Click HERE to see this recipe at my new website!Today I'm breaking the official lunch lady code. I'm divulging a "secret" school recipe. OK, it's probably not secret, but I feel like I'm doing something bad... and I like it!! A while back (while I was still a substitute custodian at the elementary school) I got an email from a friend asking if I could get my hands on the schools hamburger gravy recipe. My eyes lit up. I always loved the schools gravy, but could never figure out how to make it. This was my chance to snag the recipe. I had been working at the school for several months and couldn't believe I hadn't thought of the idea myself. I marched in the kitchen with purpose the day I asked the school cook Rose for the recipe and she happily spilled the beans. When it was gravy day at school I was so excited because it had been years since I eaten the real deal. I seriously considered licking the plate. It was SO good!!! Rose was so impressed by my enthusiasm she sent an extra portion of it home with me to photograph for you. I hope you enjoy this gravy recipe as much as I do. I'm giving you the exact school recipe, so I'm sure you'll want to cut it down (unless you need to feed over 100 people!). Enjoy :)
**UPDATE** I wanted to let you know I raided the spice cabinet and found the kitchen bouquet. It's a liquid browning and seasoning sauce. Unless you already own this item and know you like it I wouldn't buy a bottle of it. The other school cook says they don't always use it and you can't tell the difference!
NORTHWEST HAMBURGER GRAVY
30 lb ground beef
2 gallons water
2 cups beef base
1 TBSP pepper
2 TBSP kitchen bouquet
3 cups corn starch mixed with 4 cups water
Cook, drain and rinse ground beef (the school boils it). Crumble meat until its a very fine texture (look at picture). Bring 2 gallons water to a boil. Add beef base, pepper and kitchen bouquet. Mix in corn starch and water mixture and stir until thickened. Add cooked ground beef. This recipe makes 177 2 oz. servings.
*The school serves this with mashed potatoes*
Scaled down version
2 lb ground beef
2 1/4 cups water
2 1/4 TBSP beef base (you can buy it in a jar at walmart- is much better than bouillon
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp kitchen bouquet (optional- mostly just gives it a richer color)
3 1/2 TBSP corn starch mixed with 1/4 cup water
Comments
1 lb. ground beef
1 cup water
2 tbl. Beef base
1/8 tsp. pepper
¼ tsp. kitchen bouquet
1 ½ tbl. Corn starch mixed with 1/4 cup water
My grandmother was a farmer's wife and an elementary school lunchroom manager. She was an amazing cook. When I was little (around 4 or 5) I can remember going to work with her and hanging out in the school kitchen. I loved it because I got to eat all the yummy homemade rolls that I wanted.
Good for you snagging what looks like a wonderful recipe.
http://www.practicallyedible.com/edible.nsf/pages/kitchenbouquet
Just stopped by from SITS to say hi; hope you will do the same.
I do find that sometimes I seem to go a bit heavy on the beef base and it becomes too salty. I just add a few squirts of lemon juice and it balances out perfectly.
Thanks for posting this! I had a hilarious life-affirming moment when I found this blog -- thanks to LadyJayPee's foresight in identifying this Seattle school cafeteria wonder as "meat blanquette on mashed potatoes"! Checking my school's weekly lunch menu to avoid missing this super comfort food was one of my earliest steps in developing life planning skills! Although I've occasionally mustered up a version of this using a packet of au jus mix and ground pork (more tender than beef), it never quite hit the mark. Tonight, though, I'm going to see about whipping up the Real Deal! Thanks for bringing back an oldie but goodie!