Use beef broth as a base for homemade beef gravy when you don’t have meat drippings. Ready in 15 minutes, you can quickly enhance any meal with creamy gravy.
Jump to RecipeBeef gravy always makes me think of Thanksgiving dinner and Christmas dinner. I love mashed potatoes and having a delicious brown gravy over them is the perfect topping for me. Well, I’ll be honest, I tend to pour the gravy over almost everything on my plate. The first time I made homemade beef gravy to top my Pan-Fried Pork Chops recipe.
Yes, it’s entirely made from scratch, as in no pouch of store-bought gravy packets. This means I also know exactly what ingredients are in the homemade beef gravy recipe, which is very important for me.
And luckily, it doesn’t take a long time or a lot of ingredients. And these can all be easily found at any grocery store. This easy recipe also uses only one pot, so it’s easy to clean up, too. The delicious gravy uses beef broth or beef stock as the base, then is mixed with a few seasonings and corn starch to thicken. Alternatively, you could use all-purpose flour as a thickener.
Many gravy recipes will call for using the pan drippings from cooking beef. Well, I don’t always cook beef when I want some beef gravy. So I set out to figure out a way to make it without beef drippings. Hence the beef broth adds that rich flavor.
This version of brown gravy comes out thick and creamy. It has that darker beef flavor, but it isn’t too powerful. If you want something a bit lighter, try making it with chicken broth or chicken stock instead of beef broth, or add some unsalted butter in the last step.
What to Make with Beef Gravy
You have a lot of options for meat and meals to make with this rich brown gravy.
- Mashed potatoes
- Roast Beef
- Pot Roast
- Fried Pork Chops
- Steak
- Meatballs
- Stuffing
- Turkey
- Salisbury Steak
- Beef Roast
- Fried Potatoes
- Sausage
- French Fries

Homemade Beef Gravy Step by Step
Ingredients
- 1 cup beef broth
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1/8 cup cold water
- 1 1/2 tbsp corn starch
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
Preparation
In a large saucepan, bring the beef broth to a boil over medium-high heat.

Once the beef broth is boiling, whisk in the garlic powder, onion powder, and Worcestershire sauce.

In a small bowl, whisk the cornstarch and water together, then pour the cornstarch slurry into the gravy and stir until it’s dissolved.

Lower to medium-low heat and stir occasionally so nothing sticks to the bottom of the pan. Cook until it’s thickened, about 2-3 minutes. Serve the gravy warm from a gravy boat.

Homemade Brown Gravy Leftovers
Storage: Store the remaining brown gravy in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days.
Reheating: The best way to reheat homemade gravy is in a medium saucepan on medium heat. Cook until it starts to warm through, about 5 minutes, stirring often.
Freezing: To freeze leftover gravy, place it in a freezer-safe container, making sure to leave room at the top for expansion. I like to use old glass jars for freezing gravy and sauces but wait until it’s room temperature as you shouldn’t pour hot liquid into glass. Another option is to freeze it in an ice cube tray then move to a freezer bag to have single servings of leftover brown gravy whenever you want it.

Recipe
Originally Published On: October 24, 2019
Updated On: September 20, 2023

Beef Gravy
Ingredients
- 1 cup beef broth
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1/8 cup water
- 1 1/2 tbsp cornstarch
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
Recommended Equipment
Instructions
- In a large saucepan, bring the beef broth to a boil over medium-high heat
- Once the beef broth is boiling, whisk in the garlic powder, onion powder, and Worcestershire sauce
- In a small mixing bowl, whisk the cornstarch and water together, then pour that into the gravy and stir until it’s dissolved
- Lower the heat to medium-low and stir occasionally
- Cook until it's thickened, about 2-3 minutes
- Serve the gravy warm
All nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered estimates. Actual nutrition content will vary based on brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes, and more.
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I also like brown gravy on mashed potatoes and roast beef. It is a great dinner on cold fall or winter evenings.
Mashed potatoes are totally comfort food to me. And I agree, great when it’s cool outside!
I have never tried this dish but it looks so perfect for this season! I must give this recipe a try😍 I will let you know how it turns out!😉
I’m glad I could introduce you to something new, then! I hope you like it 🙂
This gravy looks so rich and savory! Now I’m craving mashed potatoes and gravy.
You’re right, it’s definitely both rich and savory. I couldn’t have described it better myself!
This looks like a perfect gravy dish for Thanksgiving. I would like to try it out. Thank you for the recipe.
That’s partly what I was testing it out for! It’s so good and much better when it’s made from scratch.
I’m such a fan of anything that can be made in one pot. My husband is such a meat and potatoes guy, a good brown gravy recipe is a necessity!
Me too, especially since I am usually the one doing the cleaning. Mashed potatoes are one of my favorites, so I always want a good gravy with it.
I’m not a huge Gravy person but when I am this is the kind I love. Sounds so good!
I usually prefer brown gravy as well. Every now and then I like a light gravy, but this is the best!
Made this last night…. DELICIOUS! However next time I will double recipe as it didnt make quite enough.
Thanks, Kathy! I’m glad you enjoyed the recipe. It’s so hard sometimes to judge how much to make with these types of dishes. I tend to double things, too, as I like a lot of gravy/sauce 🙂
Sometimes I dont have any drippings to use. This surely is a gravy I will make for my mashed potatoes!
I love that you added the Worcestershire sauce for enhancing the flavor of this gravy!
What a great recipe for gravy; definitely adding this to my Thanksgiving menu! Looks too good to pass up, indeed!
I loved my mom’s homemade gravy, but she never shared the recipe for it. I’ve got to try this one because it is so much better homemade! Thanks so much for the recipe 😉
Gimme all the gravy to dip my turkey in and soak my mashed potatoes in!
For some reason I never think to make gravy if I don’t have drippings but like this idea using beef broth.