Perfectly seasoned pan juices, thanks to the Instant Pot, make an out-of-this-world gravy.
The Instant Pot is fast becoming one of my favorite cooking appliances. It’s easy to use, reduces cooking times and since you add either broth or water to the pot to create the steam, you end up with perfectly seasoned pan juices to make reductions or, in this case, out-of-this-world gravy. This gravy is perfect to use when you make a variety of meats, especially my favorite – pork. Try it on pork loin, or pork chops.
Making Instant Pot Gravy
This recipe uses a slurry made with cornstarch and water to thicken the gravy. The thing I love about using a slurry is that it can be added directly to warm liquid and you don’t have to make a roux. Ok, that was two things, but I think you get the point. Another thing that’s great about this method is family or friends who follow a gluten-free diet can enjoy gravy along with everyone else.
There are a couple of things that I think are important to know about the slurry method.
- It is import to use cold water when mixing your slurry.
- Stir the slurry right before adding it to the liquid. I am going to get a little science-y here. The cornstarch is actually in suspension and not dissolved in the water. It will settle out of suspension the longer it sits.
- Add the slurry slowly to the simmering liquid, whisking constantly. As soon as the starches start to heat up, they begin to swell. If you don’t stir constantly, you will end up with gelatin globs. Never good in a gravy.
- Cook just until thickened and the starchy taste has disappeared. Starches break down the longer they are cooked. This means that your nice thick gravy will start to get thinner and thinner the longer it is on the heat. You do not want gravy soup.
More Gravy Methods
If you are more of a traditionalist and prefer a roux-based gravy, you can follow my Gravy Recipe Tutorial and if you don’t have pan dripping available, try this method. Rather than the saucepan on the stovetop, however, you would use the Instant Pot on the sauté function to cook it in.
Choose your favorite method. Whatever you do, make sure to use the amazing pan juices that are made when you cook meats in your Instant Pot. It would be such a shame to waste them.
More Instant Pot Basics To Know
Below I’ve gathered up some links for you to some of my favorite Instant Pot recipes for making basic things, like this gravy. If you’d like to browse all of my Instant Pot recipes, head over here.
- Instant Pot Farro
- Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes
- Instant Pot Plain White Rice
- Instant Pot Butternut Squash
- Instant Pot Collard Greens
- Instant Pot Black-Eyed Peas
Podcast Episode About Making Instant Pot Gravy
Listen to me explain briefly about how to make this gravy, along with some other great tips, by clicking the play button below:
Listen to more Recipe of the Day episodes here.
PrintInstant Pot Gravy
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: 4–6 servings 1x
- Category: Sauce
- Method: Instant Pot
- Cuisine: American
DESCRIPTION
Perfectly seasoned pan juices, thanks to the Instant Pot, make an out-of-this-world gravy.
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- 1/4 cup cold water
- 2 cups of pan juices from pressure cooked pork, beef, or chicken (if you don’t have enough, use broth or stock to make up the difference)
- Salt
- Pepper
Instructions
- In a small bowl, create a slurry with the cornstarch and water by mixing them together thoroughly.
- Measure pan juices and place back into the Instant Pot.
- Select Sauté and bring the juices to a simmer.
- Whisk the cornstarch slurry in to the juices (it is a good idea stir the slurry just before adding to the juices as the cornstarch will have most likely settled). Stir constantly until the juices have thickened, approximately 3 – 5 minutes.
- Select Cancel to stop the cooking process.
- Taste for seasoning and add salt and/or pepper if needed. It is very seldom that I have to add anything to the pan juices. They are that good!
- Pour into a gravy boat and serve.
Notes
If you have more than 2 cups of liquid, you can use the following ratio of cornstarch to liquid. Two tablespoons of cornstarch plus 2 tablespoons cold water to 1 cup of liquid.
So, if you end up with 3 cups of liquid, you would use 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons of cornstarch mixed with 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons of cold water.