A nice dark roux is a beautiful thing, and it makes stews and gumbos just so much better. I like to always have some in the fridge. Anyway, I used to spend over an hour at the stove, stirring and stirring, to make roux until my brilliant son showed me the easier way! It still takes a good long while, but you only have to give it a quick stir every 20 minutes.
2 parts all-purpose flour
1 part vegatable oil
Cast iron pot or skillet. (I like an enameled La Creuset type pot)
Oven: 350 degrees
Mix together flour and oil on the stovetop on medium heat until it is all mixed together.
Put it in the oven (no lid) and set your timer for 20 minutes. When the timer goes off, give it a stir and re-set the timer. Keep doing this until the roux is the color of caramel. Then, just watch it and stir about every 3 to 5 minutes until it deepens to a light chocolaty color. It can take up to 2 hours, depending on how much roux you are making. Remove from hot pan and let cool to room temperature, stirring a couple of times so the oil doesn't all float to the top.
You can keep this roux in the refrigerator in a tightly covered jar pretty much indefinitely. So I usually do 4 cups flour to 2 cups oil.
