The Unique, Old-School Gravy Southerners Love To Put On Ham
The lexicon of Southern food is stuffed with strangely named creations that taste heavenly, like old-school Mississippi mud potatoes dressed in a melange of cheese, mayo, and bacon, or the one-bowl wonder that is Texas Tornado cake. Add to the menu red-eye gravy, a thin condiment that is poured over country ham and biscuits in the Deep South for a breakfast you won't soon forget. While some down-home staples like tender okra or perfect fried chicken require practice and know-how to pull off with aplomb, red-eye gravy is abundantly simple. After frying ham in a skillet, you deglaze the pan with black coffee, incorporating the ham fat and coffee into a watery sauce that isn't as heavy as most gravies (unless you thicken it with a pinch of flour or cornmeal, as some meemaws do). However, red-eye gravy will add inimitable character and pep to your meal.
There isn't a definitive answer as to how red-eye gravy earned its evocative moniker. It's been whispered that President Andrew Jackson, a Southern boy by birth and inveterate lover of whiskey, swore by this concoction as a hangover cure that matched his bloodshot eyes. Others say that, when the ham fat separates from the coffee during mixing, it creates an angry red eye in the pan. Maybe it's the fact that the coffee in the mixture will help perk you up over your morning repast? As is the case with the names of hushpuppies, Hoppin' John, and Kentuckian burgoo, perhaps we'll never know the real answer.
Variations on red-eye gravy can add complexity and deliciousness
Unique spins on red-eye gravy abound below the Mason-Dixon line. We've seen the gravy finished with a knob of butter for extra unctuousness, spiced or sweetened with cayenne or brown sugar, respectively, or even invigorated with ketchup or mustard. Occasionally, home chefs will reduce the sauce to spoon-coating thickness, while others thin it even more with water. The fat used to cook the ham may change the flavor profile of the gravy some, whether you use butter, lard, or that perennial Southern treasure, bacon grease. Some folks will really gild the lily and, after thickening the red-eye gravy to more of a viscous consistency, stir in caramelized onions and fried bacon or ham bits. This sounds delicious, but many argue that the result isn't red-eye gravy, the simplicity of which is a feature, not a bug.
Serve your red-eye gravy along with a typical Southern breakfast feast. The fried country ham is practically mandatory, along with fluffy buttermilk biscuits. If you must serve them from a bag or a can, let us know, and we'll look the other way! Grits, fried apples, hashbrown casserole, fried eggs, and a stack of pancakes as tall as your head are all optional. Is ham red meat or not? Better question: who cares? Feel free to pile on the meat with sausage, bacon, or fried chicken. Any of these items can be sloshed with red-eye gravy. Wash it all down with sweet iced tea or even more coffee for a meal that will sustain you all day long!
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