This Onion Gravy recipe packs in the flavor without a huge ingredient list and it pairs well with so many dishes.
A great gravy or sauce can really complete a meal and tie it all together. This onion gravy recipe has complex savory flavor without a ton of effort. Sweet onions get sauteed in butter and then seasoned beef stock is added and thickened with cornstarch. It’s ready in half an hour and is delicious on basically everything, especially meats and potatoes.
Scroll down to read more about how it all comes together or click here to jump straight down to the recipe.
Do I Need To Caramelize The Onions?
Caramelized onions are undeniably delicious, but they take a while to cook. I tested this onion gravy recipes with both caramelized onions and simply sauteed onions, and I was surprised to discover I actually like the sauteed onions better for this recipe.
With both versions, the gravy had lots of fantastic onion flavor, but the caramelized onions were so soft that they ended up losing shape and clumping together in the final gravy. The onions that I sauteed for about 12 minutes were tender, had some caramelization around the edges, plus held their shape. And bonus, that’s the version that took less time to make!
Is There Wine In Onion Gravy?
I decided not to include wine in my final gravy recipe below, but if you’d like that extra flavor, go for it.
Deglaze the pan of onions after sautéing the onions with about three tablespoons of red wine, then continue with the recipe. I prefer using a dry Cabernet for this, but any red blend or dry red wine will work here. It’s a small amount of wine, so it can be helpful to keep the small single serve bottles of wine on hand for cooking purposes like this. That way, you don’t have to open a bottle if you weren’t planning on it and you’re not using your favorite drinking wine to cook.
Herbs For Onion Gravy
Using fresh herbs in onion gravy doesn’t end up with a prominent flavor, so I stick with dried herbs for my gravy recipe. Dried thyme and garlic powder is perfect for this, along with some onion powder to really boost that onion taste.
If you wanted to add some black pepper that would work well and if you really wanted to add something extra, try a small amount of rosemary sauteed with the onions.
Type of Onions To Use
When they’re in season, I definitely use Vidalia onions for my onions gravy. They’re simply the tastiest onions out there, in my opinion. So much so that I’ve used them to make all kinds of recipes and I’m going to give you a list of some of my favorites in a second.
If Vidalias aren’t in season, then my next favorite choice is any onions labeled “Sweet Onion” at the grocery store.
Can you use regular white or yellow onions instead? Absolutely! However, what you’re going to do is to add a bit of sugar to the recipe. Just before you stir in the broth in Step #4 below, stir 1/8 of a teaspoons of sugar into the onions. It’s just a tiny bit but it makes a huge difference.
Okay, now those sweet onion recipes that I promised you:
How To Make The Best Onion Gravy
In a large non-stick pan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the sliced sweet onions and a bit of salt and mix to coat the onion. Sauté the onions until they are soft and lightly browned, it took me 10 – 15 minutes to get them cooked perfectly, as shown in the photo below.
While the onions are cooking, mix together the beef stock, Worcestershire sauce, seasonings, and cornstarch. Some recipes include a bullion cube or Better than Bullion paste as well, but I don’t think this onion gravy recipe needs it unless your beef stock doesn’t have much flavor on its own. I find that between the flavorful browned onions and some Worcestershire, there’s plenty of savory flavor in the finished sauce.
Pour your beef stock mixture into the pan with the onions once they are soft and lightly browned. Bring it to a boil and then reduce and let simmer for 5 minutes. Make sure to stir frequently as it thickens.
Serve warm with your favorite meal. This onion gravy is delicious with cube steak, pork chops, mashed potatoes, and so much more.
More Gravy Recipes
If you love gravy as much as I do, you have to go browse through my full collection of sauce recipes over here. And I’m also linking to some of my favorite gravy recipes here for you too:
- Bacon Gravy
- Mushroom Gravy
- Gravy Made Without Drippings
- The Best Homemade Gravy
- Cornstarch Gravy
- White Gravy
Podcast Episode About Making Onion Gravy
Listen to me explain briefly about how to cook bacon from frozen, along with some other great bacon tips, by clicking the play button below:
Listen to more Recipe of the Day episodes here.
Print
Onion Gravy Recipe
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 2 and 1/2 cups 1x
- Category: Sauce
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 4 Tbsp. butter, cut into pieces
- 2 sweet onions, peeled, sliced 1/4-inch
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 2 cups beef stock
- 1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tsp. onion powder
- 1 tsp. garlic powder
- 1 and 1/2 tsp. dried thyme
- 2 Tbsp. cornstarch
Instructions
- In a large nonstick skillet melt butter over medium heat. Add onions and salt, toss to coat.
- Cook, tossing occasionally, until onions are soft and lightly browned but not caramelized, about 10 to 15 minutes.
- Meanwhile, in a medium bowl or 4-cup glass measuring cup, whisk together beef stock, Worcestershire, onion powder, garlic powder, thyme, and cornstarch until no lumps remain.
- Pour beef stock mixture into pan with onions. Bring to boiling, reduce to a simmer; sauce will thicken. Simmer, stirring frequently for 5 minutes.
- Transfer onion gravy to a gravy boat or medium bowl. Serve warm.
Love this recipe? I’d appreciate it if you could scroll down and add a *5 star rating* to help others know they’ll love it as well!
Arlene Greenbaum says
You do you strain the onions or leave it with the gravy?
Christine Pittman says
Leave all those delicious onions in the gravy! Hope you enjoy, Arlene.