You MUST use the black pepper. You MUST use whole milk. And yes, you actually add the bacon grease to the sausage grease. It's just a heart attack waiting to happen...

This is for 200 people:
* 25 pounds ground pork sausage
* 4 cups bacon grease
* 6-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
* 5 gallons whole milk
* 1/4 cup salt OR to taste- do taste while adding
* 2 tablespoons and 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

DIRECTIONS:

1. Brown sausage in a roasting pan over medium-high heat. Set aside, leaving the drippings in the skillet.
2. Mix bacon grease into the sausage drippings. Reduce heat to medium, combine with flour, and stir constantly until mixture just turns golden brown. This take at least a half hour. If you burn it you have to throw it away and start over, so do not turn your back.
3. Gradually whisk milk into skillet. When the mixture is smooth, thickened, and begins to bubble, return the sausage to skillet. Season with salt and pepper. Reduce heat, and simmer for at least 25 minutes, stirring, covering.

The sausage gravy recipe has a LOT of sausage. You can decrease the sausage by 1/3 or increase the gravy by 1/3 to 1/2 and still have plenty of chunks.

Use good sausage, of course; sage or hot is nice. If you have no bacon grease, butter is a possibility, but for heavens sake, if it is a feast, get the bacon grease. Some people add a little garlic or sage, or Tabasco, but die-hard sausage gravy fans will notice.