How To

How to make a Roux for Beef Gravy

How to make Homemade Brown Gravy with Flour and Water? It can be INTIMIDATING but I will show you how to make homemade gravy (brown gravy recipe) that turns out perfect every single time, just like my Mom taught me.

This Thanksgiving gravy is required at your next feast in just a week!

I really think that a Thanksgiving meal is more than just the turkey… How to make Homemade Brown Gravy with Flour and Water – It’s the Thanksgiving sides that really take the feast over the top and this gravy is one of my FAVORITE parts of that meal.

There are VARIOUS recipes and methods for making gravy.

I have seen recipes that are made with milk, water, meat drippings, bouillon BUT my family makes brown gravy recipe with beef broth and drippings and I love it

How to make Homemade Brown Gravy with Flour and Water?

Easy to make
Uses simple ingredients from your pantry (6 ingredients only!)
Pairs very well with many other recipes too
Works every times and never fails
Tastes incredible
Ready in just 15 minutes

You can serve this homemade brown gravy with:

Meatloaf
Pot roast
Salisbury steak
Biscuits
Poutine
Mashed potatoes

Here are some flavor VARIATIONS you can try with this easy gravy recipe:

Add some sliced onions or sliced mushrooms to give it more flavor and this also compliments beef recipes really well.
Instead of beef drippings, use different kinds of meat drippings from sausage, bacon, turkey or even chicken.
Add some more spices like paprika, red chili flakes or herbs like dried oregano, thyme, dill or garlic to enhance the flavor and give this traditional gravy recipe a twist.

How to make Homemade Brown Gravy with Flour and Water from Scratch?

Start off by heating butter and beef drippings in a non-stick saucepan. Add flour and mix until golden brown. Add broth gradually, while constantly mixing. Add salt and pepper and let it simmer and thicken to the desired consistency. Remove from heat and stir in some butter to make silky smooth glossy gravy.

How to make gravy with flour and water?

My recipe below uses flour and beef broth but some people use a combination of water and broth instead of all broth. It’s just a personal preference.

Is homemade beef gravy same as homemade white gravy?

Based on my research, they are not the same. White gravy is usually made with a combination of butter, milk and flour with some sausage drippings and no broth is used. It’s also much whiter in color compared to brown gravy.

How to thicken brown gravy? How to make gravy thicker?

Some people use cornstarch and some people use flour. I prefer using flour.

How to make brown gravy without meat drippings?

Some people rave about their gravy recipe without drippings (brown gravy recipe with beef bouilon cubes) but it was not as good as this homemade classic brown gravy.

Are brown gravy and beef gravy the same?

Yes, they are the same.

How do you make gravy from meat juices?

That is the classic way of making gravy. Save the pan drippings from your cooked beef like stew meat or roast or steak and cook it together with flour, butter and broth to make silky smooth gravy.

How to make Homemade Brown Gravy with Flour and Water? – Can you freeze brown gravy?

Since this is NOT a milk-based gravy, it can be frozen in sealed freezer bags for up to 1 month. Milk-based gravy should not be frozen because they will separate when thawing.

Here are some TIPS on How to make Homemade Brown Gravy with Flour and Water:

Use UNSALTED butter and LOW SODIUM broth to prevent the gravy from becoming too salty.
If you have some extra time, TOAST the flour on the stovetop until it’s golden brown and use that in the recipe. It gives a darker color and better overall flavor (a wonderful nutty flavor!).
Beef broth tastes the BEST but chicken broth can be used too.
Use NON-STICK saucepan because it prevents the gravy from sticking and burning.
You must add the broth SLOWLY and continue whisking constantly to PREVENT lumps from forming.
To fix LUMPY gravy, use a hand held blender and that gets rids of most lumps and make the gravy smooth.
Gravy tends to THICKEN the longer it sits and that’s why you should consider serving immediately.
To fix thick gravy, mix in some water or broth to thin it out to your desired consistency.
You can use this recipe to prepare an easy MAKE AHEAD gravy before the big Thanksgiving dinner and save some time.
Recipe can be doubled or tripled easily.
If you are ever short on time, you can use store-bought brown gravy mix to make thick gravy too but I find this classic homemade brown gravy so much better.

How to make Homemade Brown Gravy with Flour and Water – Nothing makes a meal feel more complete than gravy. It’s the perfect finishing touch to mashed potatoes, a glorious addition to beef, and an absolute must on most holiday tables. Gravy by itself can elevate a meal from boring to amazing, yet a lot of people avoid making it.

How to make Homemade Brown Gravy with Flour and Water – Recipe One

Ingredients

3 Tablespoons oil (olive, bacon grease, canola, etc) I personally use olive.
3 Tablespoons flour
1 tsp pepper
1 chicken, beef or vegetable boullion cube
3/4 cup water

Preparation

In a pan, heat olive oil. Add pepper and boullion cube. Stir for about a minute. Add flour, quickly stirring to make a paste. If the paste is a little ‘dry’ add a few drops of oil until it’s kind of clumpy. Sautee your lumpy sauce until lightly brown, add cold water to pan, quickly stirring. If you add hot water, your flour will cook fast and you will end up with a hot lumpy mess. Continue to stir until you have a liquid cloudy mixture. Bring to a simmer and reduce heat. If sauce is a little thin, cook at a simmer until you reach desired thickness. Use as you would most gravy.

MAKE AHEAD MIXES

How to make Homemade Brown Gravy with Flour and Water – Recipe Two

Ingredients

4 Tablespoons beef fat or reserved beef fat plus enough oil to equal 4 Tablespoons
4 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups reserved meat juices or reserved juices with enough beef stock to equal 2 cups
Salt and pepper to taste
1 Tablespoon unsalted butter Optional

Instructions

Heat beef fat and oil over medium high heat in a small saucepan. Add flour and stir occasionally until mixture is golden brown and smells nutty.
Pour in 1/2 cup liquid and stir until smooth. Add remaining liquid and stir until combined.
Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Reduce heat and simmer 2 minutes.
Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Stir in 1 Tablespoon of butter if desired for a silky sheen.
Serve immediately.

How to make a Roux for Beef Gravy

How to make a Roux for Beef Gravy : There are several ways to make gravy: it can be thickened with a cornstarch slurry, made smooth with the addition of a roux, or served simply as the drippings straight from the pan. Gravy made with a roux—a mixture of fat and flour—is a classic preparation, using the pan drippings from your holiday bird or roast. The roux adds intense flavor and a velvety texture to the gravy. But don’t worry if you aren’t cooking a whole turkey or beef roast in the oven—you can also make a roux gravy with butter or oil to amp up an everyday chicken or to top Salisbury steak.

A Roux Defined

A roux combines equal parts fat from either oil, butter, or the renderings of the roasted food, along with some flour. It can be used as the base of a sauce or as a thickener in dishes such as clam chowder and macaroni and cheese.

Roux ranges in color from pale to deep brown, darkening the longer you cook it. A lighter roux preserves the flavor of the fat—whether butter or pan drippings or lard—whereas a darker roux takes on its own nutty, caramelized character. You can decide how long to cook the roux depending on how you plan to use it. For example, you want clam chowder to retain a white, creamy color, so a pale quick-cooked roux works best. Gumbo, on the other hand, can benefit from a deeper, more complex-tasting roux, so cooking it down until darker is best. For a holiday gravy, you might prefer something in between, perhaps in the color range of peanut butter.

The Basic Roux Gravy Formula

How to make a Roux for Beef Gravy – The ratio of fat to flour to liquid is important when making a roux-based gravy, and depending on how thick you like your gravy, you can adjust the amount of fat and flour. To make 1 cup of roux gravy, start with 2 tablespoons of fat, 2 tablespoons of flour, and 1 cup of liquid. (If you would like a thinner gravy, decrease the fat and flour measurements to 1 1/2.) The liquid can be broth, milk, or heavy cream, depending on how rich and decadent you want the finished product. You can also combine smaller amounts of heavy cream or wine with broth for added texture and flavor.

Slow Cooked Roast Chicken Jamie Oliver

Chicken Soup from Bones in Slow Cooker

The Method for Making Roux Grav – How to make a Roux for Beef Gravy

Making a roux gravy isn’t difficult, you just need to make sure you have all of the correct proportions. First, determine how much gravy you need and then adjust the fat amount up or down if necessary according to the basic formula. Measure the amount of fat or oil in the pan drippings after you cook your turkey or another piece of meat—you can pour all of the drippings into a liquid measuring cup and then remove what you need, or simply scoop out the amount of fat with a tablespoon measuring spoon and set aside. (Discard the remaining drippings or save for another use.) Add butter, cooking oil, rendered bacon grease, or lard if you need to increase the volume of fat.

How to make a Roux for Beef Gravy – You can prepare the gravy right in the roasting pan (making sure to first pour off any extra fat beyond the amount you need for gravy), which allows you to scrape up the brown bits of flavor stuck to the bottom. Or, if you prefer, transfer the drippings to a clean saucepan or skillet. Bring the fat back up to a medium-low temperature if it cooled.

Sprinkle an equal amount of all-purpose or Wondra flour onto the hot fat and cook it, whisking continuously, for at least 5 minutes over low heat to remove the raw flavor of the flour. How to make a Roux for Beef Gravy – Add the corresponding ratio of liquid slowly to the roux while continuing to whisk it. Bring it to a simmer whisking continuously to prevent lumps until it reaches your desired thickness. Keep in mind that the gravy continues to thicken as it stands, so resist the urge to speed up the process by adding additional flour.

Final Adjustments to Roux Gravy

Once the roux gravy is cooked, you may decide to alter the consistency and flavor a bit. To thin the gravy, add a little more broth. To thicken runny gravy, cook it a little longer. Unless you started with a heavily seasoned piece of meat, you probably need to add salt and pepper before you pull the gravy off the stove. As a general rule, stir in 1/2 teaspoon of salt for each cup of liquid, but make sure to taste first.

Use a fat separator if the gravy seems greasy. For an exceptionally smooth gravy, strain it through a sieve into your serving boat or bowl.

How to make a Roux for Beef Gravy – Right Color Roux for Your Recipe

White Roux

White roux is cooked for about 5 minutes, just until the flour has lost its raw smell, but before any golden color or toasted aroma develops. This roux is used to thicken chowders and milk-based sauces. Classic macaroni and cheese, tuna noodle casserole, and New England clam chowder are all based on milk thickened with a white roux.

Blond Roux

Blond, or golden roux, is cooked approximately 20 minutes to a light, golden-brown shade with an aroma resembling popcorn or toasted bread. This is the most commonly-used roux, desired for the richness and a slight nuttiness it provides along with its excellent thickening power. Blond roux is a good, general-purpose roux to keep on hand for thickening gravy, sauces, soups, and stews.

Brown Roux

Brown roux is cooked about 35 minutes until it reaches a peanut butter-brown color. Its aroma is more pronounced and sharper than the nutty smell of blond roux. Cooked to this stage, flour begins to lose its thickening power, requiring more roux to thicken a given amount of liquid.

Dark Brown Roux

Even darker than the preceding brown roux, dark brown roux is cooked approximately 45 minutes until it is the color of melted milk chocolate. Its aroma is mellower than the strong, roasted flavor of brown roux, and will actually smell a little like chocolate. This stage has the least thickening power of all four; its main purpose is as a flavoring agent with thickening being secondary.

Slow Cooked Roast Chicken Jamie Oliver

Chicken Soup from Bones in Slow Cooker

Slow Cooked Roast Chicken Jamie Oliver – Cooking a chicken in a slow cooker makes it very succulent and packed full of flavour. This simple, freezable recipe is perfect for feeding a family

Prep: 15 Min

Cook: 5 hrs, 30 mins, Easy, Serves 4

Freezable
Gluten-free

Slow Cooked Roast Chicken Jamie Oliver – Nutrition: per serving

kcal 497
fat 30g
saturates 10g
carbs 7g
sugars 6g
fibre 2g
protein 49g
salt 0.5g

Slow Cooked Roast Chicken Jamie Oliver – Ingredients

1 large onion, peeled and cut into thick slices
2 carrots, halved lengthways and chopped
1 small or medium chicken
2 tbsp butter, softened
1 bay leaf

Slow Cooked Roast Chicken Jamie Oliver – Method

Slow Cooked Roast Chicken Jamie Oliver – Preheat the slow cooker if necessary. Put the onion and carrot in the base of the stock pot to form a protective layer to sit the chicken on, and add 100ml boiling water. Gently ease the chicken skin away from the breast. Stir some salt and pepper into the butter and push the butter under the skin. Put the bay leaf in the cavity of the chicken and sit on top of the onion and carrot.

Slow Cooked Roast Chicken Jamie Oliver – Cook on low for 5 hrs, then check that the chicken is cooked by wiggling the wing – it should feel very loose. Tip the chicken up so any liquid inside flows out, then cook on high for 30 mins. If the chicken isn’t cooked through after the initial time, cook for another hour, then turn the heat up.

Slow Cooked Roast Chicken Jamie Oliver – If you want the skin to be browned, grill it for a couple of minutes (make sure your slow cooker insert is flameproof if you keep it in the pot, or transfer it to a roasting tin).
There will be some gravy in the base of the dish with the veg, tip everything through a sieve and press the veg gently to make sure you get every last drop. Serve the veg on the side, if you like.

Perfect roast chicken

Serves 4
Cooks In 1H 25M plus resting time
Difficulty Super easy

Nutrition per serving

Calories 374 19%
Fat 15.8g 23%
Saturates 3.9g 20%
Sugars 9.3g 10%
Salt 1.2g 20%
Protein 45.5g 91%
Carbs 13.4g 5%
Fibre 3.4g –

Ingredients

1 x 1.6 kg higher-welfare chicken
2 medium onions
2 carrots
2 sticks of celery
1 bulb of garlic
olive oil
1 lemon
1 bunch of mixed fresh herbs , such as, thyme, rosemary, bay

A taste of otherness eating and thinking globally

Method

Remove the chicken from the fridge 30 minutes before you want to cook it, to let it come up to room temperature.
Preheat the oven to 240°C/475°F/gas 9.
Wash and roughly chop the vegetables – there’s no need to peel them. Break the garlic bulb into cloves, leaving them unpeeled.
Pile all the veg, garlic and herbs into the middle of a large roasting tray and drizzle with oil.
Drizzle the chicken with oil and season well with sea salt and black pepper, then rub all over the bird. Place the chicken on top of the vegetables.
Carefully prick the lemon all over, using the tip of a sharp knife (if you have a microwave, you could pop the lemon in these for 40 seconds at this point as this will really bring out the flavour). Put the lemon inside the chicken’s cavity, with the bunch of herbs.
Place the tray in the oven, then turn the heat down immediately to 200°C/400°F/gas 6 and cook for 1 hour 20 minutes.
If you’re doing roast potatoes and veggies, this is the time to crack on with them – get them into the oven for the last 45 minutes of cooking.
Baste the chicken halfway through cooking and if the veg look dry, add a splash of water to the tray to stop them from burning.
When the chicken is cooked, take the tray out of the oven and transfer the chicken to a board to rest for 15 minutes or so. Cover it with a layer of tin foil and a tea towel and leave aside while you make your gravy.
To carve your chicken, remove any string and take off the wings (break them up and add to your gravy, along with the veg trivet, for mega flavour). Carefully cut down between the leg and the breast. Cut through the joint and pull the leg off.
Repeat on the other side, then cut each leg between the thigh and the drumstick so you end up with four portions of dark meat. Place these on a serving platter.
You should now have a clear space to carve the rest of your chicken. Angle the knife along the breastbone and carve one side off, then the other.
When you get down to the fussy bits, just use your fingers to pull all the meat off, and turn the chicken over to get all the tasty, juicy bits from underneath. You should be left with a stripped carcass, and a platter full of lovely meat that you can serve with your piping hot gravy and some delicious roast veg.

Chicken Soup from Bones in Slow Cooker

Slow Cooked Roast Chicken Jamie Oliver

This Chicken Soup from Bones in Slow Cooker recipe is easy as can be. Just toss a chicken carcass in a pot with some aromatics, add water, soy sauce, and apple cider, and forget about it for a while.

Serves 10
Serving Size: 1 portion
Calories Per Serving: 153
% Daily Value
7% Total Fat 4.8g
Saturated Fat 1.3g
Trans Fat 0g
9% Cholesterol 28.2mg
30% Sodium 728.7mg
4% Total Carbohydrate 12.7g
3% Dietary Fiber 0.8g
Sugars 6g
28% Protein 13.9g

Chicken Soup from Bones in Slow Cooker Variations

Main recipe lower on page starting with RED heading

Slow Cooker Leftover Roast Chicken Soup

Chicken Soup from Bones in Slow Cooker – Toss your roast chicken carcass and desired aromatics (that means vegetables or herbs) in your slow cooker and cook on slow for 8 hours or overnight. (Trust us, the only thing better than the smell of coffee in the morning is the aroma of chicken soup.) Continue with step 3 in the instructions above. Easy just got even easier.

Leftover Roast Chicken Soup with Carbs

Chicken Soup from Bones in Slow Cooker – If you like rice or pasta, cook some up in a separate pot, stealing some of the broth from the soup pot to use as your cooking liquid.

Egg Drop Soup With Leftover Roast Chicken

Lightly whisk 3 eggs to combine. Stir the finished soup in a clockwise direction and, while still stirring, pour in the eggs in a slow, steady stream. Continue to stir for 1 to 2 minutes, until egg ribbons form. Ladle into bowls and garnish with thinly sliced scallions if you’ve got ’em.

Chicken soup revisited: calcium content of soup increases with duration of cooking

Ingredients for Chicken Soup from Bones in Slow Cooker

Roast chicken carcass with some meat attached (on the wings, back, etc.)
Any aromatics you desire (you know, the usual stuff including garlic, herbs, onion, carrots, ginger, etc.)
1/4 to 1/2 cup soy sauce (Christina Tosi likes Kikkoman)
1/3 to 2/3 cup apple cider or apple juice
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Directions for Chicken Soup from Bones in Slow Cooker

1. To make the Leftover Roast Chicken Soup in your slow cooker, see the Slow Cooker Variation above. To make the Leftover Roast Chicken Soup on your stove top, combine the chicken carcass and any residual meat and desired aromatics in a large stock pot (5- to 8-quart capacity) and fill the pot with water so the chicken is fully submerged. Set over the lowest of low heat, lid that puppy 3/4 of the way so the water can evaporate a little bit but not too much, and leave it for at least 6 hours, skimming any scum that accumulates on the surface of the stock but leaving any puddles of fat. [Editor’s Note: Christina Tosi leaves the stock simmering overnight. You may or may not wish to do the same. We guess it depends on your level of risk taking and whether your homeowner’s insurance is up to date.]
2. Remove the pot from the heat. Your kitchen smells amazing, right? Strain the liquid from the chicken into another large pot and let the solids rest in the strainer. Walk away for a little while. Brush your teeth. Brush your hair. The chicken should be cool enough to handle at this point.
3. Using your hands, separate the chicken meat from the bones, aromatics, and gelatin. Don’t be grossed out—put your best farm girl face on, roll up your sleeves, and get to work. This should yield 2 to 3 cups light and dark meat, depending on how much chicken you ate the night before. Toss the bones and stuff in the trash. Add the shredded chicken to the pot with the broth. (You can cover and refrigerate the soup until dinnertime.)
4. Bring the soup to a gentle simmer. If you want, you can clean out your fridge by throwing in a handful of baby carrots, chopped onion, Brussels sprouts, spinach, or whatever else you’ve got languishing in your vegetable bin. It’ll taste awesome. Simmer until the soup is warmed through and any vegetables are tender.
5. Stir in the soy sauce, apple cider, and black pepper to taste and ladle into bowls.

How to calculate leap year

February 14, 2020February 14, 2020 by hentis

This article will explain how to calculate leap year as well as some other interesting facts about leap years.

How to calculate leap year

Very simple to see if a specific year is a leap year or not. To calculate if a specific year is a leap year:

Take the year and divide it by 4.

If the answer of division is equal to a whole number, the year is a leap year.

If the answer to the division is not equal to a whole number, the year is not a leap year.

Example One:

Year : 1983 :

1983/4 = 495.75

495.75 is not a whole numbers as .75 is a fraction.

Thus 1983 is not a leap year.

Example Two:

Year : 2004 :

2004/4 = 501

501 is a whole number

Thus 2004 is a leap year.

What is Affiliate Marketing?

New Year’s Day and Leap Year in English History in Google Scholar

How to calculate leap year Formula:

What Is a Leap Year?

Leap years are years where an extra, or intercalary, day is added to the end of the shortest month, February. The intercalary day, February 29, is commonly referred to as leap day.

Leap years have 366 days instead of the usual 365 days and occur almost every four years.

Why do we need leap years?

The Gregorian calendar, which now serves as the standard calendar for civil use throughout the world, has both common years and leap years. A common year has 365 days and a leap year 366 days, with the extra–or intercalary–day designated as February 29. A leap year occurs every four years to help synchronize the calendar year with the solar year, or the length of time it takes the earth to complete its orbit around the sun, which is about 365Â¼ days.

The length of the solar year, however, is slightly less than 365Â¼ days-by about 11 minutes. To compensate for this discrepancy, the leap year is omitted three times every four hundred years.

In other words, a century year cannot be a leap year unless it is divisible by 400. Thus 1700, 1800, and 1900 were not leap years, but 1600, 2000, and 2400 are leap years.

How to calculate leap year: Divide by 4: Whole number is leap years: Fractions is not leap years

What are your chances of being born on leap day?

About 1 in 1,500.

How to calculate leap year – When is the birthday party?

If you are born on a Leap Year, can you get your driver’s license as early as February 28th? Well, each state decides whether or not February 28 or March 1 will be the day you are eligible to get your license. Most states, however, consider March 1st the official day. For instance, the Michigan Vehicle Code states that people born on February 29th “are deemed to have been born on March 1st.” Another fun fact: Leap year babies yet their driver’s licenses when they are officially four years old (16)! There are no rules on when you have a party, however, so really in day in February or March is fair game to celebrate a leap year birthday.

How many people were born on leap day?

There are about 187,000 people in the US and 4 million people in the world who were born on Leap Day.

The rules for determining a leap year

Most years that can be divided evenly by 4 are leap years.

Exception: Century years are NOT leap years UNLESS they can be evenly divided by 400.

How to calculate leap year – When did leap year originate?

The Gregorian calendar is closely based on the Julian calendar, which was introduced by Julius Caesar in 45 BC. The Julian calendar featured a 12-month, 365-day year, with an intercalary day inserted every fourth year at the end of February to make an average year of 365.25 days. But because the length of the solar year is actually 365.242216 days, the Julian year was too long by .0078 days (11 minutes 14 seconds).

This may not seem like a lot, but over the course of centuries it added up. Until in the 16th century, the vernal equinox was falling around March 11 instead of March 21. In 1582, Pope Gregory XIII adjusted the calendar by moving the date ahead by 11 days and by instituting the exception to the rule for leap years. This new rule, whereby a century year is a leap year only if divisible by 400, is the sole feature that distinguishes the Gregorian calendar from the Julian calendar.

Following the Gregorian reform, the average length of the year was 365.2425 days, an even closer approximation to the solar year. At this rate, it will take more than 3,000 years for the Gregorian calendar to gain one extra day in error.

How to calculate leap year: Divide by 4: Whole number is leap years: Fractions is not leap years

How to calculate leap year – A Quick History Lesson

The Egyptians were the first to come up with the idea of adding a leap day once every four years to keep the calendar in sync with the solar year. Later, the Romans adopted this solution for their calendar, and they became the first to designate February 29 as the leap day.

But Wait! It’s Not Quite that Simple!

The math seems to work out beautifully when you add an extra day to the calendar every four years to compensate for the extra quarter of a day in the solar year. As we said earlier, however, the solar year is just about 365 ¼ days long, but not exactly! The exact length of a solar year is actually 11 minutes and 14 seconds less than 365 ¼ days. That means that even if you add a leap day every four years, the calendar would still overshoot the solar year by a little bit—11 minutes and 14 seconds per year. These minutes and seconds really start to add up: after 128 years, the calendar would gain an entire extra day. So, the leap year rule, “add a leap year every four years” was a good rule, but not good enough!

Calendar Correction, Part II

To rectify the situation, the creators of our calendar (the Gregorian calendar, introduced in 1582) decided to omit leap years three times every four hundred years. This would shorten the calendar every so often and rid it of the annual excess of 11 minutes and 14 seconds. So in addition to the rule that a leap year occurs every four years, a new rule was added: a century year is not a leap year unless it is evenly divisible by 400. This rule manages to eliminate three leap years every few hundred years.

It’s Smooth Sailing for the Next 3,300 Years

This ingenious correction worked beautifully in bringing the calendar and the solar year in harmony, pretty much eliminating those pesky extra 11 minutes and 14 seconds. Now the calendar year and the solar year are just about a half a minute off. At that rate, it takes 3,300 years for the calendar year and solar year to diverge by a day.

How to make Gravy with Flour and Water and Grease

February 20, 2020December 8, 2019 by hentis

How to make Gravy with Flour and Water and Grease – This is been going on since the invention of bacon. This is a way to get the flavors of bacon in the food when you don’t have bacon. Oh I almost forgot the byproduct is edible it’s the crispy bacon.

How to make Gravy with Flour and Water and Grease – Harvesting Bacon Drippings

Ingredients

2/3 pound smoked bacon

Steps

Heat a skillet. This is optional you can spray nonstick spray or use a nonstick pan. Or a well seasoned cast iron skillet.
Add the bacon and start rendering the fat of the bacon. If it starts to smoke a bit turn down the heat or add more bacon. This will cool the pan and the drippings.
Turn often the bacon will have a tendency to stick no matter what pan or skillet you have. Just slide a meat fork or spatula under it to turn.
When the last of the bacon is done immediately turn off the heat have the jar ready. Put some type of paper products under the jar to insulate under it. Especially if you have stone countertops because hot and cold may cause the soon to be hot jar to explode, due to quickly changing temperatures. This is true with anything. Also the paper products will catch any spillage of bacon drippings when pouring.
Get a jar that has a lid and is sterile. Add the bacon drippings to it the jar will be hot for a while. Make sure you have a food grade jar that can or has had food in it.
Store and use as needed.

How to make Gravy with Flour and Water and Grease – Old Fashioned Country Bacon Gravy

Ingredients

2 (12 ounce) packages of bacon, fried – RESERVE ALL THE DRIPPINGS
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
4 to 6 cups milk/water (depending on how thick you like your gravy)
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Instructions

Pour reserved bacon drippings into a large skillet.
On medium high heat the drippings.
Sprinkle flour over hot drippings.
Whisk until the flour is brown.
Add milk/water about a half a cup at a time, whisking the whole time until 4 cups have been added.
Season with salt and pepper.

TIP: If the gravy is too thick continue adding more milk ONLY 1/2 cup at a time until the right thickness is reached.

How to make Gravy with Flour and Water and Grease – Turkey (or Chicken) Gravy

How to make Gravy with Flour and Water and Grease – There are many ways to make gravy for a turkey or chicken dinner, including some shortcuts using butter instead of pan drippings along with chicken or turkey stock.

This is a recipe for a classic turkey gravy made with pan drippings, flour, and water or stock. Purchased chicken or turkey stock may be used, but it should be a good quality stock and low in sodium or unsalted.

Use this recipe for roasted turkey, chicken, or Cornish game hens and even turkey hash. How to make Gravy with Flour and Water and Grease – The recipe can easily be scaled up or down for a large roasted turkey or smaller hens. It depends on how much fat you have in the drippings. A small amount of butter can be added to the turkey or chicken fat if you do not have 1/4 cup.

Ingredients

1 to 2 cups pan drippings (from roasted turkey or chicken or Cornish hens)
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 to 2 cups water (or low sodium or unsalted stock)
Kosher salt (to taste)
Black pepper (to taste)

Steps to Make It

Gather the ingredients.

Pour the turkey or chicken pan drippings into a 2-cup measuring cup or gravy separator and skim the fat off.
Put about 1/4 cup of the fat into a saucepan.

Stir in 1/4 cup of all-purpose flour.

Cook, stirring for 2 minutes.

Discard any remaining skimmed fat. Add enough water to the liquids left in the measuring cup to make 2 cups of liquid. Pour the 2 cups of liquid into the flour and fat mixture. Cook, stirring, until thickened and bubbling. Continue cooking for about 1 minute, stirring constantly.

Add kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.

Scholarly uptake

How to Make Brown Gravy Mix Taste Better

February 20, 2020December 1, 2019 by hentis

How to Make Brown Gravy Mix Taste Better – Making gravy freaks out a lot of people — oh, the lumps! — which is the very reason bottled versions exist. Relax. There’s no pre-made gravy shaming here, we’re all about serving up a few ingredients to help turn that convenient shortcut into something with a little more character.

7 Ways How to Make Brown Gravy Mix Taste Better

Something that tastes more like homemade. Here’s a short list of add-in’s. Remember to go slowly when experimenting, adding a little bit at a time, and tasting along the way, especially before ladling over that pile of mashed potatoes.

1. Add Herbs – How to Make Brown Gravy Mix Taste Better

Try thyme, sage, chopped parsley, a teeny bit of tarragon, some chives. When using fresh herbs, add toward the end of cooking.
Garden Herbs for Simple Syru, Lemon verbena, lavender, rosemary, basil, and mint for simple syrups.

2. Add a Splash of Wine – How to Make Brown Gravy Mix Taste Better

A couple of tablespoons of dry white wine brightens up lighter poultry gravy, while red wine adds complexity to beef and pork gravy. Not a wine fan? Go with beer or hard cider.

3. Mustard Adds Character – How to Make Brown Gravy Mix Taste Better

Half a teaspoon of mustard brings in that rustic character, with Dijon-style and coarse ground topping the list. In a pinch, the yellow stuff you love to slather on top of hot dogs works, too.

4. For Umami’s Sake

A couple shakes of fish sauce bumps up the umami factor. That’s the name of the fifth taste that’s sometimes called the definition of deliciousness. Don’t have it? Try soy sauce instead.

5. Veggies Deliver Fresh Flavors

Chop a shallot or a couple tablespo an onion and saute it in the pan with a little butter before pouring the gravy on top to heat up.

6. Finish with Heat

Fresh ground pepper gives a lighter gravy a sharp edge and a striking appearance. Don’t go overboard, though, because the flavor deepens as it cooks.

7. Visit the Roasting Pan

Pan drippings are the foundation of a traditional gravy, but if you’re skipping that step, swirl in a tablespoon from the roast for added depth.

How to Make Brown Gravy Mix Taste Better – Convenient gravy packages can be dressed up

If you’ve never tried a packaged-gravy mix, give this simple and homey recipe a shot. You’ll soon find yourself stocking a few envelopes in your pantry, too.

Menu suggestion: Chicken with Onions and Sherry Gravy Refrigerated mashed potatoes

Steamed baby carrots

CHICKEN WITH ONIONS AND SHERRY GRAVY

Start to finish: 20 minutes

Refrigerated mashed potatoes, rice or pasta, for serving, if desired

1 package (about 1 ounce) brown gravy mix (see Cook’s notes)

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon onion powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 pound skinless chicken tenders, defrosted if frozen

1 large onion (for about 1 cup sliced)

2/3 cup sherry wine or cider (see Cook’s notes)

How to Make Brown Gravy Mix Taste Better – Cook’s notes: The exact ounce weight of brown-gravy mixes will vary slightly from brand to brand, but that won’t affect the dish. Just make sure to choose a brand that makes at least 1 cup finished gravy. (Some mixes make up to 1 1/2 cups gravy, which is fine, too.) We tested this recipe with Knorr-brand brown-gravy mix, but any good-quality gravy mix will work. Sherry is a fortified wine that can usually be found in the wine section. We do not recommend cooking sherry. Cider can also be substituted.

Prepare the mashed potatoes, rice or pasta according to the package instructions.

Meanwhile, prepare the gravy mix according to the package directions and set aside.

Combine the flour, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper in a 1/2-gallon-size zipper-top plastic bag and shake to mix. Drop the chicken into the bag and shake to coat it well with the flour mixture.

Heat the oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium heat. Add the chicken and cook until brown on the first side, 3 to 4 minutes. Meanwhile, peel the onion, and cut it into thin slices. Add the onion to the skillet, separating it into rings. Turn the chicken tenders over and cook until they are browned on the second side and the onion rings soften, about 3 to 4 minutes more.

Add the sherry to the skillet with the chicken, stirring and scraping to loosen any bits stuck to the pan bottom. Add the prepared brown gravy and stir well to mix in the sherry and coat the chicken. Serve at once over mashed potatoes, rice or pasta, as desired.

Serves 4.

Approximate values per serving: 252 calories (28 percent from fat), 8 g fat (2 g saturated), 66 mg cholesterol, 26 g protein, 12 g carbohydrates, 1 g dietary fiber, 594 mg sodium.

Gravy compound abtd process of makietg same

Heterocyclic amine content in beef cooked by different methods to varying degrees of doneness and gravy made from meat drippings

How does a Bath Bomb Work

How to make bath bombs harder?

February 20, 2020November 22, 2019 by hentis

How to make bath bombs harder?

How to make bath bombs harder? – Why is my bath bomb crumbly or cracking?
If you find that your bath bomb is crumbly, the mixture may be too dry. Adding more witch hazel or oils will give the mixture a more moist texture, which will be less likely to crumble and crack once removed from the mold. If your fizzy is cracking after it’s been in the mold, it’s possible that it was too wet and the mixture is expanding as it sits in the mold.

How to make bath bombs harder? – Why is my bath bomb soft?
If your bath bomb is soft, the mixture may have too much moisture. If you add too much witch hazel or oil during the mixing process, add more dry ingredients to balance the texture. If you live in a humid, wet climate, the moisture in the air can prevent the bath bombs from becoming hard. Adding a small amount of clay (like kaolin clay) or cornstarch can help the bath bombs harden. They also make the bath bombs a bit more sturdy.

Why does my bath bomb have lumps, warts or bumps on the surface?
A bumpy texture on your bath bomb is usually a result of clumps in the dry ingredients or not fully mixing the fragrance oil. Baking soda in particular tends to clump together. Before adding oil, color, fragrance or other additives, break up large clumps with your hands. To remove and break up smaller clumps, pour the dry ingredients through a fine mesh sifter. This extra step gives a smooth texture. Bath bomb warts can also occur when the fizzy contains too much moisture. Usually the culprit is fragrance or essential oil so mix extra well to ensure the wet is fully incorporated into the dry.

How long should bath bombs stay in the mold?
I recommend leaving your bath bomb in the mold for at least several hours, up to overnight. If you try to remove the bath bomb while it’s still soft, it can crumble. Allowing the bath bomb to dry thoroughly in the mold will make it easier to remove and handle.

Why are my bath bombs not sticking together in stainless steel bath bomb mold?
Sometimes it can be a little tricky to get the two halves of the bath bombs to stick together. Instead, the bath bomb mixture tends to stick to the mold. To help, add 5-10 drops of cyclomethicone in both sides of the mold and swirl it around. Then, let the molds drain on a paper towel. It makes removing the mold extremely easy! The texture of your fizzies is also important. For the stainless steel molds, you want the bath bomb mixture to be a bit more wet so the mixture holds its shape.

How to make bath bombs harder? – How To Dry Bath Bombs (Quickly!)

When we first started making bath bombs, one of our biggest challenges was getting the darned things to dry! Most of the time we simply had to leave them on the counter overnight, and hope they’d be ready by morning. But once we started getting busier, we needed a way to make the bath bombs dry FAST. Below are a few different approaches you can take to help your bath bombs dry.

Air Drying

Ah, the old standard, Air Drying. This is typically the first method every bath bomber uses when starting out. It’s easy, free, and reliable. This works particularly well if you’re using clam shell molds for your bath bombs, as you can just leave them in the mold over night and in the morning have a nice round dry bath bomb. This is ideal for new bath bombers who only have a handful of bombs they need to make at a time, though it can become prohibitive once your sales start to increase as you’ll have to buy more and more molds to hold bath bombs, and even the cheap little plastic clam shells started to get really expensive once your sales pick up. Additionally, because most e-commerce sites penalize you if your ship times are too long, it can become troublesome having to wait 24 hours before you can ship your bath bombs once your business starts to grow.

Which brings us to option 2.

Oven Drying Your Bath Bombs

The next method we moved on to when we were starting out was drying our bath bombs in the oven. This is a great option for you bath bombers out there that only need a few oven’s worth of bath bombs at a time. It’s effective, easy, and doesn’t cost anything (aside from electricity). To dry your bath bombs in the oven, simply turn the oven to the ‘warm’ setting, let it come up to temp, and then leave them in there to dry for 1-4 hours.

This is a great solution for when you have a specific type you need to make in the morning and need to be able to ship it later that day. If it’s an absolute emergency, you can usually get away with only drying it for about an hour, but remember, the longer you leave it in there the better the odds of it showing up to your customer in one piece!

Another benefit is that when we baked our bath bombs they would come out and almost have something of a ‘shell’ on the exterior. It felt very hard, and made a satisfying clicking sound when you tap your fingernail against it.

The main drawback with oven baking is that for it to be effective, the bath bombs should be removed from their molds and placed onto an oven rack. This can be challenging if you’re using clam shell molds and your bath bombs are fragile right after you’ve made them. That was one of our biggest challenges when we first started making our own bath bombs. This is mainly due to your baking soda and the citric acid mix being too dry, so if this is a problem you encounter, the best course of action is to continue to experiment with your recipe until your bath bombs come out perfect and durable every time.

And one of the best ways to achieve that result is…

How to make bath bombs harder? – Kaolin Clay

At the end of the day, if you’re going to grow your bath bomb business, you should really consider adding Kaolin Clay to your recipe. When we first started using it, it proved to be a real game changer for us. Our bath bombs became instantly more durable when removed from the mold, and were dry enough to ship within 3 hours if needed. We could make our bath bombs in the morning, and know that they’d be ready to ship by the afternoon whenever we needed them.

The only real drawback to adding the kaolin clay was the added upfront cost, though when I worked out the numbers at the end of the month it turned out that what we spent on the Kaolin clay was offset by the amount of product we didn’t lose to crumbled bath bombs. So for us it was a no brainer, and we’ve been using it in every bath bomb we’ve made since. how to make bath bombs harder – One (very important) caveat, is that the Kaolin Clay comes in powdered form, so as with all powdered ingredients you want to make sure you’re always wearing a dust mask or a respirator when handling it so that you don’t breathe the powder into your lungs.

Bath Bombs and UTI

How to make bath bombs harder?

How does a Bath Bomb Work

February 20, 2020November 20, 2019 by hentis

How does a Bath Bomb Work – The part that makes them fizz is the same as an Alka Seltzer or soluble aspirin tablet: sodium bicarbonate and citric acid. These chemicals are inert when they are dry powders, but in water they dissolve and the citric acid reacts with the sodium bicarbonate to form sodium citrate and carbon dioxide.

The sodium citrate stays in solution and you don’t really notice it, but the carbon dioxide bubbles out as a gas that helps the bath bomb break up. This lets the detergents, perfumes and oils that make up the rest of the bath bomb mix with the bathwater.

How does a Bath Bomb Work – Bath bombs are awesome balls of fizzy goodness, with some interesting science behind them! They were invented in 1989 by Mo Constantine, one of Lush’s founders. Bath bombs contain the chemical sodium bicarbonate, also known as baking soda, as their key ingredient

Bath bombs are awesome balls of fizzy goodness, with some interesting science behind them! They were invented in 1989 by Mo Constantine, one of Lush’s founders. Bath bombs contain the chemical sodium bicarbonate, also known as baking soda, as their key ingredient.

Some of you might remember that baking soda isn’t good for your skin because it’s a base, with a high pH. High pH (alkaline or basic) products disturb the skin’s acid mantle, which protects your living tissue from the environment, particularly bacteria, like acne-causing Propionibacterium acnes.

But don’t fret! The second key ingredient in a bath bomb is a solid acid, such as citric acid or tartaric acid (cream of tartar). This lowers the pH by reacting with the baking soda when water is added to the mixture. Unless the maker of the bath bombs has really messed up their proportions, the final pH should be reasonably neutral. Until the water dissolves the acid and baking soda and allows them to mix at a microscopic level, nothing happens.

Aside from neutralisation, the acid + base reaction with sodium carbonate also produces tiny bubbles of carbon dioxide gas, which is what causes the fizzing:

How does a Bath Bomb Work – The Chemical Reaction

Citric acid + sodium bicarbonate → sodium citrate + water + carbon dioxide

C₆H₈O₇_(s)+ 2NaHCO_3(s) → Na₂C₆H₆O_7(aq) + 2H₂O_(l) + 2CO₂_(g)

How does a Bath Bomb Work – This is almost the same reaction as the one commonly used in volcano science projects to create foaming “lava” (they usually use vinegar as the acid). Of course, in bath bombs, there’s also fragrance and colours and glitter – the fizzing helps the bath bomb disperse faster, and combined with heat from the hot water, spreads the scent faster and makes the whole bathroom smell amazing.

Bath bombs can slowly absorb water from the air, using up the acid and sodium carbonate and releasing carbon dioxide prematurely – this is why bath bombs get less fizzy as they get old! Make sure you keep your bath bombs in a dry place until you’re ready to use them.

How does a Bath Bomb Work – When the weather outside is frightful, soaking in a hot bath can sound especially appealing. And adding a bath bomb to the water can elevate the experience. But what exactly is in these scented spheres, and what makes them so fizzy?

Bath bombs are usually made from three key ingredients: baking soda, citric acid and cornstarch, said Frankie Wood-Black, an instructor in chemistry at Northern Oklahoma College and an experienced bath-bomb maker. Often, bath bombs also include dyes and perfumes, and sometimes they have epsom salt.

How does a Bath Bomb Work – The fizziness of bath bombs comes from the chemical reactions that happen when the baking soda and citric acid come into contact with water, Wood-Black told Live Science. Baking soda, or sodium bicarbonate, has the chemical formula NaHCO3. In water, baking soda quickly dissolves, and the positively charged sodium (Na+) breaks apart from negatively charged bicarbonate (HCO3-).

Meanwhile, the citric acid also dissolves, with a single hydrogen ion (H+) separating from the rest of the molecule, Wood-Black said. Then, that positively charged hydrogen from the citric acid and the negatively charged bicarbonate from the baking soda mingle, very quickly undergoing a series of reactions. One of the end products is carbon dioxide (CO2). Because carbon dioxide is a gas, it forms small bubbles in the bath water, creating a delightful fizz.

If there are perfumes or scented oils in the bath bomb, they are released into the air with the carbon dioxide bubbles, Wood-Black said. The sodium from the baking soda and the rest of the citric acid molecule (minus the hydrogen that it lost when it dissolved) simply remain in the water.

The cornstarch in a bath bomb has just one job: It slows down the reaction.

By binding to the baking soda as well as the citric acid, the cornstarch slows down the rate at which both of them dissolve. The effect is that the fizziness may last 3 or 4 minutes, instead of only seconds, Wood-Black said.

Making bath bombs is not difficult, she said. She mixes 1 cup of baking soda, one-half cup of citric acid and one-half cup of cornstarch together in a bowl. All three items can be found at grocery stores. Citric acid is found in soda and candy and can also be used to make cheese, Wood-Black noted. After mixing the three ingredients, she adds about 1 teaspoon of water, which is enough to just barely moisten the ingredient mixture so that the powder sticks together. She then scoops the mixture into a mold (such as a Santa or a star candy mold) to form a shape and lets the shapes dry overnight.

But you can also just mix together the three key ingredients and skip the water. Leave the mixture in a jar, and then scoop it into your bath, she said.

Food coloring can be used to dye bath bombs, she said. But she doesn’t dye the ones she makes. “I opt not [to do that],” she said. “I’m a chemist by profession, but with food coloring, I just get it all over the place.”

Bath Bombs and UTI

So then … How to build a cellar under your house? Click The image below to access very easy and inexpensive plans.

Building a root cellar with concrete blocks

October 20, 2019October 20, 2019 by hentis

Building a root cellar with concrete blocks – I should have been a mole ” it feels so safe and cool and quiet to be underground. So when my house burned down 20 years ago and the backhoe man was on site digging new holes for foundation footings, I asked him to dig a 12x16x8-foot deep hole in the ground so I could build a large fire-resistant root cellar. I planned on using it mainly for storing all my photographs, negatives, CDs, videos, and 70 photo albums ” from a lifetime of photography and videography. But it could also be used for a bomb shelter, hurricane safe-place, food storage room, or anything else a fellow mole might need ” customized accordingly.

In our county, we can build a structure under 200 square feet without a permit (building a root cellar with concrete blocks but no plumbing and wiring) so I started to research underground construction. I have a tendency to build everything even sturdier than code would require so I was determined that this cellar would be safe and sound and overbuilt like all my other projects.

I first contemplated using pressure-treated lumber and treated plywood so I could work alone at a snail’s pace, but quickly changed my mind to using concrete instead, and got my good-natured boyfriend Kirt involved to help every step of the way. We were a team!
Because we wouldn’t have to pay for any manual labor, I researched prices, and estimated that the cost of the dig, plus the materials and concrete, would total about $5,000 ” not bad for a permanent and useful “Room-Without-A-View.”

The floor

First we leveled the bottom of the hole, laid 6-8 inches of gravel down, and leveled it again. Then we set up a plumb, level, and square 2×8 frame around the perimeter, braced across the corners at 45 degrees, and pounded in spikes to hold the sides from spreading during the 8-inch-thick floor-pour. All around the perimeter on the lower inside of the 2×8 frame we fastened 2x4s laid flat with rows of holes drilled 16 inches apart down the middle to support the …” rebar sticking up inside the yet-to-be-formed wall cavity and to keep it spaced in the middle of that cavity. Before forming up the walls, we also wired horizontal rebar to the verticals at 16 inches apart to create a 16-inch grid inside the walls.

We strategically placed spacers on the gravel (half bricks) to hold the rebar up 2 inches off the bottom, and laid down a 12-inch grid of #5 rebar (…”). (We rented a manual rebar cutter to cut as needed.) Then we called Ready Mix to come up and do the pour. They recommended fiberglass be added to the mix to help protect against cracking at a later date, so of course I said yes and paid the nominal extra charge.

Forms, wales, and snap ties

Once the floor was troweled, screeded, “floated” perfectly level, and had set up as hard as a rock, we built the wall forms (like pallets) out of 2×4 studs and 4×8-foot sheets of ¾” plywood and laid them down lengthwise so each pour would be 4 feet high. There is so much weight and pressure pushing out as the concrete is pumped in, so 4 feet tall is maximum for a pour.

We bolstered up each pair of forms set 8 inches apart, with double decker 2x4s running horizontally ” on each side ” and held them tightly together with snap ties using cones and metal wedges made just for that purpose. These rows of horizontal members, called “walers,” were set only one foot apart to keep the walls from “blowing out” during the pour, and the bottom of the form was doubly braced. The long snap ties are sandwiched between the doubled up 2x4s and go all the way through each wall (via holes predrilled in the plywood) and are held firmly in place by cones or washers and metal wedges on each side ” every 18-22 inches along the walers. (The snap ties have button ends that fit into keyhole slots on the metal wedges.)

After the first 4-foot pour, we methodically moved the forms up and called for the second pour, to bring the walls up to 8 feet. (The forms came off easily because we had previously sprayed them lightly with Thompson’s Water Seal.) Then we snapped off all the protruding snap ties left sticking out of the exposed concrete walls by twisting them off using a piece of small diameter pipe long enough for good leverage.

Before the second pour, we stuck a 2-inch PVC pipe through the wall as a conduit for a power cord later.

Building a root cellar with concrete blocks – Floating roof

After the second pour, we screeded the top 8-inch wide perimeter all around and poked in rebar every 3 feet or so for roof anchor bolts. Then we put a 1.5-inch diameter piece of pipe over each …” rebar stub to create some wiggle room for the roof to move a little if it ever needed to, such as from an earthquake or just normal expansion and contraction from heat and cold.

Our objective was to enable the roof to “float” independently on top of the walls. To prevent it from adhering to the walls during the pour we laid down an 8-inch-wide strip of tarpaper (30# felt) on top of the walls all around the perimeter.

Note: An old retired water-tank builder from bygone days advised us to do this to prevent the “lid” from ever cracking. An ingenious trick of the trade.

All went exceedingly well. We built the frame for the roof, and also framed in the opening for the stairs, and braced everything securely to prevent back pressure from bulging the frame out. We laid down plywood which was supported underneath by heavy duty scaffolding with adjustable casters cranked up firmly against it. To make the unsupported roof design extra strong, we installed a tight 6-inch grid of rebar held up off the plywood by “rebar chairs” this time (professional spacers are more accurate than half bricks). I cut a 12-inch hole in the plywood and put in a 12-inch-diameter wind turbine over to the side opposite the stair opening ” for future air circulation ” and then called for the 8-inch-thick roof-pour.

roof grid for root cellar — Roof rebar grid

We spent quite a while screeding and troweling the final pour and finishing the surface with a “bull float” as perfectly as we could. Son Eric and friend Vadim rushed over to help; it was hot, and we had to hurry with the fine-finish work.
When the roof was hard but still “green,” we pulled the short pipes off the rebar sticking up, then cut the stubs flush with a Sawzall, and caulked them with silicon to prevent rust.

After the roof finally set up and cured for a long time while being supported by the scaffolding, we figured it was strong enough to park a car on!

Building a root cellar with concrete blocks – Backfilling and drainage

When all was done we sprayed the outside of the walls with a masonry waterproofing sealer, and protected them further with 1-inch rigid foam insulation, then called the gravel-shooter guy to come up and fill in the sides with gravel. The company is called CAD (Conveyor Aggregate Delivery) and they do a great job of completely backfilling around a structure by accurately shooting the gravel from a distance, monitoring it by remote control. I don’t remember what the charge was but I do remember it was worth every penny!

Building a root cellar with concrete blocks – Before CAD arrived I put a 10-foot by 12-inch diameter black corrugated drainage pipe vertically down the wall on the lower side of the hill so if water ever accumulated we could lower a little sump pump 8 feet down the hole and pump it out. But in the past 20 years I have never had to do that. Building a root cellar with concrete blocks – This particular root cellar has no drainage provisions except for a 4-inch-diameter perforated/corrugated French drain on the upper side of the cellar. It’s buried 12 inches and laid down in a big arc so it daylights on each side beyond the cellar. If it ever floods, I’ll dig a deeper trench.

I guess we lucked out with the location. Most root cellars are dug into a hill so one side is at ground level with a door in it, Building a root cellar with concrete blocks, not dug straight down on all sides like a basement. A builder has to take flooding into serious consideration and plan for drainage. I took a chance on this dry location, and figured if all else failed we could use it as an indoor swimming pool!

Finishing touches

I built the 12-foot-long stair horses and 4-foot-wide stair treads from 2x12s and installed them at a comfortable angle of “rise and run” (8 inches in 11 inches). We dismantled the scaffolding and hauled it out up the stairs.

Building a root cellar with concrete blocks - entrance to root cellar — Entrance to stairwell

Next, Kirt built a cute “little house” over the stairwell to match the other structures on the property, and put white translucent polycarbonate panels on the shed part of its roof to let light in. I made the board ‘n batt “hobbit” door for it, then carried on with trying to beautify the inside of the place. Building a root cellar with concrete blocks – I lined the interior walls and ceiling with 1×12 small-knot pine boards run horizontally. I had to rent a concrete nail gun that used .22 caliber bullets to fasten the 2×4 vertical furring strips to the concrete. (Earplugs mandatory!) Then I attached the beautiful boards with nice looking screws, and snapped a few pictures. Once it got filled up I knew it would never look this clean and spacious again. I installed glue-down carpet, and temporarily moved a bed and a table and chairs into it for sipping coffee or taking a nap.

Building a root cellar with concrete blocks - finished root cellar — Pine walls in cellar

Costs and calculations

The completed root cellar took approximately 21 cubic yards of concrete, and two months to complete. I had to pay an extra pumping fee for the narrow walls because the barrel rig had to use a pump hose, but for the floor and roof they used a chute.
To calculate how many cubic yards of concrete you’ll need: multiply length in feet x width in feet x thickness in a fraction of a foot, and divide by 27 (27 cubic feet = 1 cubic yard).

Nationwide, the average cost of concrete is now about $100/cubic yard. Twenty years ago it was $85 so it hasn’t gone up much at all. It’s still affordable! All told, the whole project did indeed cost $5,000 (concrete cost $2,000) and is a great addition to the property. I can escape down there when it’s either searing hot or freezing cold outside, and the temperature is between 50 and 70 degrees year round. Moles have it made.

How to build a cellar under your house

October 20, 2019 by hentis

Can I add, and how to build a cellar under your house?

Begin by seeing whether your plot or property is reasonable for a cellar. Ground and site conditions may all be able to imply that building another storm cellar is unimaginable. These conditions include:

a high water table
inadmissible bedrock
existing structures and administrations
archeological finds.

Surveying and Managing Risks

Regardless of whether your site is practical, development work in the ground conveys chance, somewhat on the grounds that you don’t know precisely what is beneath the surface. You can lessen the dangers by:

Doing soil examinations.
Burrowing investigation pits to affirm the dimension of the water table before affirming the sort and extent of works.
Affirming ground conditions and soil types. Chalky soil, for instance, will deplete much superior to anything a clay-based soil.

In urban regions, the dirt may contain hints of substantial metals, for example, lead and arsenic and different dangerous materials, for example, asbestos. The kind of development utilized will likewise have an orientation on the decision of storm cellar course.

Going subterranean likewise implies that any administration pipes or links additionally should be recognized. This is the place land pursuits are fundamental. These will incorporate looks for resources claimed by utility suppliers, specialist organizations, for example, BT Openreach, rail systems and then some.

How Much Will it Cost to Build a Cellar?

For the most part, a temporary worker will value cellar work as indicated by four phases or segments:
shell and center (the structure)
waterproofing (controlled by the measure of the storm cellar space just as the quantity of sump chambers and siphons required)
fit out
support (if a sump and siphon are utilized).

How to build a cellar under your house for $400?

What Construction Methods are Best Suited to Basements?

The development strategy will in general be chosen by the financial backing, soil type and states of the site. Numerous storm cellar masters will offer a total framework including configuration, arranging and production, based around the site.

The technique utilized will likewise rely upon whether you are uncovering and working underneath a current structure, or building another home. In the event that you are working under a current structure, it will be difficult to utilize strategies where pre-assembled components need extending into position.

Prevalent development strategies include:

Precast waterproof solid boards, produced off-site and lifted into spot (fit to new forms with storm cellar levels where boards can be moved).
Block and blockwork.
ICF (protected cement formwork) or covered cement can be utilized anyplace you can enable access for cement to be siphoned nearby.

The most effective method to Waterproof cellar under your house

Waterproofing/failing is fundamental when making another storm cellar. Any structure subterranean that is utilized for private space requires waterproofing. This guarantee there is a dry situation that can be constrained by residential warming and ventilation cooling (HVAC) establishments.

Subterranean storm cellar development is for the most part of mass cement supporting and piece development:

the solid is blended by a grouping plant

touches base at a structure site in a blender lorry

is siphoned into the site as indicated by basic supporting calendars.

While numerous individuals feel that solid is waterproof, it’s not except if it is treated with the use of added substances. These added substances must be blended at the bunching plant, checked and guaranteed to the planned detail to give the dimension of security required for the application (storm cellars for this situation). Remember this is only one stage in the waterproofing procedure and is in no way, shape or form appropriate as an independent arrangement. In any occasion, this procedure without anyone else’s input would not get Building Regulations endorsement.

Building the storm cellar structure, alluded to in the exchange as ‘shell and center’, can be done by a fundamental contractual worker or master storm cellar temporary workers. The waterproofing must dependably be completed by qualified/enrolled installers of the waterproofing frameworks and items.

Various Types of Waterproofing Protection

Type A: This alludes to a waterproof material or film (frequently called failing). This is connected to either within or outside of the storm cellar structure and incorporates the two dividers and ground section. These frameworks can incorporate bending over, for example both inward and outer film insurance.

Instances of this sort of waterproofing are:

positive weight films connected to the outer substance of the solid, for example, Bentonite (a mud based layer)
a PVC sheet film, (for example, DualProof). This can either be connected utilizing a glue or as a feature of the throwing/covering process.

Type B: This alludes to basically essential security where the structure of the storm cellar must give the waterproofing assurance and strengthened water-safe cement is utilized. The checking of the two materials and work at the clustering and development stage is urgent to the achievement of the establishment. Joints between cement pours should be deliberately arranged and jointed to maintain a strategic distance from water drainage through poor workmanship of breaking after development.

Type C: This consolidates a water the board framework and is normal in numerous advanced storm cellars. The framework permits the ground water to infiltrate the structure and channel behind the layer at both divider and floor. The water redirects into a controlled seepage sump chamber where a siphon removes it from the structure into either mains waste or a constriction tank.

What’s the Closest Natural Nuclear Bunker to Your Home?

What Can Go Wrong?

The most widely recognized waterproofing framework is Type C. In the event that the layer is undermined amid development almost certainly, the water will harm the inner completions of the storm cellar room. Fixing a film to a completed space is meddling. It could likewise be exorbitant if the exact area of a trade off can’t be found effectively.

Administration entrances through storm cellar dividers are likewise normal. These administrations should be fittingly fixed, so experts may need to come back to the site to redesign benefits after the shell structure has been fabricated.

Development work ought to be observed. On the off chance that a break of the layer is discovered, the experts will make a fix which keeps up the establishment and item guarantees.

Guarantees for cellar under your house

Both item guarantee and establishment guarantee is significant and an authority will guarantee that it is given to the right norms and without trade off. In spite of the fact that not an administrative prerequisite, much of the time it is a need for auxiliary guarantee protection. This is required for all new form properties and the change of properties to new units.

To acquire a basic guarantee, a cellar must be effectively waterproofed, just as gathering the Building Regulations for every single other work.

How to build a cellar under your house : Very low cost plans

Acquiring Light cellar under your house

Fake light is fine for capacity utilizes, yet on the off chance that you are anticipating investing extensive energy down there, normal light is ideal. Sun burrows/sun powered funnels are a simple method to acquire light and genuinely reasonable. In any case, where the structure permits, utilize a light well or depressed yard which sits past the back rise of the property.

Obviously, the entire storm cellar does not need to be subterranean. Where the roof is over the ground level, you can incorporate a column of clerestory windows to get characteristic light from the highest point of the room.

On the off chance that you are expanding on a slanting site, you viably make a semi-storm cellar, with light originating from the front or back and maybe additionally the sides. Anyplace that does not get characteristic light can be held for use as utility rooms, possibly a home film, a plant room or even a washroom.

Is my home suitable to build a cellar under your house?

Only one out of every odd property is directly for a storm cellar expansion. When in doubt, it’s smarter to stretch out over the ground if conceivable in light of the fact that it’s simpler to give ventilation and normal light, in addition to it’s generally less expensive.

Prime possibility for cellars are houses situated in zones with high land esteems, for example, close downtown areas and the London rural areas.

Gardens in these properties will in general be littler, so reaching out probably won’t be a choice. Additionally land is costly, so the option of an entire additional floor can be a less expensive method for getting all the more living space contrasted with moving to a bigger property.

How to measure Chainsaw Bar

October 18, 2019October 18, 2019 by hentis

How to measure Chainsaw Bar is totally different than the actual bar size. The bar measurement is vital to know if you’re changing a series or buying a substitute bar. The bar measurement expresses the efficient slicing size of the chainsaw, not the complete length of the bar, which is actually just a few inches longer than the chopping size. If you wish to know the bar’s true size, you may want greater than a tape measure.

How to measure Chainsaw Bar

Step 1

Flip the chainsaw off and remove the spark plug wire from the plug itself. Grasp the boot that covers the spark plug and remove the wire by pulling gently on the boot. This prevents any risk of the chainsaw unintentionally starting.

Step 2

Butt the top of a tape measure in opposition to the casing on the point where the bar emerges.

Step 3

Stretch the tape to the alternative finish of the bar and browse the measurement on the farthest cutter at the tip of the bar.

Step 4

Round the measurement to the nearest inch. For example, in case you measured 15 7/8 inches from the casing to the cutter, you’ve got a sixteen-inch chainsaw.

Step 5

Take away the nuts securing the casing to the chainsaw body utilizing a socket and ratchet.

Step 6

Pull the cover off completely, exposing the complete chainsaw bar.

Step 7

Stretch the tape measure from one end of the bar to the opposite end. This measurement is the precise size of the chainsaw bar, which is often 2 to 3 inches longer than the chainsaw measurement you took in Steps 1 to 4.

How to measure Chainsaw Bar explained

If you’re looking for a replacement bar for your chainsaw, you’ll need to determine the size of your bar.

You’ll be measuring the useable length of the bar, also called the cutting length or the called length.

How to measure Chainsaw Bar, measure it from its front tip all the way back to the cutter closest to the body of the saw.

Round this measurement up to the nearest even number in inches. For example, a bar that measures 18 3/4″ will actually have a called length of 20″.

You then could look for a new bar with a 20″ bar length. You also could enter that measurement into the Bar and Chain Calculator to find the right bar replacement for your chainsaw.

Effective Length

How to measure Chainsaw Bar, or effective cutting length, is shorter than the actual length of the bar. This is the simplest measurement to take. All you’ll need is a standard tape measure. This length is also sometimes referred to as the chainsaw length.

Since you’re going to be handling the chain itself, a couple of safety steps are prudent before beginning the measuring process. Turn the chainsaw off. Grasp the rubber boot that covers the spark plug and remove the wire from the spark plug by gently pulling on it until it comes free. This will prevent the chainsaw from coming on, even by accident.

Lay the chainsaw down and place the end of the tape measure against the body of the chainsaw where the bar emerges from the casing. Stretch the tape out to the end of the bar and slightly past the end. You want to measure to the tip of the cutter that sticks the furthest out from the tip of the bar. If the chain is missing, you can estimate about 1/2″ further from the tip of the bar.

Direction of Chain on Chainsaw – How to

How to Cut Down a Tree Chainsaw

October 18, 2019October 18, 2019 by hentis

How to Cut Down a Tree Chainsaw, felling a tree means inflicting a tree to fall down by either sawing with a handsaw or slicing with a chainsaw.

Felling a tree with chainsaws takes planning and ought to be properly thought by. If you are a newbie, it is a good idea to have somebody who is an experienced chainsaw user with you to assist.

Earlier than felling any trees, make sure you have gotten the entire crucial permits and/or permission. Some areas have strict environmental laws.

How to Cut Down a Tree Chainsaw – Preparation

Think about security first and the prevention of accidents when preparing to fell a tree. Look at where the tree is positioned and what objects are around it. Homes, barns, power traces, fences and different constructions will be damaged as a consequence of falling timber or limbs.

If there are roads situated within the fall zone, set up warning indicators. In case you are a beginner and there are objects near, get an experienced person to assist with the felling.

Pay particular attention to other trees as properly. How to Cut Down a Tree Chainsaw – Making a tree fall can have a domino effect on other bushes that may be smaller or weakened by tree rot and leaning.

Even when you don’t think the tree you are planning to chop down will strike an object, a tree that’s hit by the tree you narrow down might fall in an sudden approach, so it is best to imagine all doable situations earlier than reducing.

Decide What Direction to Fell a Tree

Once you have a good idea of surrounding objects, look at the tree itself to determine what direction through which to fell the tree. If the tree is of course leaning in a single course, it could be higher to fell the tree that approach as long as there are not any objects throughout the fall zone.

How to Cut Down a Tree Chainsaw – If there are objects within the fall zone and the tree is leaning in that direction, you might want to get an skilled tree service to come and remove the tree professionally. Wind speed also can impact directional felling.

Finally, take into account the work concerned in eradicating the tree once it has fallen and how easy or difficult it will be for you to entry the world within the fall zone.

How to Cut Down a Tree Chainsaw – Getting Away

Make sure undergrowth around the tree has been cleared before you begin sawing. Take away all branches, fallen limbs or other obstacles on the ground around the tree. You need to be able to walk away from the tree at any angle with out having to dodge or step over anything.

Clearing Tree Limbs and Buttress Roots from a Tree

If the lower a part of the tree trunk has small branches or buttresses growing on it, clear them away with your chainsaw. To clear branches or limbs, use a pulling chain. Cut from the highest and use a downward stroke along the lower edge of the chainsaw.

Work at an angle that places the tree trunk between yourself and the chainsaw. By no means minimize tree limbs at a degree larger than your shoulders, as that is an unsafe method to make use of a chainsaw.

How to Cut Down a Tree Chainsaw – Directional Felling

Find out how to make the tree fall in the course you want comes right down to the directional notch, or the primary series of cuts you have to make when felling a tree. There are a selection of ways to make a directional notch. How to Cut Down a Tree Chainsaw – The type of notch described right here is an open directional notch. The directional notch determines for probably the most half in what path the tree will fall.

Observe these steps to make an open directional notch in a small-to-medium sized tree using a chainsaw:

· Pinpoint the exact path during which you want the tree to fall. Discover a landmark from your surroundings to use as a guide, and use the sights on the highest of your chainsaw to line up the angle to the directional notch you intend to chop.

· Make a prime cut into the trunk of the tree at a couple of 60 diploma angle, sawing to a depth of about 20 – 25% of the tree’s diameter

· Make a horizontal undercut that meets the top minimize. You must now have a notch carved out of the aspect of the tree facing the felling course.

· Make certain there aren’t any individuals or animals throughout the security radius of the tree felling zone. That is no less than 2 instances the length of the tree you might be felling.

· On the alternative facet of the tree trunk, noticed a horizontal felling reduce a few inches above the level of the undercut. Stop reducing just a few inches earlier than you reach the directional notch. This can create a hinge on which the tree will fall in a managed manner. The width of the hinge ought to be about 10% of the diameter of the tree trunk.

· Use a felling wedge as a lever to make the tree start to fall.

How to Cut Down a Tree Chainsaw – Watch and retreat. Preserve your eyes on the falling tree as you progress away shortly but calmly. You should attempt to move away from the felling direction at a ninety diploma angle. This will help you avoid both the felling zone as well as the opposite aspect the place the trunk separates from the stump.

Cutting Down Large Trees

In some ways, your chainsaw How to Cut Down a Tree Chainsaw cutting technique can be decided by the diameter of the tree trunk. For bigger bushes whose diameter is larger than the size of the chainsaw bar, you’ll need to make use of a plunge cut.

You will also need a breaking bar and a few felling wedges readily available.

These are tree felling tools used to ensure bushes fall in the right path and can either stop the tree from pinching the chainsaw blade while chopping or provide help to get your chainsaw un-caught.

· Pinpoint the exact direction by which you want the tree to fall. Discover a landmark out of your surroundings to make use of as a information, and use the sights on the top of your chainsaw to line up the angle to the directional notch you intend to cut.

· Because the tree trunk is wider than your chainsaw bar, you will have to chop the directional notch from two sides. Make a high cut into the trunk of the tree at a couple of 60 degree angle, sawing to a depth of about 20 – 25% of the tree’s diameter. Transfer to the opposite facet of the tree to finish the directional notch, ensuring to line up the cuts as carefully as potential in order that the notch can be even.

· Make a horizontal undercut that meets the top minimize. Once more, if the tree is simply too thick, make the horizontal undercut from either side of the tree, aligning the two cuts so as to create one straight undercut. You need to now have a notch carved out of the aspect of the tree facing the felling direction.

· Ensure that there are no individuals or animals within the security radius of the tree felling zone. This is not less than 2 times the length of the tree you’re felling.

· Make a plunge minimize by inserting the decrease part of the chainsaw bar nostril into the tree trunk behind where you want the hinge to be. Avoid chill. Don’t permit the upper part of the chainsaw bar nostril to come into contact with the tree.
· Upon getting inserted the tip of the chainsaw into the tree trunk, turn the chainsaw till it is parallel with the directional notch.
· Apply strain to the chainsaw bar into the tree.

· Noticed away from the hinge concerning the width of the chainsaw bar. This may preserve you from sawing into the hinge once you turn the chainsaw around.

· Noticed around the trunk rigorously. When you could have sawed via the center of the tree trunk, insert the felling wedge to forestall the burden of the trunk from pinching the chainsaw and inflicting it to get stuck within the tree.

· If the chainsaw bar will get stuck within the tree trunk, do not try to pull out the chainsaw. Cease the engine and use a breaking bar or wedge to work open the trunk until you may pull the chain noticed out easily.

· Noticed till the chainsaw bar is parallel with the directional notch on the other facet of the tree

· It’s possible you’ll need to hammer the felling wedge into place to get the tree to fall. Sometimes multiple wedge is required. Use a breaker bar to work the tree till it begins to fall.

As with How to Cut Down a Tree Chainsaw – a small tree, watch and retreat. Maintain your eyes on the falling tree as you move away shortly however calmly out of the protection zone. You need to attempt to transfer away from the felling course at a ninety diploma angle. This will allow you to keep away from both the felling zone as well as the other side where the trunk separates from the stump.

How to Cut Down a Tree Chainsaw – Rotten or Dead Trees

Use extra caution when felling a rotten or lifeless tree. Get the help of an skilled chainsaw consumer or tree elimination service if you are a beginner. If the tree trunk appears to be like discolored, feels tender or appears abnormal in any other way, there could be rot on the within. Rotten bushes require a a lot larger hinge to fall safely and are inherently unstable.

How to Cut Down a Tree Chainsaw – When a Tree is Lodged

If a tree becomes lodged or caught in another tree on the way in which down, it’s best not to depart the tree unattended. Get assist from an experienced individual. Should you must go away the tree to call for help, rope off the realm in order that passersby are conscious of the hazard.

Felling

Direction of Chain on Chainsaw – How to

How to measure Chainsaw Bar

Direction of Chain on Chainsaw – How to

October 18, 2019October 18, 2019 by hentis

We all know the wrestle of getting to replace your chainsaw’s chain right in the midst of a undertaking and trying to figure out the Direction of Chain on Chainsaw.

It gets in the way in which of progress and generally is a ache having to take your chainsaw apart and put all of it back collectively. What’s an even bigger ache is getting all the pieces put back together, trying to work with a backwards chain, and having to take your machine apart once more.

Putting a sequence on a chainsaw the precise manner is a fairly necessary step in correctly using your chainsaw.

For those who don’t get the chain on the right manner, you’ll end up with a seemingly dull blade and must take it all apart once more to reverse the chain.

So, let’s try to stop this little mistake by placing the chain on the correct means the first time.

Direction of Chain on Chainsaw – Set The Bar

The best technique to exchange or correct a chain on a chainsaw after you’ve taken the machine aside is to start by reattaching the chain bar to the body of the chainsaw .

As soon as connected, adjust the bar so it’s not so long and the chain will fit more loosely and be easier to placed on. In the event you don’t do this, you can be fighting the chain your complete time.

After your bar is in place, it is time to mount your chain.

Check Blade Direction

The essential a part of mounting your chain is to ensure the blades are dealing with the correct path (Direction of Chain on Chainsaw).

Again, if the blades of the chain are usually not going through the correct manner, you’ll think the blade is dull as a result of it’s slicing in the unsuitable path.

The right Direction of Chain on Chainsaw to face is with the sharp edge of the blade enamel dealing with towards the best way the blade rotates.

Primarily, you need the sharp edges of the blades rotating on high of the chain bar, transferring toward the tip of the bar, and away from the physique of the machine.

Now that you just received it stepping into the fitting path rotate your chain and get it set in place.

Direction of Chain on Chainsaw – Tighten the Blade

After you’ve rotated your chain and your drive links settled into place on the chain bar, it is time to tighten it so you can get again to work.

Don’t over tighten your chain, but don’t underneath tighten it both.

You want the perfect tension for the chain to rotate easily and on your safety as well.

Though it doesn’t take a lot time to reset or change a chain, it’s all the time much easier to only do it proper the primary time. So take your time and do it right.

All types of chainsaws will finally need their chains changed, so develop into accustomed to the method.

5 Signs a chainsaw chain is dull

You have to push the chainsaw to make a minimize (the chain should do the give you the results you want).
The chainsaw makes high quality sawdust, as an alternative of enormous wooden chips.
Things start smoking (despite correct lubrication and chain stress).
The chainsaw “pulls” in one route, creating a crooked cut.
The chainsaw shakes or bounces while slicing.

Direction of Chain on Chainsaw – Wrap-up

Alright, there you have it. By using the techniques above, you should be able to quickly get your Direction of Chain on Chainsaw right, every time. And with the other steps, you should have everything you need to fix that backwards, dull, or broken chain.

Chainsaw

How to Cut Down a Tree Chainsaw

How to measure Chainsaw Bar

How to make gravy with flour and water

December 8, 2019October 16, 2019 by hentis

How to make gravy with flour and water – Slurry vs. Roux method of making gravy

Slurry vs. Roux method of making gravy

I usually use the slurry method with flour which I believe is the easiest and most consistent for the home cook.

The slurry method uses flour (although cornstarch and arrowroot also can be used). The flour is mixed with a cold liquid, usually water, and combine until there are no lumps. I like using a Tupperware shaker, but just a bowl and whisk will do.

With this method, the flour starch is hydrated enough to prevent lumps before sturred into the drippings and liquid slowly. It is then brought to a boil which will help the liquid absorb and cook the “raw” out of the flour.

You can add more thickener if needed or dilute the gravy with some broth or water if needed. I like about 2 tablespoons of flour to thicken 1 cup of gravy. I prefer a little fat in the drippings.

The roux method starts with fat in a pan. Flour is added, and it is cooked until browning some to cook out the raw flour taste, usually only a few minutes. A ratio of 2 tablespoons of flour to 2 tablespoons of fat will thicken 1 cup of liquid.

I find the slurry method easier for home. Leave the drippings in the pan. Add some broth if you need to and thicken away. No need to get all the bits of meat or veggies out of the drippings.

With the slurry method, you add more flour mixture to thicken. With the roux method, you don’t add all the liquid at the start and then add more liquid to thin.

How to make gravy with flour and water – Instructions for Gravy with the Slurry Method

Key ratio: for 1 cup of gravy you will need 1 cup of broth and 2 tablespoons flour. Drippings from cooking and 2 tablespoons per cup of gravy is very good.

Equipment: Tupperware Quick Shaker is recommended, but a bowl and whisk will do, stove top pan with a large bottom, a large slotted spoon or whisk.

Combine about equal amounts of AP flour and COLD water or broth in your Tupperware Quick Shaker (or a bowl and whisk). I generally make about 50% more than I estimate I need so I can thicken a bit more if needed later.

Shake vigorously and continuously. Get it all mixed. You want about 2 tablespoons of flour per cup of gravy you are making.

You need fluid from your meat with some fat in it. You could add broth or other liquid to get to the volume you want to make. You can also add soup base or bullion for more flavor.

The liquid needs to be in a stovetop-safe pan. Now over medium-high heat, bring the liquid to a boil. Turn on two burners if the pan will cover them.

Gravy compound abtd process of makietg same

Slowly add the flour mixture to the area of hardest boil SLOWLY while VIGOROUSLY stirring with a slotted spoon or whisk. Turn the heat down a bit.

Pay attention to the thickness and stop adding the flour mixture when you get almost to the consistency you want. It will thicken a little with the cooking in the next step.

Continue to cook for another 2-3 minutes while still stirring continuously then remove from heat and serve immediately. This will cook the “raw” taste out of the flour.

How to make gravy with flour and water – NOTES: The Tupperware Quick Shaker is great in this technique. These are about $13 on Amazon, eBay, a Tupperware dealer or a mall kiosk near you. Google is your friend again.

How to make gravy with flour and water – Instructions for the Roux Method of Making Gravy

Key ratio: for 1 cup of gravy you will need 1 cup of broth, 2 tablespoons fat and 2 tablespoons flour.

Over medium-high heat, heat your fat (butter, drippings from meat, etc.). When hot add an equal amount of flour slowly while stirring or whisking continuously.

Cook until browning some. Then slowly add the liquid for the gravy. Add most of the liquid but not all.

Cornstarch versus Flour for Gravy

How to make gravy with flour and water – What’s the difference between using cornstarch or flour to make your gravy? Cornstarch does have more thickening power than wheat flour (because it’s pure starch, while flour has some protein in it). So usually you need a little less cornstarch than flour for the equivalent thickening power.

That said, we are using equal amounts for either flour or cornstarch in this method because we vary the amount of liquid we add and we reduce the gravy by simmering it, to get to the desired thickness.

Cornstarch also has this property that if you cook it in the gravy too long, it will lose its thickening power and the gravy will become thin again. It will also lose some thickness if refrigerated and reheated. If that happens, you’ll have to add more cornstarch slurry and heat the gravy to thicken it up again.

If you use flour, you’ll want to brown the flour a bit in the fat before adding liquid. Browning adds more flavor to the gravy and gets rid of the raw flour taste. You’re basically making a roux.

We find that a flour-based gravy holds up better and reheats better later, which is why we tend to prefer using flour over cornstarch to make gravy, unless we have a guest who is eating gluten-free.

Heterocyclic amine content in beef cooked by different methods to varying degrees of doneness and gravy made from meat drippings