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This creamy ham gravy is incredibly rich and flavorful! Made with just four ingredients, this side dish couldn’t be any easier to make. Finish off your plate of ham and mashed potatoes with a generous pour of this delicious ham gravy.
What Makes This Gravy So Good
- It only takes four ingredients! FOUR! The next time you bake a ham, make sure to hold onto those delicious ham drippings, since they’re the star of the show. Add them to a saucepan with butter, flour, and milk and in just a few minutes you’ll have an incredible homemade ham gravy.
- It’ll take that plate of ham, mashed potatoes, and fixings to a whole new level! This gravy is loaded with flavor and will make your already delicious meal totally irresistible.
- Ham gravy is a fun twist on traditional turkey or chicken gravy. If you’re like me and feel strongly that turkey gravy is one of the best parts of every holiday, then you’ll go crazy for this ham gravy! It’s just as rich and creamy as any other gravy, but with a slightly smokey flavor that you’ll just drool over.
Key Ingredients
Ham Drippings – The juices released from your ham when you cook it contain so much flavor! Next time you make a ham, whatever you do, do not toss the ham drippings. They give the ham gravy all its flavor! If you want to make this ham gravy without having to bake an entire ham, then you can use one cup of rendered bacon fat instead.
Whole Milk – This is where your gravy gets its super rich and creamy consistency. Whole milk makes this gravy perfectly thick, but still pourable. No whole milk on hand? You can use chicken broth instead.
Chef’s Tips
- The butter and flour can burn pretty easy, so be careful of your temperature. I recommend starting out at low-medium heat, then working up to medium heat depending on how hot your stove gets.
- Feel free to season this recipe however you’d like! Personally, I find that the ham drippings have enough flavor that I don’t even need to add any salt or pepper. After the final step, though, give your gravy a taste and adjust the seasonings as desired.
- Don’t walk away! The entire recipe takes just 5 minutes and the ham gravy will thicken really quickly. Continue whisking your gravy without stopping until it’s thick. If it gets too thick, add a tiny bit more milk to achieve the consistency you’d like.
More Delicious Gravy Recipes
- Chicken Gravy
- Brown Gravy
- Red Eye Gravy with Country Ham
- Onion Gravy
- Keto Gravy
- Mushroom Gravy
- Easy Paleo Gravy
- Vegan Mushroom Gravy
- Whole30 Fried Chicken and Mashed Potato Bowl with Gravy
Ham Gravy
Equipment
- Small saucepan
Ingredients
- 1 cup ham drippings see Notes
- ¼ cup butter
- ¼ cup all purpose flour
- 1 cup whole milk see Notes
Instructions
- Add the ham drippings and butter to a saucepan over medium heat and whisk until butter has melted.
- Add in the flour and whisk for 2-3 minutes.
- Pour in the milk and continue to whisk constantly for 2 minutes or until thick.
- Ham Drippings: Ham drippings are the juices released by a ham while it bakes, they can be found at the bottom of the pan you baked your ham in. If you don’t have ham drippings, you can use rendered bacon fat instead.
- Whole Milk: You can use chicken broth or 2% milk instead.
Approximate Information for One Serving
Nutrition Disclaimers
Number of total servings shown is approximate. Actual number of servings will depend on your preferred portion sizes.
Nutritional values shown are general guidelines and reflect information for 1 serving using the ingredients listed, not including any optional ingredients. Actual macros may vary slightly depending on specific brands and types of ingredients used.
To determine the weight of one serving, prepare the recipe as instructed. Weigh the finished recipe, then divide the weight of the finished recipe (not including the weight of the container the food is in) by the desired number of servings. Result will be the weight of one serving.
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First time ever making or having ham gravy. One of my five daughters told me to always make this gravy with ham, Some said it was to sweet. Will definitely make again.
So glad you enjoyed, Angela! Thanks so much for the review!
This gravy was SO DELICIOUS and easy! I served it with ham and mashed potatoes today for Christmas, and everyone kept raving about it. Whole family loved it. I added a little sage. Thank you!!!
SO happy you all enjoyed it so much, Kirsten! Thank you so much for sharing your review. 🙂
Yummy, just like my Mom used to make. First time doing it on my own and it was delicious!
Oh, the best compliment. Thank you so much, Joy!
Can I use ham bullion instead of drippings?
Sure!
What about sage
You could add sage if you’d like!
I’m wondering if I could add finally diced onions to the ham while cooking to give the gravy a little onion flavor?
Sure, that would be a great addition!
So, I’ve always been scared of making gravy for some reason, but glad I tried this. It was super easy & delicious! Won’t have ham without this gravy again! Yum! Thanks for the delish recipe!
So glad you gave it a try and enjoyed it!
I’ve never made gravy from ham drippings before so I Googled for a recipe. If the beautiful picture of the gravy oozing down the slices of ham wasn’t enough to win me over, the easy recipe sealed the deal. I made this for our family Christmas dinner this year and it was a big hit…so creamy, and so very, very delicious! This recipe is a keeper! Thank you for sharing!!
So glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
Awesome ! Easy to make with simple items ! Great instructions! Cheers!
So glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
I like this, thank you, good gravy, had never thought of making any before from ham drippings, thank you