Making turkey gravy -- necks but no giblets?

[stomsf]

So I am making gravy for our potluck this year (buying a turkey elsewhere, fully cooked) and am thinking how will I do a true turkey gravy without the neck and giblets.... When lo and behold I am at Safeway and see that they have turkey necks for sale.

So I have turkey necks but no giblets.... Will my gravy suffer without them?

[smtucker]

We smoke our turkey, so no drippings. Today I roasted some turkey wings, and they are now in the oven turning into stock. I have done this for about 6 years, and the gravy is really good. You might consider doing this, picking up some gizzards at the market, and making some of the best gravy you have ever had.

[iL Divo]

I'd go to the butcher and ask if you can have a packet of the innards of the bird.
I'd think they'd have them for sale really inexpensively too.
If not I agree with the chicken parts, cook in good stock for a long time rendering the pieces of the bird in the stock, they lend a lot of flavor, whether or not you prefer to chop them up and use them in your gravy is up to you, you can always puree a small amount of [say the liver and giblets or whatever] and imcorporate that into the stock then thicken.

[chefj]

Hack up the necks in to smaller pieces. Mix with Mirepoix and a couple of tablespoons of oil in a roasting pan.
Roast in a hot oven till very brown with some of the onion charred on the edges.
Deglaze with Château de tap or wine. Then transfer to a pot and add either chicken stock(preferable) or water and simmer a couple of hours.
Now you have a nice dark turkey stock for your gravy.

[shanagain]

Double-check your grocer for chicken gizzards. You should get plenty of turkey flavor with the necks, then the added oomph from the gizzards.

[todao]

Try cooking up a bunch of necks (without salt) and combining the stock with something like McCormick® Turkey Gravy Mix. Nobody will ever know the difference. It is, after all, a potluck.