White Country Gravy Recipe Made With 5 Simple Ingredients

This classic white country gravy recipe is a staple for any home cook. It goes with all your southern comfort favorites - from chicken fried steak to mashed potatoes and buttermilk biscuits. And it's a fantastic addition to your Thanksgiving table. Not to mention, this easy white gravy recipe is made with just 5 ingredients, and there are no meat drippings needed! 

The Best Country Gravy

When it comes to Southern-style cooking, everyone knows the key to a great meal is a fantastic gravy.

In my opinion, pouring gravy on practically everything from the sides to the main dish is the best part of a Southern dinner. And, honestly, a delicious gravy could even save overly dry fried chicken, pork chops, or chicken fried steak. With all that said, this creamy white pepper gravy is definitely the ultimate classic country gravy recipe!

It's flavorful, wonderfully creamy, and velvety smooth, and it's just the right sauce to whip up when your meal needs that extra something. It's especially delicious for Thanksgiving with these red skin mashed potatoes and this pioneer woman stuffing.

By the way, if you want to add brown gravy to your Thanksgiving dinner table, too, you definitely should give this easy and tasty brown gravy recipe a try.

Ingredients You'll Need

• Butter- unsalted butter since we're adding salt.
• Flour- all-purpose flour works best.
• Milk- I used whole milk.
• Salt- just a pinch.
• Black pepper- or white pepper.

Feel free to make to make this Jimmy Dean breakfast sausage, then crumble it up and add the sausage to the gravy.  You can also add sausage drippings to make the best white country sausage gravy.

How To Make Country Gravy

Step 1: Preparing the Roux

First, melt butter in a pot on medium heat. And don't set your temperature too high, or the butter might brown too quickly and turn bitter.

Next, add the flour to the melted butter and mix until creamy and well combined.

Cook for about 2-5 minutes or until the flour is lightly tanned and has a wet sand consistency. This step is important to get all the raw flour taste out.

Step 2: Adding the Flavor

Little by little, start adding in the milk. Then, stir the milk to incorporate it with the butter and flour mixture.

Every time you add more milk, give it a stir. The trick for a perfectly creamy white gravy is to carefully mix in the milk.

Anyway, once you've added all the milk, add the salt and freshly cracked black pepper or white pepper. Now, simmer the white gravy for around 10 minutes or until the gravy thickens to your desired consistency. If you want a runnier white gravy, you can add more milk to the mixture.

Now, once it's ready, give it a taste, and adjust the seasonings if you want. Then, serve immediately!

How To Store and Reheat This White Country Gravy

So, this recipe for white gravy makes 1 ½ cups. However, you can, of course, double or triple the recipe for extra batches.

Then, to store your white gravy, let it cool to room temperature and transfer it to an airtight container. It will stay good for about 3-4 days in the refrigerator.

You can also freeze it in a ziplock bag placed on a baking tray until it freezes flat. It's easier to warm up when it's thinner, which is why we're freezing it like this. Then, once you've got that looking good, you can store this gravy plank in the freezer for up to 4 months.

Anyway, before serving, reheat the white gravy in the microwave or in a small saucepan set over medium heat. And if it feels too thick, you can add a splash of milk - or water - to thin it out.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is white country gravy made of?

White country gravy is made of butter, a flour roux thinned with milk, salt, and black pepper. Some recipes also include bacon fat or meat drippings to add more flavor.  

What is the difference between gravy and country gravy?

Again, country gravy is a white gravy made of butter, flour, milk, salt, and pepper. Other kinds of gravies - like chicken gravy, brown gravy, and sawmill gravy - are usually made with some combination of meat drippings, stock, ground meat, and other seasonings such as cayenne pepper.

What is country gravy vs brown gravy?

Brown gravy is made with beef broth - or beef drippings - to get that deep brown color. It sometimes has other seasonings like Worcestershire sauce or garlic powder. Country gravy, meanwhile, is made without meat - just milk, butter, and flour with salt and pepper to taste - just like this homemade gravy recipe.

More Recipes

If you're looking for some comfort food, we have a ton of recipes that you have to try next!

Check all of these out:

• Ocean Spray cranberry sauce
• Twice baked mashed potatoes
• Cheesy mashed potatoes
• Sweet corn cake
• Sweet potato cornbread
• Martha White cornbread
• Sweet potato cobbler

Oh, and don't forget to check out our Youtube, Instagram, and TikTok for more easy recipes as well!