This easy Sausage Gravy Recipe made with crumbled sausage and thick, perfectly seasoned white gravy makes the ultimate breakfast treat! There's so many ways to use it, including drenching your favorite homemade biscuits for a hearty Southern breakfast.
Whether you're looking for a weekend splurge or a decadent holiday breakfast or brunch, this homemade sausage gravy is always a treat! It's so simple to make and pairs great with eggs, biscuits, and so much more. Even better, it's the perfect dish to make ahead of time when you need to save time in the morning.
Love making homemade sauces? You've got to try this one-pan turkey gravy next!
Quick Look at this Recipe
- ✅ Recipe Name: Easy Sausage Gravy
- 🕒 Ready In: 25 minutes (5 min prep, 20 min cook)
- 👪 Serves: 6 people
- 🥣 Main Ingredients: breakfast sausage, butter, onion, flour, chicken broth, heavy whipping cream
- 📖 Dietary Info: Contains dairy, gluten
- ⭐ Why You'll Love It: Simple pantry ingredients and ready in under 30 minutes for a rich, hearty breakfast gravy.
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Why You Will Love This Recipe
- Simple Ingredients: Made with mostly pantry staples, this old-fashioned sausage gravy requires just 10 ingredients to prepare.
- Budget-Friendly: Since you're likely to have many of the ingredients on hand, there's very little to buy here. Plus, this rich and meaty gravy easily serves a crowd!
- Customizable and Versatile: You can easily make a few ingredient swaps to make it just the way you prefer and it goes with a variety of dishes to create satisfying meals to please everyone.
Old-Fashioned Sausage Gravy Ingredients
- Breakfast sausage: Use any type of breakfast sausage you enjoy. Spicy, maple, and of course traditional are all great options! Typically, ground sausage, which cooks up into crumbles, is your best option for making breakfast sausage gravy rather than links.
- Butter: Used for cooking the onions. I find it adds more flavor than cooking them in oil.
- Onion: My preference is using yellow onion to add more depth to the sausage and gravy.
- Spices: Dried thyme and garlic powder give it flavor while some cayenne pepper and black pepper give it a slight kick.
- Flour: Used for thickening the gravy so you get the perfect texture.
- Chicken broth: Mainly here for the savory flavors it adds to the gravy.
- Heavy whipping cream: For the richest and creamiest texture. You can use half and half as well or use half milk and half heavy cream, but the consistency will not be as thick.
Be sure to scroll down to the full recipe card for the complete list of ingredients along with their quantities.
How to Make Easy Sausage Gravy
Making this easy sausage gravy from scratch is easier than you think!
Step 1: Cook the sausage. Crumble up the sausage and add to your preheated cast iron skillet over medium heat. Cook until it's no longer pink and then drain the fat off.
Step 2: Cook the onions. Melt the butter in the same skillet. Add the onions and garlic powder. Cook until the onions are golden.
Step 3: Make the roux. Add the flour and seasonings to the skillet with the onions. Whisk constantly for 1-2 minutes.
Step 4: Make the gravy. Slowly add the whipping cream and chicken broth to the skillet. Whisk to prevent clumping.
Step 5: Finish. Add the sausage and continue to cook the gravy until it reaches your desired consistency.
Easy Sausage Gravy Variations
- Spicy Sausage Gravy: Use hot breakfast sausage and add an extra pinch of cayenne pepper or a few dashes of your favorite hot sauce for more heat.
- Sausage and Bacon Gravy: Cook 4 strips of bacon until crispy, crumble them, and fold them in at the end with the sausage for extra smoky flavor.
- Turkey Sausage Gravy: Swap the pork sausage for ground turkey sausage for a lighter version. You may need a touch more butter since turkey renders less fat.
- Mushroom Sausage Gravy: Add 8 oz of sliced cremini mushrooms when cooking the onions for an earthy, savory twist.
Storing Directions
- Leftovers: Store leftovers in the refrigerator for up to four days in an airtight container. You can store it in the freezer for up to three months, but I would not recommend keeping it longer than that. Keep in mind that freezing high fat dairy products sometimes causes the fat and oil to separate so it may have a grainy texture.
- Reheat: If the sauce is frozen, allow it to thaw in the refrigerator overnight. Return the sauce to your skillet and reheat over medium heat. You may need to add a bit more dairy to the gravy to restore the consistency.
Serving Suggestions
Biscuits and sausage gravy are a classic serving suggestion for breakfast! Try it with buttermilk biscuits or these lemon dill biscuits for something a bit different.
Make your favorite egg dishes even heartier! We love it as an extra on this mountain man breakfast but it's also great with scrambled eggs and egg casseroles. It also goes great with this skillet sweet potato hash or some fried potatoes.
Expert Tips
- Preventing Clumps: The trick to a creamy texture is to slowly add the liquids to your roux while whisking the entire time.
- Adjust the Consistency: If you prefer a thicker consistency, you can increase the flour by 1-2 tablespoons. For a thinner gravy, simply add more broth to the skillet.
- Drain the Grease: Be sure to drain off the extra grease from the sausage to prevent the gravy from ending up overly greasy.
- Make Ahead: This tastes even better the next day! For best results, cook the gravy the night before. Once it's fully cooled, store it in the refrigerator. The next day, place it back in your cast iron skillet and reheat over medium heat. Adjust the consistency and flavors before serving.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, you can substitute whole milk for the heavy cream, but the gravy will be thinner and less rich. For a middle ground, use half whole milk and half heavy cream. Avoid using skim or low-fat milk, as the gravy won't thicken properly.
Lumps form when flour isn't fully incorporated into the fat before adding liquid. To fix this, whisk the flour into the butter and onion mixture for a full 1-2 minutes before slowly streaming in the cream and broth. If lumps still appear, whisk vigorously or strain the gravy through a fine mesh sieve.
Sausage gravy keeps well in the refrigerator for up to 4 days stored in an airtight container. It can also be frozen for up to 3 months, though the dairy may separate slightly when thawed. Reheat it in a skillet over medium heat, adding a splash of milk or cream to restore the consistency.
Ground breakfast sausage works best because it crumbles easily into small pieces that distribute evenly throughout the gravy. You can use regular, sage, maple, or spicy varieties depending on your preference. Avoid sausage links unless you remove the casings first and crumble the meat yourself.
Absolutely. Sausage gravy is one of those dishes that actually tastes better the next day after the flavors have had time to develop. Make it the evening before, let it cool completely, and store it in the fridge. Reheat in a cast iron skillet over medium heat, stirring frequently, and add a little extra cream or broth if it has thickened too much overnight.
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Sausage Gravy Recipe
Equipment
- 10" cast iron skillet
Ingredients
- 1 lb breakfast sausage
- 2 tablespoon butter
- ⅓ cup yellow onion minced
- ⅛ teaspoon thyme dried
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 3 tablespoon flour
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 2 cups heavy whipping cream
- 1 teaspoon black pepper ground
- ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
Instructions
- Preheat 10" cast iron skillet on medium heat.
- Crumble sausage and add to skillet.
- Cook fully and drain renderings, set aside.
- Add butter, onion and garlic to same skillet.
- Cook until onions are golden.
- Add flour, pepper, cayenne and thyme, whisk constantly for 1-2 minutes.
- Gradually add whipping cream and chicken broth stirring so not to clump gravy.
- Add sausage and continue to stir until gravy is at desired consistency.
Notes
- Preventing Clumps. The trick to a creamy texture is to slowly add the liquids to your roux while whisking the entire time.
- Adjust the Consistency. For a thicker consistency, increase the flour by 1-2 tablespoons. For a thinner gravy, simply add more broth to the skillet.
- Drain the Grease. Be sure to drain off the extra grease from the sausage to prevent the gravy from ending up overly greasy.
- Make Ahead. This tastes even better the next day. Cook the gravy the night before, let it cool, and store in the refrigerator. Reheat in your cast iron skillet over medium heat and adjust the consistency before serving.
Nutrition
Dutch Oven Daddy is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is only an estimate. We recommend running the ingredients through an online nutritional calculator if you need to verify any information.
D says
An excellent gravy.
Ned Adams says
Thank you so much! Glad you enjoyed as much as my family does.
Jennifer says
Oh heck yes! There is something about this when our fam camps in the summers and fall.
Ned Adams says
Nothing better than comfort food while camping! Glad your fam loved it as much as we do! This one is perfect to serve over camp biscuits! 🙂
Dina and Bruce says
My family loved this! So tasty with eggs!
Ned Adams says
Oh great idea with the eggs! Now I gotta try!
Jon Hoegstrom says
Excellent recipe‼️‼️ The only change I made was to use a full pound of sausage. The family loved it too❗️
Ned Adams says
Awesome! Great suggestion! Glad you and your family loved it!