Should I add cornstarch or baking powder, should I put a lid on or should I just wait longer and let it cook?

I am making homemade gravy. It is not thinking up. I added flour. I also stirred it and it wasn’t thick.

Sara Christensen
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3 Comments

HalfPint
HalfPint June 20, 2023
Did you add enough flour to thicken the gravy? You typically need 2 TB flour for every cup of liquid. Cornstarch has twice the thickening power, which is why it is preferred for thickening over flour. As @gammy mentioned, baking powder does not have any thickening agent. It's leavener, so when you add it to a hot liquid, it's going to foam up, but not thicken at all.
 
MMH
MMH June 21, 2023
I agree except that I don’t like the shiny appearance & texture of gravy thickened with corn starch. I prefer the work put in to get the result with flour. If you are not familiar, cornstarch yields a result that gives the appearance of a Chinese brown sauce.
 
Gammy
Gammy June 20, 2023
Baking powder is a leavener, not a thickener, so not that. You could use cornstarch. I would mix it with a bit of cold water, making a slurry before adding to the warm/hot gravy to thicken. Flour typically is mixed with a fat before adding in the other ingredients so it doesn't clump.
 
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