Homemade Sausage Gravy

There’s something hard to beat about warm homemade sausage gravy spooned over freshly baked biscuits. This easy sausage gravy is made from scratch with browned pork sausage, whole milk, butter, onion, garlic, and savory herbs for a rich, creamy gravy packed with flavor.

It comes together right in the same skillet, which means all those flavorful browned bits from the sausage become part of the gravy. Serve it over warm biscuits for a hearty breakfast the whole family can enjoy.

• Made completely from scratch with simple ingredients.
• One-skillet recipe with very little cleanup.
• Rich and creamy without needing heavy cream.
• Full of savory flavor from pork sausage, garlic, onion, sage, and thyme.
• Perfect for biscuits and gravy, but delicious with other breakfast favorites too.
• Ready without a complicated gravy-making process.

Watch how I make this in the video above

12 oz pork sausage links

Remove the sausage from the casings before cooking. Breaking the sausage into smaller pieces as it browns distributes it throughout the gravy.

1½ cups whole milk

Whole milk gives the gravy a creamy consistency without making it overly heavy.

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

The flour combines with the fat in the skillet to thicken the gravy.

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Butter adds richness and provides additional fat for the flour.

¼ cup white onion, diced

Cooking the onion until translucent adds savory flavor without leaving large pieces of raw-tasting onion in the finished gravy.

2 garlic cloves, minced

Fresh garlic gives the gravy another layer of flavor.

½ teaspoon black pepper

Black pepper is a classic flavor in sausage gravy.

1 teaspoon ground sage

Sage pairs especially well with pork sausage and gives the gravy a warm, savory flavor.

½ teaspoon ground thyme

A little thyme complements the sausage and sage without overpowering the gravy.

Salt, to taste

Wait until the end before adding your final salt because pork sausage can already be fairly salty.

Oil

Just enough to lightly coat the bottom of the skillet.

Step 1: Remove the sausage from the casings

Remove the pork sausage from its casings.

You can discard the casings—you’ll only be using the sausage filling for the gravy.

Step 2: Brown the sausage

Heat a skillet over medium-high heat and add just enough oil to lightly coat the bottom.

Add the sausage and break it apart with a spatula or wooden spoon as it cooks.

Cook until the sausage is browned and completely cooked through.

Once browned, reduce the heat to medium.

Don’t drain the skillet unless there’s an excessive amount of grease. A little rendered sausage fat adds flavor and helps create the base for the gravy.

Step 3: Add the butter and onion

Keeping the cooked sausage in the same skillet, add 2 tablespoons of unsalted butter.

Once the butter has melted, add ¼ cup diced white onion.

Cook until the onion becomes soft and translucent.

Step 4: Add the garlic

Add 2 minced garlic cloves and cook briefly until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

Keep an eye on it here. Garlic can burn quickly, and burned garlic will make the gravy bitter.

Step 5: Add the flour

Sprinkle 2 tablespoons of all-purpose flour over the sausage mixture.

Stir well so the flour coats the sausage and combines with the butter and fat in the skillet.

Cook for approximately 1 minute, stirring, to cook out the raw flour taste.

Step 6: Add the seasonings

Add:

• ½ teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon ground sage
• ½ teaspoon ground thyme

Stir everything together so the seasonings are evenly distributed throughout the sausage mixture.

Step 7: Gradually add the milk

Slowly pour in 1½ cups whole milk, adding it gradually while stirring continuously.

Adding the milk gradually helps the flour incorporate smoothly and prevents lumps.

Continue stirring as the mixture heats and begins to thicken.

Step 8: Reduce the heat

Once the gravy just begins to bubble, reduce the heat to low.

Continue stirring until the gravy reaches your desired consistency.

One little wording change from your original instructions: I wouldn’t tell readers to let the milk come to a hard boil. A gentle bubbling/simmer is plenty and gives you better control over a milk-based gravy.

Step 9: Season and serve

Taste the gravy and add salt as needed.

Remove it from the heat and serve warm over freshly baked biscuits.

And remember: the gravy will continue to thicken slightly as it sits.

Tips for the Best Sausage Gravy

Don’t drain away all that sausage flavor

The browned bits and a reasonable amount of rendered sausage fat left in the skillet contribute a lot of flavor to the gravy.

Cook the flour before adding milk

Give the flour about a minute in the skillet. You’re not trying to brown it—you just want to remove that raw flour taste.

Add the milk gradually

Don’t dump all 1½ cups in at once. Pouring slowly while stirring makes it much easier to create a smooth gravy.

Keep stirring

Once the milk goes in, stay with it. Stirring helps prevent scorching on the bottom and keeps the gravy smooth.

Don’t overcook it

Take the gravy off the heat when it’s slightly looser than you ultimately want it. It thickens as it cools.

If your gravy gets too thick

Stir in a small splash of milk until it reaches the consistency you want.

If your gravy is too thin

Let it gently simmer a little longer while stirring. Give the flour time to do its job before adding anything else.

Salt at the end

This one matters. Sausage brands vary considerably in sodium. Seasoning with salt before tasting the finished gravy makes it much easier to accidentally over salt it.

Obviously, biscuits are the star here. 😋

But sausage gravy also works well with:

• Homemade biscuits
• Scrambled eggs
• Fried eggs
• Hash browns
• Skillet potatoes Toast

Allow leftover sausage gravy to cool before transferring it to an airtight container.

Store it in the refrigerator for up to 3–4 days.

How to Reheat Sausage Gravy

Reheat the gravy gently in a saucepan or skillet over low heat, stirring frequently.

Because gravy thickens considerably after refrigeration, add a splash of milk as needed while reheating until you get the creamy consistency back.

Looking for more breakfast recipes? Try one of these easy recipes next:

Did you make this sausage gravy? Leave a star rating and let me know how it turned out!