose training focused on nutrition and cooking for special diets.

Since her celiac diagnosis in 2012, she has shared a practical, whole-food approach to naturally gluten-free living that helps readers cook with confidence, eat out safely, travel well, and live fully.

Rooted in farm-family values and simple home cooking, her work has been recognised by Feedspot’s top 10 Canadian gluten-free blogs list.