The Best Easy Vegan Gravy Recipe | Flourless and Gluten-free (2024)

FAQs

What is the best gluten free flour to use for gravy? ›

Sweet rice flour is my go-to flour for making gluten-free gravy. It contains a slightly higher starch content than other gluten-free flours, making it silky and smooth. Even more, because this flour is gluten-free, it doesn't clump as easily as wheat flour.

Another way to thicken gravy without flour is to roast vegetables like carrots, onions or shallots, celery, whole garlic and red bell peppers with the meat. Strain the juices and puree the vegetables and add it to the de-fatted meat juices, wine and some stock. Reduce the liquid to a thick gravy then strain and serve.

Cornstarch is probably the most readily available ingredient to sub in for flour in your gluten-free gravy—and you probably already have it in your pantry.

Cornstarch and potato starch are the best options for gravy. Avoid arrowroot and tapioca starches because they can get "stringy" and look artificial in gravy. Cornstarch gravy is more translucent than flour based sauces. Potato starch gravy is more opaque than cornstarch, but less opaque than flour.

Sweet rice flour, ground from glutinous rice, makes a velvety gluten-free roux and nicely replaces wheat flour measure for measure. Classically roux uses clarified butter as its fat.

(You can also start with a slurry of flour and water—equal amounts flour and cold water whisked together—if you want.) Whisk the gravy while slowly adding liquid: Slowly add stock, water, milk, cream, or a combination to the pan, whisking vigorously to dissolve the flour into liquid.

Making a roux with flour and butter “boosts flavor and gives the gravy a silky texture and rich flavor,” she says. Flour also gives the gravy a traditional opaque look, she adds, whereas cornstarch will make the gravy shiny and clear.

Cornstarch is a fine, white powder processed from the endosperm of corn. The endosperm is the nutrient-rich tissue inside the grain. Corn is a gluten-free grain, and no other ingredients are typically required to make cornstarch. As a result, pure cornstarch — which contains 100% cornstarch — is naturally gluten-free.

Tapioca flour: ideal as thickener or for healthy baking.

Arrowroot starch works in these sorts of dishes, too. Some sauces are thickened by starting with a “roux” (a butter + flour mixture), traditionally made with wheat flour. White rice or sweet rice flour is a perfectly good substitute.

Does butter have gluten? ›

Butter is gluten-free. While some cheeses can have additives or flavorings that contain gluten, butter is usually a low risk unless flavored. However, always be sure to read the label to see if a particular brand is gluten-free.

Sainsbury's Plant Pioneers Vegan Gravy 300g (Serves 2) | Sainsbury's.

Gravy is typically made with beef drippings or beef stock, and sometimes butter, to achieve a rich flavour so it's not suitable for vegetarians or vegans.

Is the gravy at KFC vegan? Surprisingly, KFC's gravy also contains milk, so just like the mash it's a no-go for vegans.

Tapioca flour: ideal as thickener or for healthy baking.

Cassava Flour

In contrast to tapioca flour, which is made from a starchy liquid extracted from the cassava root, cassava flour is made by grating and drying the whole root. This flour is gluten-, grain- and nut-free. It's most similar to white flour and can easily be used in recipes calling for all-purpose flour.

Our Gluten Free 1-to-1 Baking Flour makes wonderful gravy your family will love.

Tapioca can be bought as flour, pearls, or flakes, and it's also gluten-free. Most cooks recommend substituting 1 tablespoon of cornstarch with 2 tablespoons of tapioca flour. Tapioca is a processed starch flour made from the root vegetable cassava.