Sauces and Gravies

One of my favorite parts of any meal, food storage based or otherwise, are the sauces or condiments that accompany any meal. I love sauce or gravy with most of my food. One thing I have learned as I have worked on food storage is that you can totally raise almost any food storage item to the next level if it is accompanied by a good sauce or gravy. Not only that, but you can make a meal of good whole wheat bread covered with gravy. Or pancakes and waffles covered with jelly or syrup.

Gravy, Sauces, syrups & dressings add delicious flavors to meals made from basic food storage and food from your garden. Making sauces from scratch can also save you lots of money as you won't have to rely on prepared food or sauce mixes! Here are some basic sauce and gravy recipes. I know you all have your favorite homemade sauce too. Feel free to share it with the rest of us so we can all have a good assortment of recipes in our files.

Meat Drippings Gravy
8 T. fat or meat dripping
4 c. Milk
6 T. Flour
Salt and Pepper to taste
Fry the meat and drain off the fat. Use an ample amount of the fat and drippings. Add the flour and brown it slightly. Add the milk and stir until well blended. Season and cook to desired thickness.

Milk Gravy
1 c. Powdered Milk mixed with 3 c. Water
1 T. Margarine
3 Heaping T. Flour
½ t. salt
Mix the water and powdered milk together. Add the flour and salt. Cook over medium heat until the gravy is thickened. Add the margarine and stir until smooth.

Chicken Gravy
1½ T. Butter or Margarine
1½ T. chicken bouillon
½ t. garlic powder
1¼ c. Water
¼ c. Dried Milk (Instant)
1 t. onion powder
¼ t. turmeric
1 T. Flour

Onion Gravy
¼ c. Butter or margarine
1 T. Beef Bouillon
2 T. Cornstarch
3 c. Chopped Onions
2 c. Boiling Water
¼ c. Cold Water
Salt and Pepper to Taste

Beef Gravy
1½ T. Butter or Margarine
1 t. Minced Onion or powder
1 t. Worcestershire Sauce
1¼ c. Water
1½ T. Beef Bouillon
1 T. Flour

Herb Gravy
1 Can Regular Strength Chicken or Beef Broth
3½ - 4 T. Flour
1 T. Parsley
Pinch of Thyme
Drops of Kitchen Bouquet
½ t. salt
Pepper to taste
1 t. chives
Brown the onions if using. Add all other ingredients except cornstarch (or flour) and cold water together in a pan. Cook until dissolved. Add the cornstarch (or flour) and water together. Pour them into the gravy base. Continue cooking until thick. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Basic White Sauce
Prepare Ahead Mix:
1 c. Flour
1 c. Margarine
4 t. salt
2½ c. Nonfat Dry Milk
Blend ingredients with a fork until resembles a crumbly coarse meal. Store in the refrigerator. To prepare: Blend 1/3 c. Mix with 1 c. Cold Water or Broth. Add liquid slowly. Heat to boiling, stirring constantly until thick.

White Sauce--thin, medium, thick
Thin
1 T. butter
1 T. flour
1 c. Milk
¼ t. salt

Medium
2 T. Butter
2 T. Flour
1 c. Milk
¼ t. salt

Thick
3 T. Butter
3 T. Flour
1 c. Milk
¼ t. salt
Over low heat, melt butter in sauce pan. Add flour. Blend until smooth. Add milk at once and cook until thick. Stir constantly so it won't burn. Add salt. To make a cheese sauce, add ½ c. grated cheddar cheese.

Cheese Sauce
½ c. Cheese powder
3 T. powdered milk
1 t. dried onions
1½ t. corn starch
1¼ t. salt
1 c. Water
Prepare the above recipe, stirring until thickened.

Mayonnaise
1 whole egg
2 t. sugar
¼ t. salt
1½ T. Vinegar
dash of pepper
1 c. oil
Put all ingredients in the blender, except for ¾ c. of the oil. Blend together well. While blending slowly, add the remaining oil until the mayonnaise is thick.

Tomato Sauce
2 c. chopped onion
3 cloves garlic
3 T. oil
3 ½ c. Bottled Tomatoes
2 small cans tomato paste
2 c. water
1 bay leaf
½ t. salt
¼ t. pepper
¼ t. oregano
¼ t. basil
Sauté onion and garlic in oil. Add tomatoes, paste, bay leaf, salt and pepper. Simmer 2 hours. Add more water if necessary. Add oregano and basil. Cook another 15 minutes until thick.

Tomato Sauce (from Dried Foods)
1 c. Tomato Powder
3 c. Water
½ t. salt
1 t. sugar
1 T. oil
1 T. margarine powder
¼ c. onion flakes
¼ t. garlic powder
1 bay leaf
pepper to taste
Simmer the tomato powder, water, sugar and salt on low heat for 20 minutes. Sauté onions in oil and margarine powder until tender. Add onions and remaining ingredients to the tomatoes and simmer another 15 minutes. Stir often, until thick.

Tomato Catsup
1 c. Tomato Powder
2 t. Sugar
¼ t. vegetable oil
½ t. salt
1/8 t. pepper
Dash of onion powder
1½ c. Water
Combine all ingredients. Boil; then simmer for 10 minutes until thick.

Mustard Sauce
1/2 c. tomato soup
1/2 c. vinegar
1/2 c. prepared mustard
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. salad oil
3 egg yolks
Stir together till smooth and cook till thick. Delicious on meat loaf or ham. Keeps well for a long time in the refrigerator.

Quick and Easy Sweet and Sour Sauce
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. cider vinegar
1 T. cornstarch
1 T. Catsup
Mix in saucepan and bring to a boil. It will clear and thicken.

Sweet and Sour Sauce
2 c. pineapple juice
3 T. vinegar
1 c. Water
¼ c. Honey
¼ c Tamari
2 - 3 T. Corn Starch
1 t. ginger
1 large tomato, cut in eighths
1 pineapple, cut in chunks (3 c.)
1 large green bell pepper, sliced
Put juice and vinegar in a large sauce pan and heat. Add honey, tamari, and ginger. Remove some of the juice, add cornstarch to it. Mix to a smooth paste; add to sauce. When sauce thickens, add tomato, pineapple, and bell peppers. Cook one minute, remove from heat.* Serve with fried rice, egg rolls or vegetables. * If sauce is too sour, add a little more pineapple juice and honey. Yield: 4 c.

Quick and Easy Teriyaki Sauce
2 T. brown sugar
2 T. Soy Sauce
3 T. rice wine vinegar
Heat till sugar is dissolved and mixture boils. Cool It will thicken slightly as it cools. Double or triple recipe as desired.

Quick and Easy Enchilada Sauce
1/4 c. vegetable oil
2 T. flour
1/4 c. chili powder
1 can (8 oz.) tomato sauce
1 1/2 c. water
1/4 t. ground cumin
1/4 t. garlic powder
1/4 t. onion salt
salt to taste
Heat oil in a skillet over medium high heat. Stir in flour and chili powder; reduce heat to medium and cook until lightly brown, stirring constantly to prevent burning flour. Gradually stir in tomato sauce, water, cumin, garlic powder and onion salt into the flour and chili powder until smooth. Continue cooking over medium heat about 10 minutes until slightly thickened. Season to taste with salt.

Basic Dessert Sauce and Variations
Prepare ahead mix:
½ c. corn starch
1 c. Margarine
4 c. Sugar
½ t. salt
Blend until mixture is uniform and crumbly. Store this in a jar in the refrigerator. Label it. Pack the mix as you would brown sugar. Blend 1/3 c. mix with 2/3 c. cold liquid. Heat to boiling, stirring constantly.

Variations:
Cherry Sauce: Add juice from red sour cherries and water to make 2/3 c. Add ½ c. red cherries and red food coloring after mixture has thickened (optional: add ¼ t. almond extract)

Orange Sauce: Use orange juice to replace the cold liquid

Lemon Sauce: 3 T. lemon juice and water to make 2/3 C liquid

Raisin Sauce: Water and ¼ c. raisins

Chocolate Sauce: Melt ½ square of unsweetened chocolate

Pineapple Sauce: Juice from crushed pineapple and water to make 2/3 c. Add ½ c. Crushed pineapple.

Strawberry Sauce: Add ½ c. Fresh Strawberries and a few drops of red food coloring.

Barbecue Sauce
4 T. Worcestershire sauce
2 T. mustard
1 c. vinegar
1 c. water
½ c. Sugar
1 c. Catsup
4 t. chili powder
2 t. accent
4 t. minced onion
1 t. seasoned salt
Heat to dissolve all ingredients. Simmer 15 minutes.

Taco Sauce (dried foods)
2 c. Tomato Powder
4 c. Water
¼ c. Minced Onion
½ t. garlic powder
1 t. cumin
1 t. chili powder
¼ t. nutmeg
2 T. vinegar
1 T brown sugar
dash of salt
1 T. salad oil
¼ t. pepper
Combine all ingredients and simmer until done.

French Dressing
1/8 t. onion powder
1 t. dry mustard
¼ c. sugar
¼ c. vinegar
1½ t. salt
1 ½ t. paprika
¾ c. vegetable oil
Combine all ingredients and blend until smooth. Chill before serving.

Ranch Dressing
1 T. parsley flakes
1/8 t. garlic powder
1 c. buttermilk or sour cream
2 t. minced onion
½ t. salt
1 c. mayonnaise
Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Blend until smooth. This can also be used as a dip for vegetables.

Thousand Island Dressing
1 c. mayo (or Miracle Whip)
3 T. ketchup
1 boiled egg, chopped fine
1 1/2 T. finely chopped onion
1/2 t. salt
2 T. sweet pickle relish
2 T. finely chopped tomato (Optional)
Mix together well and chill to blend flavors.