‘I use Jamie Oliver’s Christmas gravy method – the results are mind-blowing’

As much as many of us totally love Day, it’s no secret that the can be stressful.

There’s so much to do in so little time, and it’s never easy to manage. But one man has said using ‘s gravy could make all the difference.

Mike Honour previously gave it a whirl, and he admitted it’s pretty game changing. In a video, he confessed the Christmas gravy is “banging”, and you can even get ahead by using the .

The tasty sauce can be made days in advance, so all you need to do is warm it up when the big day arrives. You can’t beat getting one step ahead after all.

Since Mike shared the video, other social media users agreed that it’s a great . The video makes it look all the more tempting too.

• 2 onions
• 2 carrots
• 2 sticks of celery
• 2 rashers of higher-welfare smoked streaky bacon
• 2 fresh bay leaves
• 2 sprigs of fresh sage
• 2 sprigs of fresh rosemary
• 2 star anise
• 10 free-range chicken wings or 3 chicken drumsticks and 3 chicken legs
• Olive oil

Optional

• 60ml sherry or port
• 4 tablespoons plain flour
• 2 tablespoons cranberry sauce

Method

• Preheat the oven to 180ºC/350ºF/Gas 4.
• Peel the onions, wash the carrots and chop up with the celery and bacon. Then pop the veg, bay leaves, sage, rosemary and star anise into a strong high-sided roasting tray, and put the chopped bacon on top.
• Add the chicken – making sure to break and bash them first if you’re using wings. Drizzle with oil, add some sea salt and black pepper. Mix everything together and cook for around an hour.
• Once cooked, take the tray out of the oven, and move it to a low heat on the hob. Give everything a good mash together with a potato masher. If you want to add a little booze, now is the time to do it, and let it cook for a few minutes.
• Gradually stir in the flour, and add two litres of boiling kettle water. Allow this to simmer for half an hour, or until thickened and reduced, and make sure you give it a stir every now and then.
• When the gravy has reached your desired consistency, pour it through a sieve into a large bowl. Make sure you get all the tasty bits by pushing it through with the back of a spoon. Season it, allow it to cool down, and pour into containers or bags. You can then store it in the fridge or freezer until ready to use on Christmas Day.

If you decide to use chicken drumsticks and legs to make the gravy, it’s vital not to discard the leftover mixture in your sieve. This is because you can avoid major waste.

After you’ve sieved the ingredients, and allowed them to cool down, you can carefully pick through the chicken and throw away the bones. Once you’ve reclaimed the chunks of meat, you can use it to make another tasty meal.

You just need to make sure you’re careful, so take plenty of time to rid all the bones. But, when it comes to Christmas Day and your turkey is cooked, you simply need to pour the defrosted gravy into the tray with the leftover turkey juices.

Then, bring it to the boil over a hob, while ensuring you scrape up all the sticky bits from the bottom. Give it a taste, and add a little cranberry sauce to balance the flavours.

Once hot, you can carefully strain it through a sieve into a pan, and simply leave it simmering on a low heat until you’re ready to dish up. Before you serve, make sure you rid any fat that accumulates on the top.