SOUTHERN SAUSAGE GRAVY

SOUTHERN SAUSAGE GRAVY 1 pound of sausage meat (removed from casings it necessary) 2 cloves garlic, chopped 1/2 cup chopped onion (any kind you like) 4 tbsp butter 4 tbsp all purpose flour 1 1/2 cups milk (I used 2%) 1 1/2 cups chicken stock (sodium free or low sodium preferably) (you can just use all milk if you like) (see notes below) 1/2 tsp black pepper salt to season Pinch of chili flakes (optional or to taste) Start by breaking up the sausage meat into small pieces and brown it well over medium to medium high heat. You want to get some good color when browning the sausage, to add extra flavour to the gravy. When the sausage is cooked, remove it from the pan and set aside for later. Turn the pan down to medium to medium low and melt the butter. Add the onions and garlic and cook for only a minute or so to begin softening the onions. Add the flour to the pan and mix it in well. Cook for a minute until foamy. Combine the chicken stock and milk and add to the pan along with the black pepper. Don't add salt yet. Turn the pan to low and simmer slowly for 5 minutes or so, stirring often, until the gravy thickens. Taste the gravy to see if it needs additional salt. Depending on the type of sausage you use, there may be enough salt in it to season the gravy properly. I recommend low sodium chicken stock but if not, this will also add salt to the dish. In any case, seasoning at the end is best way not not OVER season the gravy. Serve over warm biscuits. Notes TIPS: Heating the combination of the milk and stock to scalding in the microwave, or in a pot on the stove top, will speed up the cooking time of the gravy. You can also "double reduce" the stock before using it, to intensify the flavor of the gravy if you like. I often do this for any gravy using stock. Basically take double the amount of stock in the recipe and simmer it until the volume reduces by half. This will make the stock twice as intense, for a richer gravy with more depth of flavor.