Celebrity chef Jamie Oliver has assured home cooks that making perfect gravy for the Christmas roast is a breeze with just a handful of ingredients.

On his website, Jamie shared: “Making your own flavoursome gravy is super easy – all you need to get going is meat and veg.”

He also advised: “As long as you always use a vegetable trivet and buy good-quality meat, your gravy will taste like heaven whether you use water or stock. Follow my method for making gravy, and you’ll never look back.”

This recipe, claimed to be foolproof, takes just 25 minutes to prepare, ensuring a rich and delicious complement to your festive meal, reports the Express.

Ultimate Christmas dinner gravy recipe:

Ingredients

  • Roast chicken (or turkey or another roast of your choice)
  • Roasted vegetables
  • One heaped dessert spoon of plain flour
  • One wineglass of red or white wine (you can also use cider or a splash of sherry)
  • One litre of organic stock

The Method:

Begin crafting the gravy only once your chicken or turkey has completed its roasting cycle, is adequately covered, and set to rest, which allows utilization of the succulent juices from the roasting tray. Employing a vegetable trivet when cooking your meat promises an infusion of robust flavours into your gravy.

After the roast is done, carefully decant the majority of hot juices, skimming away and discarding any fatty residue before transferring the remaining liquid into a pan.

After roasting a bird and collecting the fat and juices, place your tray on high heat atop your stove. Whisk in flour to create a roux while stabilising the tray with a tea towel.

Add the roasted vegetables to the mix, mashing them thoroughly into a pulp for depth of flavour – don’t fret if it seems lumpy at this stage. If you’re feeling extravagant, add the wings from your roast for extra taste.

Now pour in your chosen tipple, keeping the heat up to evaporate the alcohol. Allow the gravy base to boil briefly before introducing the stock or hot water, scraping the delicious bits off the bottom of the pan as you go.

Reduce the heat and let everything simmer for 10 minutes until you reach the desired liquid state and consistency. Strain your concoction through a sieve into a jug, pressing to extract every bit of flavour.

Discard what’s left in the sieve. Jamie Oliver endorses the results, asserting: “At this point, you’ve got a really cracking gravy, and you can either serve it straight away or put it back on the heat to simmer and thicken up.”