Definition

Noun: A simple sauce made from the juices and browned bits left in a pan after cooking meat, often with a small amount of water or other liquid added to dissolve the flavorful residues. It is seasoned but not thickened with flour or starch.

Usage

This term is used specifically in cooking to describe a basic, unthickened sauce made directly from meat drippings. It is a fundamental component of many dishes, providing a rich, meaty flavor.

Examples

• The cook made a delicious pan gravy by deglazing the roasting pan with a bit of water.
• For a quick sauce, just pour the pan gravy over the sliced steak.
• The recipe instructs you to skim the fat off the pan gravy before serving.

Advanced Usage

• As a base: Pan gravy is often used as a base for more complex sauces, where wine, stock, or cream may be added after the deglazing step.
• Culinary technique: Making pan gravy is an example of the cooking technique called "deglazing," which captures the concentrated flavor (fond) from the pan.

Variants and Related Words

• Gravy (n): A broader term for a sauce, often thickened, made from meat juices. Pan gravy is a specific, unthickened type of gravy.
• Jus (n): A French culinary term very similar to pan gravy, referring to the natural, unthickened juices from cooked meat.
• Drippings (n): The fat and juices that render out of meat during cooking, which are the starting point for pan gravy.
• Deglaze (v): The process of adding liquid to a hot pan to loosen the browned bits of food.

Synonyms

• Meat juices
• Natural jus
• Unthickened gravy

Related Phrases

• To make a pan gravy: This phrase describes the action of creating the sauce.
  • After removing the chicken, you should make a pan gravy from the drippings.
• Pan gravy from/drippings: Specifies the source of the gravy.
  • She served the pork chops with a pan gravy from the drippings.

Noun

1. the seasoned but not thickened juices that drip from cooking meats; often a little water is added