Mom's Southern Milk Gravy for Biscuits

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I’m really lucky in that I grew up in what I like to call a “food-centric” family. My whole family really, really likes to eat good food. My mom was an excellent cook when I was growing up and I was really spoiled with everything from casseroles and baked hams to Ina Garten’s boeuf bourguignon. My dad made excellent pancakes and fried fish sandwiches, and both of my parents are foodies and have very cultured taste buds. My sister makes the dreamiest pies and has one of those gifts where she can take a bunch of random things from her fridge and make up something delicious. Literally all of our holidays and family gatherings are centered around food. We just really, really like to eat.

Enjoying good food is a big part of Southern culture, so this really doesn’t come as a surprise. There’s a focus on hearty comfort food that sticks to your ribs and enriches your soul. Another one of the many dishes I got to enjoy growing up was biscuits and gravy! It is so cozy and comforting. Biscuit gravy is usually made with bacon drippings, but you can also use ground breakfast sausage. 

Whenever I cook bacon, I place a small strainer over a mason jar, I pour the grease through the strainer, and I keep the bacon grease in my fridge or freezer. It’s really necessary in biscuit gravy, because that’s where a lot of the flavor comes from. In my mom’s recipe, she said she uses canola oil to make it a little lighter and to also stretch the bacon grease. But you could just use more bacon grease instead of the canola oil if you’re feeling naughty.

My mother gave me this genius tip: use powdered milk! If you don’t want to use up a bunch of your milk to make gravy, then powdered milk does the job just fine. 

What makes this recipe enchanting:

• It's super easy and pairs perfectly with my homemade biscuit recipe

• It's authentic Tennessee comfort food that feels like a hug

• You can easily make this heartier by cooking ground breakfast sausage first, and using those drippings instead of bacon grease. Yum!

More comforting breakfast recipes:

• The Best Buttermilk Biscuits with Cinnamon Honey Butter

• The Best Blueberry Buttermilk Pancakes

• Home Sweet Home Banana Bread

• Rosemary Cheddar Cheese Drop Biscuits

My mom's recipe card!

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Video with step-by-step instructions:

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Mom's Southern Milk Gravy for Biscuits:

• 1 tablespoon (15 ml) bacon grease 

• 2 tablespoons (30 ml) canola oil 

• ¼ cup (30 grams) all-purpose flour 

• ½ teaspoon (2.5 ml) each salt & pepper

• 1 ½ cups (355 ml) milk (I used almond milk) 

Directions: 

1. Heat bacon grease in a miniature skillet over medium heat. Add the flour and whisk the bacon grease and flour together. Season with the salt and pepper. Whisk occasionally until it starts to turn a light beige, like the color of a wooden spoon. Add the milk and whisk together. Continue cooking, whisking constantly, until it thickens to your liking. Take off the heat. Cut a biscuit in half, cover the halves with gravy, and top with black pepper if you’d like.