Comfort foods were developed through the ages by cooking with what we had on hand. Tomato Gravy is a good example of this. During hard times, the times we need comforting foods, we cook meals using whatever foods are readily available. The dishes are often simple, but always filling. Simple meals filling big, simmering pots on top of the stove would warm the family.

Even though we may not have had to forage for our food, our grandparents may have, and it is evident in their meals. Any time we gather around their table, we learn what it’s like to have food created out of necessity. Their meals become our comfort foods, and those recipes are passed along to each generation.

When it comes to varieties in recipes, Tomato Gravy is at the top of the list. There are as many variations as there are cooks. We make simple tomato gravy during the winter with whatever we have on hand – if I have canned diced tomatoes, that’s what I use. If I have tomato sauce, I use that. If the garden is ripe, I pick tomatoes. If I have onion on hand, I might throw some in. The basic flour and oil thickened tomatoes recipe has a lot of room for tweaking.

One thing most cooks agree with is that you have to start with a nice thickened oil and flour mixture. Making this thickener, or roux, takes a little bit of practice, but you’ll be glad you learned how to make it right. The trick is to keep stirring until the roux thickens, turns a little golden color and the flour taste cooks out. Some cooks like to use a mixture of oil and butter for extra flavor, but never use butter alone as it will easily burn.

You can serve tomato gravy as a main dish or a side dish. Spooned over some homemade biscuits with a little salad on the side, you have a great lunch. Grill some fish and serve some oven fried potato wedges with tomato gravy drizzled on top and you have a filling dinner. Tomato gravy can be spooned over hot vegetables or mixed into pasta or rice for a delicious, and satisfying meal anytime.

If you don’t have a family recipe for tomato gravy, you can find recipes in cookbooks and on internet recipe sites. One thing you’ll notice when you start looking is that there is a tremendous variety of recipes. Don’t get overwhelmed. Rather, start with the simplest recipe you can find and don’t get distracted with recipes that have too many ingredients for your liking. Even the simplest recipe made with just oil, flour, water, tomatoes, and salt, will be tasty when served on some homemade biscuits.

When you’re looking for recipes, you’ll see a couple featuring cooks making tomato gravy in cast iron skillets. That’s very pretty but I can’t recommend you do this. Because tomatoes are acidic, they will ruin the patina, the black coating, on your cast iron skillet. Save your pretty cast iron skillets for other dishes, like roasts and chicken.

Harvesting and gathering simple foods that were readily available to us is how we created comfort foods. Taking only a couple tomatoes and blending them with a roux creates one of the most simple comfort foods we know – tomato gravy. The next time you want a little comfort, whip up a warm and wonderful Tomato Gravy and treat your family to a real labor of love.

It’s easy to learn how to make tomato gravy with a few simple recipes. A good old fashioned recipe doesn’t have to be difficult when you learn the basics – and the results are delicious!