One question I get asked a lot is how to make gravy without gluten. It’s easy to make gravy without flour — just make a reduction sauce. A stock-based reduction sauce is easily made with pan drippings from roast meat, bone broth, and a little wine or vinegar. It’s called a reduction sauce because you let it reduce in half and it becomes very thick, and much more nutritious.
This is my favorite way to eat bone broth. I hope you enjoy it!
Recipe Notes:
This recipe will make about 1 cup of reduction sauce. You can make more if you like; just add twice as much stock as you need for sauce. It will keep in the fridge or you can freeze it.
The onion is optional. It adds more flavor but you can leave it out if you’re in a hurry.
If you’re using vinegar instead of wine, only use a little bit. If you use too much, it will taste vinegary.
Easy Reduction Sauce
Ingredients
Duck, chicken or beef stock (2 cups)
Wine or port wine (1/2 cup) — or vinegar (2-3 TBS)
Butter, ghee, grass-fed, or bacon fat, lard or duck fat (2 oz) — where to buy lard and fats
Optional: Onion, large (1/4)
Honey (1 tsp) — where to buy honey
Sea salt (to taste) — where to buy sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper (to taste)
Equipment
Directions
1. After roasting poultry or beef in the oven, remove the carcass and set aside to let cool.
2. Pour off all of the fat except about 2-3 tablespoons (save it in a jar and store in fridge forfuture use).
3. Put the roasting pan on the stove (you can spread it across 2 burners).
4. Optional: Chop the onion.
5. Add vinegar or wine and the optional onion and honey to pan and set on medium heat.
6. Use a wooden spoon or other implement to clean the stuck bits of meat off of the pan.
7. Cook for a few minutes until the liquid thickens.
8. Set the heat to high.
9. Add 2 cups of homemade stock (it’s fine if it’s frozen).
10. Let boil rapidly until the liquid reduces by half or until the sauce is nice and thick and coats the back of a spoon.
11. Season with sea salt and freshly ground pepper.
12. Stir in two tablespoons of butter or ghee (if you are dairy-free, you can skip this step, or use coconut oil instead).
13. Ladle the sauce over the meat and serve.
Photo credit: ulterior epicure on Flickr
Disclosure: cmp.ly/4 and cmp.ly/5
{ 56 comments… read them below or add one }
I’ve been wondering how to make a healthy reduction sauce for a long time now, but it was one of those things that just got put on the back burner. This recipe will be perfect for tonight!
Sounds delicious! Will be trying it this way….
Can you do this if you’ve roasted your chicken in a crockpot? It’s too hot for me to oven roast chicken right now, but the sauce sounds delicious!
You can totally do it with a crock pot. Just heat the crock pot back up, instead of putting it over the stove. Same process of getting the juices and scrapings off the sides of the dish. It’s called deglazing the pan.
I roasted my beef broth bones last night. I knew there was a reason I didn’t wash the pan that I roasted them in last night!
oh, i bet this would be fantastic with duck broth. thanks for the idea!
I’m eating a cooled, jelled reduction sauce with breakfast right now!
cold reduction sauce … i’m not sure ’bout that one
oh no- it’s good! I love it when it’s from a roasted chicken. Then it’s got all the salt and pepper and butter from roasting the chicken- already mixed in…………………and now my mouth is literally watering- and I wish I had a chicken to roast!
Thanks! Sounds delicious and simple.
Making this now…smells wonderful!
mmmm…. I just picked up some beef bones from my local farmer and will definitely be making this !!
maybe I can pour it over the beef tongue I just bought too…. lol
Sounds yummy! I need to find some beef bones!
I’m going to try this…we love gravy but I usually make it with flour. Thanks to you I now have a healthy & delicious gravy recipe.
I’m scared to make a reduction sauce out of red snapper fish head, lol.
ummm- yeah- I’m with you on that one! I’m not sure intensified fish flavor is a good thing. If you try it- and like it- be sure to let us know!
I don’t think I would ever want to try it (lol).
I am so glad I found your blog. I am learning so many things. I have heard about reduction sauces, but never have never tried making gravy without flour before. Now I will!
I have a question about making broth. I have thyroid issues and therefore avoid fluoride whenever possible. However, in my state all water is fluoridated. I do filter my water but it doesn’t take out fluoride, and the filters that do are very expensive. I’m concerned about boiling bones in this water, as it would concentrate the fluoride–and further reducing the broth to make this sauce would concentrate it even more. Is this a valid concern?
Yes, a very valid concern.
I recommend filtered water only for making stock. Our water here in LA has fluoride AND perchlorate (a kind of rocket fuel!) so we use a reverse osmosis filter.
Before we got this filter, we used to buy huge jugs of RO water at a local water store. Before that, we bought smaller jugs of spring water from the grocery store.
Thanks for the response.
I called my mom and found out she has well water (which actually tastes great), so I’m going to see if I can fill up several gallon jugs there.
I have tried a recipe very similar to this using the Celtic sea salt you recommend in your GAPS class and it is far, FAR better using that salt than the Real Salt brand I had been using before hearing your recommendation. So, I would urge people to use the Celtic salt for a richer flavor.
I completely agree! I keep redmonds on hand for certain purposes (mainly baking or lacto-fermenting) – but for cooking- ESP finishing something off- the celtic sea salt is sooo superior.
Btw- I found that getting the celtic sea salt on amazon was actually cheaper than buying it directly from them, or any of the local stores. I have a prime membership to amazon though- so I don’t pay for shipping. Can’t remember how much a difference that part made.
Yes, I believe Celtic sea salt is the best salt that I have ever tasted
Perfect! Thanks!
Awesome! I love the inclusion of vinegar. I’ve been just reducing the broth down- but a like the kick that vinegar adds!
One of my favorite ways too! Yum!!
I am printing this out right now! Looks delish and would be great as French au jus for roast beef.
Going to have to try this one!
Fantastic! Definitely using this as a gravy replacement!
the first time i made a reduction sauce with butter, i was amazed at how much better it was than any gravy i had had before. butter makes everything better!
Hee hee. I keep telling my hubby that I want to get a shirt with that screen printed on it!
“Butter makes EVERYTHING better!”
“Butter makes EVERYTHING better!”
I absolutely love this quote!
I made it. And it was deliciously perfect. (Thankyouthankyouthankyou for posting! This recipe is a keeper.)
yum! Can’t wait to try this
thanks for this! I’m bookmarking it for next time I roast…(which will hopefully be soon). I never liked gravy as a kid, but i LOVE it now!
Ooh, I need to try this! And thanks for the ‘don’t give up’ on the Challenge – I was about to.
Thank you!!! This will make my husband very happy as I have not found a great way to make gravy since starting GAPS. I’ve been pureeing cauliflower into my broth to thicken it which is OK but as he doesn’t care for cauliflower this will be much better for him!
Yummy and thank you!! I’ve also made a good gravy with an imersion blender and the drippings with all the onion, garlic and yummy stuff I’ve cooked the meat with, then simmered it to cook it down a bit.
I made this tonight…. I couldn’t get it to thicken, but it tasted good, so I’ll try again another time! Just realized I forgot the honey, too…. perhaps next time I won’t try to do it from memory!
Question about the optional onion: my children prefer a smooth gravy, so I was wondering how thick it gets? Could I possibly strain the reduction to keep it as a smooth gravy? Or is it on the thick side?
Hi Sheridan,
I believe if you add a little water to the reduction sauce, it should be less thick.
Thank you! Excited to try it this week
This looks delicious!
gonna give this a shot tonite with supper.
this worked pretty good!!!
yummmmm, thank you for the recipe.
I tried it and it worked. Yay. I still like my gravy with a flour and butter roux, but this is great, too.
It had a cleaner taste without the flour.
Ok- now try it over scrambled eggs. Seriously- it’s soooo yummy!
The sauce in the pic looks like melted chocolate
making this tonight!
Made this tonight with the our roast! Delicious! I asked my husband, “where do you think I got the recipe?” and he goes ” CHEESESLAVE!?!” yep!!!! =) lol
I’m always looking for recipes that I can whip up for my husband’s aunt whose gluten intolerance is severe. I think she’ll like this reduction and I know I’m going to love it because it’s going to be easy to make. Oh, and I really look forward to trying it on eggs as riceinmay has suggested too!
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