FOOD NEWS
The Pre-Cooked Flour That Will End Your
Gravy Strife
By Linda Larsen
Making gravy involves combining flour with the juices and fat the meat releases as it cooks. If you stir the flour directly into a hot liquid or don’t cook and stir the roux enough, you can end up with a lumpy gravy that tastes like uncooked flour — a situation you can easily avoid using pre-cooked or instant flour.
There are several brands out there, but many chefs swear by Wondra, a Gold Medal brand owned by General Mills. First developed in the 1960s, Wondra flour is made by steaming the raw flour and then drying it — a process that helps the flour dissolve in liquids almost instantly, preventing lumps even if you add it straight to a hot liquid.
To make gravy using Wondra, Bobby Flay suggests sprinkling two tablespoons of the flour into your stock or broth and bringing it to a boil. If your gravy turns out to be too thick or too runny, you can adjust its consistency by adding more liquid or Wondra.