Step 1

While your turkey is roasting, in a medium to large stock pot, place the back, neck and chicken or turkey parts along with the celery, onion, carrots, peppercorns, bay leaves, garlic, salt and water and bring to a boil. Simmer with cover partially on letting steam escape. Simmer for the entire time the turkey is roasting, adding a little more water as needed.

Step 2

Once your turkey is done roasting and is resting, place the empty roasting pan over two burners on your stove and add the pot of cooked stock with all of the solids and the cooked vegetables and drippings saved from cooking the turkey. Cook and stir, loosening up any browned bits from the roasting pan.

Step 3

Place a colander over the stock pot you just emptied and with a spider, scoop out solids into colander. When the roasting pan is light enough to lift, pour all of the liquid into the colander and pot. Pull the colander out letting the liquid drain into the pot and try to squeeze out every last drop, crushing and pressing the cooked vegetables to give up their liquid. Then discard solids.

Step 4

Skim off the fat that floats to the top of the stock. What is left should be two quarts of turkey stock. Reserve one quart of stock for Step #18 in our Perfect Roast Turkey recipe and heat the other quart to a low boil in the same pot. Add the browning and seasoning sauce.

Step 5

While stock is getting hot, melt the stick of butter over medium heat in a medium pan and add flour. (If you like your gravy on the thicker side, add a few more tablespoons of flour to the butter) Stir with a wooden spoon and cook over medium low for about four minutes until the raw flour smell is gone. This is called a roux.

Step 6

Add all of this to the hot stock whipping briskly as you add. (Normally stock should be added to roux, not the other way around but as long as you whip while adding and they are both hot, it should not get lumpy. If it does, just strain before serving).

Step 7

Taste and adjust seasonings.