For the best mushroom gravy recipe, look no further! This is easy to make and has an incredible depth of flavor! You’re going to love this versatile sauce!
If you’re looking for a delicious brown mushroom gravy, look no further!
Absolutely nothing beats homemade when it comes to gravy and there is no reason whatsoever to resort to the packaged stuff because one, homemade is easy enough to make; two, the packaged stuff is full of junk ingredients; and three, packaged doesn’t come anywhere close to the flavor of made-from-scratch gravy!
Tips for Making the Best Mushroom Gravy
For a mushroom gravy with great depth of flavor, here are a few tips: Butter is a great option for sauteing the onions and mushrooms, but for even more flavor use beef drippings, lard or bacon grease. Then cook the onions until they’re nicely golden brown, which is key to the flavor of the gravy. Do the same with the mushrooms, caramelizing them for optimal flavor. While cornstarch can be used for thickening, flour is the best choice for flavor. Add some extra butter to the caramelized onions and mushrooms, then add the flour and cook it for a couple of minutes. This roux-like method is absolutely key to the flavor of the gravy.
Serve this delicious brown mushroom gravy over roasts, steaks, meatloaf, roast chicken, potatoes, Yorkshire puddings, vegetables and more!
Melt the butter (or beef drippings, lard or bacon grease) in a pan over medium-high heat and fry the onions until beginning to brown, 5-7 minutes. Add the garlic and cook another minute.
Add the mushrooms and cook 5-7 minutes or until golden and the liquid from the mushrooms has evaporated.
Add the butter and melt. Add the flour, stir to combine and cook for 2 minutes, stirring continually.
Add the beef broth, thyme, salt and pepper. Whisk continually until the gravy is thickened. Cover and simmer on low, stirring occasionally, for 5-10 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste. If you prefer the gravy thinner add a little more water.
Enjoy!
Try this Brown Mushroom Gravy with our Authentic German Jägerschnitzel!
Be sure to also try our BEST Onion Gravy!
And our BEST Turkey Gravy!
BEST Brown Mushroom Gravy (from scratch)
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons butter, bacon grease, lard or beef drippings
- 1 yellow onion ,finely chopped
- 1 clove garlic ,minced
- 16 ounces fresh mushrooms of choice (I used button mushrooms in the photos) ,cleaned and sliced
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2 cups strong beef broth
- 1-2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar (according to taste)
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt plus more to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- Optional: For a creamy gravy, add a few tablespoons of heavy cream at the end
Instructions
- Melt the butter (or bacon grease, lard or beef drippings - any of these will yield the most flavor) in a pan over medium-high heat and fry the onions until beginning to brown. Add the garlic and cook another minute.
- Add the mushrooms and cook 5-7 minutes or until golden and the liquid from the mushrooms has evaporated.
- Add the butter and melt. Add the flour, stir to combine and cook for about 2 minutes, stirring continually.
- Add the beef broth, vinegar, thyme, sugar, salt and pepper. Whisk continually until the gravy is thickened. Cover and simmer on low, stirring occasionally, for 5-10 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste. If you prefer the gravy thinner add a little more water (or heavy cream if using)
Cindy Louwho says
No, no and no. This is anything BUT authentic. Jägersoße does NOT have balsamic vinegar for the love of god. It has red wine. And bacon. SMH.
Adam Bortz says
No one said it WAS authentic Jägersoße. Balsamic vinegar is made from red wine, it is just left until the alcohol is evaporated off. you are getting almost the same flavors. if you fully read the recipe you would see at the base it says “Notes
**If using this gravy for German Jägerschnitzel and you prefer a more basic, traditional gravy, omit the balsamic vinegar and thyme” I personally love this gravy, I use it on many things other than jeager schnitzel. Great on meatballs as well with pasta such as homestyle egg noodle.
Chef Bill says
My dear Adam. Having never been to Germany, I can’t speak to the authenticity of this recipe. However, the flavor of Balsamic vinegar is nothing like that of red wine. Balsamic vinegar, unlike most vinegars, is not made directly from wine but rather from grape must, a concentrated syrup made from boiled down grape juice. As a Chef, I’ve made dozens of variations of this recipe, including this one. My favorite “tweak” if you will, is to add a quarter cup of a good dark German beer along with the beef stock. Is it “authentic”? No idea. But, it’s dang good!
Hans says
The problem with a lot of people is they know very little about cooking. I cooked for 10 years in Ialian, Austrian , American, Bbq, Seafood, etc… Food is diff. from region to region, just like any food in the U.S. Some people have never had flavorful food. I grew up eating S.O.S. and fried chix, but branched out and tried many variations of dishes. I have lived in Germany and only like certain types of Greman recipes.
Elisabeth Reichert says
What happened to the white wine and sour cream. The gravy for jagerschnitzel always has sour cream added in at the end.
Anonymous says
no it does not
Angered chef says
What is wrong with you guys? OMG the complaints! This is a recipe for a damn good gravy NOT a recipe for jagerschnitzel!!!
Anonymous says
You’re thinking of Hungarian goulash.
Deden says
how long it can be stored in fridge
Doreen Kirby says
This gravy recipe sounds so delicious! I can’t wait to make it. Thanks.
Mary Kay says
Fabulous recipe, have received nothing but compliments when I’ve served it.
This recipe is a keeper!
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Wonderful, Mary Kay, thanks so much!
Mary Ann Boorn says
Wonderful, delicious gravy! Served with meatballs over rice! Delish!!! Thanks for the great gravy recipe.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Mary Ann, thank you!
Ola says
I’ve made this recipe twice now! I also added the broth that was left after cooking dried mushrooms, that gives an additional wonderful layer of flavour. Thanks for the recipe! (PS. I’m German and I would not hesitate to put the non-balsamic version of this recipe on a Schnitzel!)
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Fantastic, Ola, thank you so much!
Cyndy says
I made this gravy and served it with jaegerschnitzel, it was wonderful!! We are having it again for our Christmas dinner!🎄🥰
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
That’s wonderful, Cyndy, I’m so glad you all enjoyed it, thank you!
Anthony says
This is the most incredible gravy I’ve ever tried. It’s so easy to make as well. My family loves it. I tried it with the vinegar once and all other times without it still amazing both ways but to me better without the vinegar.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Fantastic, Anthony, thanks so much!
Serena says
been looking for a mushroom gravy that is BROWN and doesn’t use wine. I’m not a wine drinker and I don’t want to go buy a whole bottle of wine just to use it for gravy one time for one person (me!) so this is a great substitute! Going to try it tomorrow over some rice.
Karen says
Excellent gravy. I made these to serve with meatballs and,everyone loved,them. Thank!
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Wonderful, Karen, thank you!
Danielle says
Ive made this recipe several times for my Russian German husband and he loves it!!! Its amazing and we have it in schnitzel 💋
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Fantastic, Danielle, thanks so much!
Sherry Knowles says
I’ve made this gravy for the second time today and its definitely a keeper! I use it to smother my oven baked steak. Needed to make it gluten-free so I used a mixture of sorghum flour (2TBSP), brown rice flour (1TBSP) and potato flour (1TBSP) for the 4 TBSP all-purpose flour. And it worked perfectly.
Thanks so much for the recipe.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Fantastic, Sherry, I’m so glad you enjoyed it and thanks for the GF info!
Pam says
Oh my goodness! I don’t know why I never made mushroom gravy from scratch. I used approximately 8 oz of baby Bella mushrooms, chopped fine and omitted the balsamic vinegar and dried thyme. This recipe is a keeper! Yum!
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Fantastic, Pam, thanks so much!
Tracey says
I’ve made this mushroom gravy three times now! I’m making Jägerschnitzel for our friends tonight so we will once again have this delicious gravy.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
That’s awesome, Tracey! Thank you and have a wonderful dinner party with your friends tonight!
Robert Ryan says
Made the mushroom gravy for Jaeger Schnitzel and it was very delicious. Will have to check out your other recipes so Thank You!
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Thanks so much, Robert, and I hope you enjoy the other recipes too!
Greg Miller says
I made this as a side dish mixed with a casarecce (curly noodle) pasta, served along with a pesto pork chop and air fryer garlic parmesan broccoli and it was spectacular. It has a great depth of flavor and balances really nicely with the pasta. It would also be very good with mashed potatoes. Highly recommend.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
That sounds fabulous, Greg, and I’m so glad you enjoyed the gravy, thank you!
Crystal says
Due to COVID-19 our two week trip to The Netherlands and Germany was cancelled. My four children, husband and myself were to travel. I decided when it was going to be apparent that we would not be traveling that I would research and then prepare German recipes for my family. I have several Dutch recipes as my husband has lived in The Netherlands and speaks Dutch. In my research I stumbled upon your website.
Your recipes for schnitzel and spaetzle are amazing. I had tried to make spaetzle few times prior using another recipe and thought I would swear it off mainly because my dough was cooking to my spaetzle maker. My spaetzle came out perfect. The Jägerschnitzel turned out delicious, in fact my mushroom hating husband ate the sauce!
Thank you for sharing your recipes and helping me provide a little Germany for my family.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Wonderful, Crystal, I’m so glad you enjoyed all three recipes, thank you! I’m so sorry your trip was cancelled, I can imagine how disappointed you all must be. I love your plan to cook German recipes for your family. We have a two-week trip to Germany and Austria with our kids booked for September and are crossing our fingers that travel will be possible by then. If not we will be doing the same thing you are – experiencing those countries vicariously through good food :) I hope you visit my site again, we have lots of delicious German recipes! Here are some more: https://www.daringgourmet.com/category/food/by-country/western-european/germany/
Jim says
Any suggestions for replacing the beef broth? or maybe how to make it? Have all the other ingredients but stuck in quarantine :)
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Hi Jim, you can use chicken or vegetable broth instead – hopefully you have one of those on hand. Stay well!
George says
Hello,
I haven’t made your recipe yet but will soon. I’m new to the art of cooking so reading your recipes is like walking around an art gallery. One big problem I have is trying to have all main course items ready at the same time. I get overwhelmed when trying to keep everything warm and never enough room in the oven or counter space.
Please spend a little time suggesting the order in which items need to be prepared and which can be prepared ahead of time.
I stumbled on your site looking for a schnitzel recipe with mushroom sauce I look forward to making it.
Thank you for your time helping others to cook better.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Thanks for the suggestion, George. I’m happy that you’re delving into the art of cooking and I wish you the best of success. May there be many, many delicious home-cooked meals on your horizon! :)
Kim Trueman says
Made this mushroom gravy for our steak, veggies and roast potatoes dinner! I changed the recipe (FYI it really does not need changing) from balsamic vinegar to red wine because he dislikes it, and I think the secret ingredient to add to mushrooms when sautéing them is soy sauce-however this made the gravy very salty! But still the man said it was the best mushroom gravy he has tasted! Thank you for the recipe I will definitely be making it again!
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Fantastic, Kim, I’m so glad it was a hit, thank you!
phil says
Thanks—-I use homemade venison stock—–gravy served over venison backstrap with Irish colcannon and sauteed asparagus on the side—-bannock really fits into this program—-also this goes nicely with loaded hamburger steaks—–