4.97 from 228 votes

Homemade Sausage Gravy Recipe

Name: Homemade Sausage Gravy Recipe
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 15 min
Ingredients: 1 lb pork breakfast sausage (I recommend using sage flavored); ¼ cup all-purpose (plain) flour; 2 ½ cups whole milk; ⅛ teaspoon crushed red pepper (optional); salt and freshly cracked black pepper (to taste)

By Sam MerrittUpdated Sep 08, 2022

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329 Comments

Servings: 6 servings

15 mins

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This is my classic, old-fashioned homemade sausage gravy recipe (also often known as “sawmill gravy”)! Just 4 ingredients and 15 minutes and you can have this classic breakfast staple on your table. Pairs perfectly with my 5-star foolproof homemade biscuits!

sausage gravy served over open faced biscuits on white plate

The Best Sausage Gravy Recipe

When the chilly weather starts to roll around, the first thing I do around here is break out my sausage gravy recipe.

That’s not entirely true, I have it more-than memorized by now, but the skillet comes out, the biscuits go in the oven, and we start getting serious about comfort food. Sweater weather means homemade sausage gravy and biscuits and buttermilk pancakes for breakfast and my best chili recipe and potato soup on weekly dinner rotation.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe:

Super simple to make — beginners & experts will enjoy this recipe, and find equal success with it!
Ready in under 15 minutes
It’s a satisfying, filling, and hearty breakfast gravy
Full of authentic flavor; you won’t find a sausage gravy this tasty on any shelf or even your favorite breakfast spot.

🧂 Ingredients You’ll Need 🧂

Ingredients for sawmill gravy (flour, sausage, salt, pepper, milk) — Ingredients

Simple ingredients, spectacular results. Here’s what you need for my homemade sausage gravy recipe:

Sausage. Search for pork breakfast sausage, which is typically sold in a log as shown above. If you can find a sage variety, grab it, it will make your gravy even more flavorful.
Flour. Use all-purpose flour for this recipe, it serves as the thickener that keeps the gravy from becoming too loose/watery. Some readers have reported success using a 1:1 gluten free flour in place of wheat flour, but I have not personally tried this myself yet.
Milk. Whole milk is best for the proper consistency. Using a lower-fat milk will result in a thinner sausage gravy.
Seasoning. Add salt and pepper to taste, and, if you’d like, just a pinch of crushed red pepper. If the flavor of the gravy tastes anything less than amazing once it’s finished cooking, you most likely just need a few more shakes of salt!

This is just an overview of the ingredients we’re using today. For the full list of amounts and all recipe details, please scroll down to the printable recipe.

How to Make It

collage showing the 4 steps to making sausage gravy (cook sausage, crumble, add flour, add milk)

Cook the sausage in a skillet over medium/high heat, crumbling with a spoon or spatula as you cook.
Cook until the sausage is thoroughly browned and well broken up. No need to drain the meat!
Sprinkle flour over the sausage and stir until the flour is absorbed, then cook a few seconds longer!
While stirring, slowly drizzle in the milk and cook until it’s absorbed. Add crushed red pepper, if using. Let the mixture thicken (stir occasionally) and add salt and pepper to taste!

SAM’S TIP: Use your spoon, spatula or even a whisk to break up any flour clumps after adding to your sausage but before you add the milk. This will keep you from having any flour lumps in your breakfast gravy!

The technique is simple and I have no doubt you’ll find success with this sausage gravy recipe (hundreds already have!), but if you’re more of a visual learner, be sure to check out my how-to video tutorial in the recipe card!

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I make sausage gravy the night before?

Yes, this recipe is a great make-ahead breakfast option! Keep refrigerated in an airtight container and simply reheat in a skillet over medium-low heat the next morning. The gravy will have thickened quite a bit overnight, so add a splash of milk and stir well when you first add it to the skillet and cook until the gravy is heated through.

How can I make my sausage gravy thicker?

My sausage gravy recipe is thickened by the flour that the recipe calls for. When you first add the milk, it will likely seem very runny, but as you continue to cook the mixture, the gravy will thicken. If you like an even thicker gravy than seen here in photos, don’t add more flour, just continue to cook until your desired consistency is reached. As the milk cooks out, it will become thicker!

What is the difference between country gravy and sausage gravy?

The primary difference is that country gravy is typically prepared without meat (quite unlike today’s recipe)! The base is usually built on a base of butter rather than sausage grease. While it’s certainly tasty when done right, it simply doesn’t smother biscuits quite as satisfyingly, if you ask me (though I’d say they both fall slightly short of chocolate gravy 😉!).

a ladle full of homemade sausage gravy recipe being poured over biscuits on white plate

Warm, hearty, and just simply delicious, I hope this homemade sausage gravy recipe will be a new staple in your household cold-weather breakfast rotation. If you try it, please leave me a comment and let me know what you think!

Enjoy!

Let’s cook together! I’ll be walking you through all the steps in my written recipe and video below! If you try this recipe, be sure to tag me on Instagram, and you can also find me on YouTube!

Sausage gravy recipe poured over open faced biscuits

4.97 from 228 votes

Homemade Sausage Gravy Recipe

An old-fashioned homemade sausage gravy recipe, this one is flavorful and foolproof. Serve over my award-winning (and easy!) biscuit recipe.

Recipe includes a how-to video!

Prep: 5

Cook: 10

Total: 15

Servings: servings

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Ingredients

▢ 1 lb (455 g) pork breakfast sausage, I recommend using sage flavored
▢ ¼ cup (31 g) all-purpose (plain) flour
▢ 2 ½ cups (590 ml) whole milk
▢ ⅛ teaspoon crushed red pepper, optional
▢ salt and freshly cracked black pepper, to taste

Instructions

Place sausage in a skillet over medium/high heat.
1 lb (455 g) pork breakfast sausage
Use a spatula or wooden spoon to break up and crumble sausage as it cooks, cooking until completely browned and no pink remains. I don't drain my skillet, you want to have at least a Tablespoon or up to 2 Tablespoons of grease, but if you have much more than this you may wish to drain your skillet.
Sprinkle flour evenly over the sausage crumbles. Stir frequently until flour is absorbed (about 1 minute).
¼ cup (31 g) all-purpose (plain) flour
Slowly drizzle the milk into your skillet, stirring as you pour. Add crushed red pepper, if using.
2 ½ cups (590 ml) whole milk, ⅛ teaspoon crushed red pepper
Continue to cook, stirring frequently until mixture is thickened and desired consistency is reached.
Add salt and pepper to taste and serve warm over homemade biscuits!
salt and freshly cracked black pepper

Notes

Storing/Making in Advance

Sausage gravy can be made the night before you plan to serve. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator. To reheat, add to a skillet over medium/low heat. Gravy will likely be thickened, so add a splash of milk to it and stir well until mixture is heated through.