Red eye gravy is made with bacon grease and strong black coffee and is a perfect foil for leftover Thanksgiving turkey that might be on the dry side. Try it as an open-face sandwich for breakfast or lunch in the days following the holiday feast.
Brew a cup of pretty strong coffee with your favorite brewing method.
1 cup strong coffee
If you do not have bacon grease saved from previous cooking, you will need to fry some bacon and save about 2-3 tablespoons of the grease after removing the bacon.Heat bacon grease over medium-high heat in a skillet (preferably cast iron). Sprinkle flour over the grease and whisk continuously until a dark brown roux is achieved. Slowly whisk in pepper flakes, coffee, chicken broth and bourbon. Whisk over medium heat until you get to your desired consistency, adding a bit more flour if desired.
1 tablespoon all purpose flour, 1 tablespoon red pepper flakes, 1/4 cup chicken broth, 1 teaspoon bourbon, 2 tablespoons bacon grease
Prepare an open face sandwich with sourdough bread and sliced leftover turkey. Pour sauce over the open-face sandwich and serve with additional gravy on the side.
2 slices sourdough bread, 4 large slices leftover turkey
Notes
**NOTES:If you find the gravy a bit too bitter from the coffee, add a couple of tablespoons chicken broth and then a pinch of sugar to mellow out the flavors. Because this recipe is serving the gravy with turkey, I added a little more chicken broth, but no sugar.Also the traditional version of redeye gravy does not include a roux. I have added a little flour as a roux to get it a little thicker, but it is not necessary if you want a thin redeye sauce.**Want more like this? Subscribe to ourSunday newsletterto get recipes, gardening guides and diet help. Let’s go from Inspiration to Done!