Cast Iron

Green Chili Country Gravy

October 31, 2010
4.8
4 Ratings
  • Makes 2 cups
Author Notes

What could be better than drowning your turkey in rich cream gravy? I'm kidding, of course, that sounds...unappealing. This lively country gravy is not meant as an accoutrement for your roasted bird, but it is mighty tasty on mashed potatoes, biscuits, or chicken-fried-anything. - arielleclementine —arielleclementine

Test Kitchen Notes

Arielleclementine's smoky, peppery gravy takes us back to the milk gravy of our childhood -- just amped up, Texas-style. It's the perfect silky cloak for fresh, homemade biscuits (like these), and roasting the poblanos is by far the most challenging part of the recipe. We love that the sauce is flecked generously with both onion and poblano, adding texture and sweetness along with the heat. Make sure not to let it thicken too much, or it will lose its velvety feel and skin easily -- you can always whisk in a bit more milk to loosen it up. - A&M —The Editors

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • 2 large fresh green chiles (hatch, anaheim, new mexico or poblano)
  • 2 tablespoons fat (sausage or bacon drippings) or butter
  • 1/2 small yellow onion, diced (about 1/2 cup)
  • 2 tablespoons flour
  • 2 cups whole milk
  • kosher salt
Directions
  1. Position your oven rack so that it is 4-6 inches below your broiler. Line a baking sheet with foil and put the whole peppers on the sheet. Broil, turning the peppers occasionally, until the skin is charred and peeling on all sides. Remove the peppers to a bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and allow to steam for 10 minutes. Remove the stems, seeds, and skin from the peppers and dice the flesh. Set aside.
  2. If you're making this for breakfast, to accompany biscuits and your very favorite breakfast meat, fry up the bacon or sausage in a cast iron skillet over medium heat. Remove all but two tablespoons of fat from the skillet. (Or, if you're making this with butter, skip the meat frying, and just melt two tablespoons of butter in a skillet over medium heat.)
  3. Add the onions to the pan and cook for about 5 minutes, until they're soft and sweetly caramelized around the edges. Sprinkle two tablespoons of flour into the pan and stir for about a minute, so that the raw flour cooks off and the roux takes on a golden brown color.
  4. Add the milk to the pan and stir to combine. Add the diced chiles. Bring the mixture to a boil, and then simmer for 3-5 minutes, stirring constantly, until the gravy is thick and creamy. Season to taste with plenty of kosher salt (I used a little more than a teaspoon) and enjoy with your favorite starchy treat!

See what other Food52ers are saying.

  • WileyP
    WileyP
  • Bevi
    Bevi
  • Sagegreen
    Sagegreen
  • BlueKaleRoad
    BlueKaleRoad
  • fiveandspice
    fiveandspice
I have always loved food. My favorite books as a kid always featured food (eg. The Berenstain Bears Get the Gimmies- so much candy!) and I loved cooking shows like Yan Can Cook and The Frugal Gourmet. I started cooking the Thanksgiving dinner for my family when I was 13 years old. I have food52 to thank for inspiring me to come up with my own recipes, as well as for introducing me to a community of fantastic cooks and their amazing recipes. I try my best to cook locally and seasonally, and I tend to prefer straightforward, simple recipes where the ingredients get to shine. I live in wonderful Austin, Texas with my husband, Andy (a video game programmer) and my son, Henry (an 8-month-old who loves to eat).

68 Reviews

WileyP August 12, 2011
Well, DUH, ariwlleclementine! Of *course* that is going to be a top drawer gravy! I'm so angry at myself for not figuring something like that out that I'm not going to speak to myself for a week! Thanks for waking me up!
 
arielleclementine August 12, 2011
Haha! Thank you! I hope you like it!
 
WileyP August 14, 2011
Yup, your Green Chile Country Gravy was just *great*, received gold stars from everyone at the table and gets an honored place in my recipe book! I made country fried boneless pork chops, green beans, corn and bacon-pepper drop biscuits, serving the chops on a bed of your gravy. There was also more gravy to pass around, and there wasn't enough of it left to coat a saltine! Thanks so much for posting this, ac!
 
sexyLAMBCHOPx August 14, 2011
WileyP- Damn, I wish I was at that meal - sounds so good!
 
Bevi August 10, 2011
Congrats on the Silver!
 
arielleclementine August 11, 2011
Thank you!!
 
Sagegreen August 10, 2011
Congrats on being runner-up.Your recipe is delicious.
 
arielleclementine August 10, 2011
Thanks sweet friend :)
 
BlueKaleRoad August 10, 2011
Congratulations on being runner up! This is a lovely recipe.
 
arielleclementine August 10, 2011
Thanks so much, BKR :)
 
fiveandspice August 10, 2011
Congrats on runner up! Both recipes this week were such keepers!
 
arielleclementine August 10, 2011
That's so nice! Thank you :)
 
Wellarded August 8, 2011
This + chorizo = here I come!

Thanks for the great idea!
 
arielleclementine August 9, 2011
sounds amazing! i hope you like it :)
 
boulangere August 7, 2011
I've never been much of a b&g fan, but you just might convert me. Warm congratulations on your win.
 
arielleclementine August 9, 2011
thanks, boulangere!
 
boulangere August 10, 2011
You're my #1!
 
arielleclementine August 11, 2011
You're so sweet- thank you :)
 
LocalSavour August 6, 2011
I choose bacon fat for this = breakfast of champions. YUM!
 
arielleclementine August 6, 2011
Thanks friend! We had this for dinner tonight with breakfast sausage from Kocurek Charcuterie- that stuff is mighty fine.
 
latoscana August 6, 2011
arielleclementine: As of today, the Hatch roasting season has commenced!
 
arielleclementine August 6, 2011
huzzah! i'm off to stock my freezer!
 
arielleclementine August 5, 2011
thanks again for your lovely comments! i heart food52ers :)
 
Waverly August 5, 2011
Sounds fantastic!
 
TinaMiB August 5, 2011
Two of my favorite things.... Green Chilis and Country Gravy.... I will be in heaven when I make this!!
 
lakelurelady August 5, 2011
Congratulations. The gravy looks amazing. My biscuit and gravy loving husband would scarf this up in no time.
 
BlueKaleRoad August 5, 2011
Congratulations! This gravy sounds amazing!
 
a L. August 4, 2011
Congrats to you too, looks great!
 
NM E. August 4, 2011
A note of clarification here: Hatch Green Chile refers to the locale, not to a variety of chile. Thus "Hatch Chile" is "New Mexico Chile" but not necessarily vice-versa. Most Hatch Green Chile is of the variety known as "Big Jim," but there are others as well. Sadly, for those of us living out-of-state, we tend to make do with Poblanos, but it just ain't the same! Nothing, but NOTHING compares to the aroma & taste of fresh roasting/roasted New Mexico Green Chile on a clear September morn!

Oh, and by the way, great recipe! :)
 
arielleclementine August 5, 2011
thanks for the info- i didn't know that! we have a fabulous grocery store in austin that has a hatch festival every august where they roast tons of the chiles in big cages outside the store. i completely agree that the smell of the roasting chiles is an undeniable delight :) i'm going to try to find out what variety of hatch peppers they're roasting this year!
 
sexyLAMBCHOPx August 4, 2011
Congrats from a gravy drowning fool! Good luck!
 
arielleclementine August 4, 2011
thank you all so much!! this is such an unexpected and wonderful surprise!
 
aargersi August 4, 2011
Yay Arielle! SO happy to see you as a finalist, what a great recipe!!!!!
 
wssmom August 4, 2011
Nice indeed! Congrats!