Sausage Gravy & Biscuits

Inspired by many - Pants in the Kitchen, USA

File_001+%283%29.jpg
File_001+%282%29.jpg
IMG_1025.jpg
SQSK6133.jpg

I rarely eat breakfast during the week these days. It’s my sacrifice for getting to sleep in just a little bit longer before the alarm goes off for work. During the weekend, I make up my losses by going all out. Homemade sausage gravy with homemade flaky, buttermilk biscuits are the ultimate breakfast experience. You can make bacon and eggs any day. Why not kick it up to the extreme?

Parts of this recipe were adapted from Alton Brown’s recipe for breakfast sausage. Alton grinds his pork in a food processor which is amazing for making sausage patties but will make it difficult to make a homogeneous gravy. I take it a step further and use an actual meat grinder. If you like your protein like I do, then a meat grinder is an investment worth looking into. It will change your life. If that’s not something you’re ready for then use store bought ground pork. The seasoning in this will still make the best sausage gravy you’ve ever had.

INGREDIENTS

BREAKFAST SAUSAGE MIX (Comfortably serves 4):

  • 1 lb pork shoulder (or ground pork if not grinding yourself)

  • 1 tsp salt

  • 1 tsp pepper

  • 1 tsp finely chopped sage

  • 1 tsp fresh thyme leaves removed from stem

  • ½ tsp finely chopped rosemary

  • ½ TBS brown sugar

  • ¼ tsp cayenne pepper

  • ¼ tsp red pepper flakes

  • ¼ tsp ground nutmeg (optional)

SAUSAGE GRAVY:

  • Ground pork (see above duh!)

  • ¼ cup flour

  • 2 cups whole milk

  • salt and pepper to taste

  • 1 TBS Canola oil

BUTTERMILK BISCUITS (makes 8 biscuits):

  • 1 ½ cups flour

  • 2 TBS baking powder

  • 1 tsp sugar

  • 1 tsp salt

  • 1 cup buttermilk

  • 1 stick unsalted butter, FROZEN overnight (8 TBS)

  • Melted butter for serving

GO FOR IT

BREAKFAST SAUSAGE MIX:

  1. If grinding pork, use coarsest grind setting available (if meat is extremely lean, don’t be afraid to throw a small amount of the fat back in there to mix in)

  2. Using your hands, mix ground pork with salt, pepper, sage, thyme, rosemary, brown sugar, cayenne, pepper flakes, and nutmeg if using, then set aside

SAUSAGE GRAVY:

  1. Heat oil over medium heat in a skillet

  2. Brown sausage in pan until no longer pink

  3. Sprinkle in flour a little bit at a time while stiring until all flour is soaked up by the sausage, then stir for 1 minute to continue browning process

  4. Slowly stir in the milk, keeping heat at a low simmer, then continue stirring until gravy thickens (about 10 minutes)

BUTTERMILK BISCUITS:

  1. Using a large mixing bowl, mix flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt

  2. Take FROZEN butter out of freezer and quickly grate entire butter stick like cheese using gloves if available or, better yet, the grating attachment of a food processor for quick processing

  3. Mix frozen butter flakes into the dry ingredient mixture

  4. Add buttermilk and stir in with silicon spatula while forming a sticky ball (it will be FAR stickier than a bread or pizza dough but don’t worry as long a still workable)

  5. On a clean, floured surface, use a rolling pin (with flour dusted on it to compensate for the sticky dough) and roll dough into a rectangle until 1 inch thick

  6. Using a scrapper or heavy metal spatula, fold dough onto itself either like a book or tri-fold

  7. Continue to roll out into 1 inch rectangle and repeat process 5-6 times

  8. Using a floured biscuit cutter or round glass with thin edges about the size of a biscuit, cut out 8 (or whatever you can manage) biscuits (do not twist cutter or glass or biscuits will not rise well - press down hard)

  9. Remaining dough can be rolled out again by repeating steps, but be aware that those biscuits will not be as flaky as your main batch

  10. On a baking sheet, bake biscuits in 425° oven until golden brown (10-15 minutes)

  11. When finished, remove biscuits from oven and brush with melted butter before serving

FINISHING STEPS:

  1. Take a hot biscuit and pull it apart into 2 pieces

  2. Cover biscuit with warm sausage gravy

  3. Notice you need a nice and fork - ENJOY!

NOTES:

You of course do not have to make your own buttermilk biscuits. But, as with most things, they will taste far better than the frozen ones you can get in a can at the grocery store. If you do decide to go for it, know a few things. The frozen butter is essential. It will contribute to the buttery flakiness throughout the entire biscuit. This is why I suggest using gloves or using a food processor for a quick grate. The longer you give the butter to melt before it all goes in the oven, the less flaky your biscuits will be.

Additionally, I talk about folding your dough over like a book or like a tri-fold. The tri-fold will obviously create more layers to your biscuit but is also a bit more difficult to master. If you are not comfortable with this process, fold your biscuits once over like a book and work your way up as your make these in the future.

You might also be lacking a meat grinder. As I said, Alton Brown’s food processor trick or store bought ground pork will work just fine here but please do not skimp out on fresh herbs and seasoning for whatever pork you do use. Use that fresh thyme, rosemary, and sage and tell me that’s not absolutely worth it.