Béchamel sauce is the sauce that makes everything delicious. You can turn the most basic dish into something fantastic with an extra 10 minutes and a few ingredients that I know you have on hand. Béchamel sauce is sometimes called cream sauce or white sauce.
The Mother of all Sauces
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ingredients:
2 T butter
2 T flour
1 teas salt
1 teas pepper (use white pepper if you are trying to be fancy)
2 cups milk
dash of marjoram
directions:
Melt butter (I only use real butter and you should too) in a large skillet over medium heat. Add flour and stir it into the butter. Allow the flour to cook out. This just takes a minute until it gets all bubbly and thick. This is called a Roux - wow look at me all fancy and speaking French. Don't over-cook your roux. It should not turn brown.
Add salt and pepper at this point.
Add milk. and whisk to combine. Continue cooking on medium heat until it thickens.
This next part is rocket science. Pay careful attention. If you want a thinner sauce add more milk.
Taste it and add more salt and pepper if needed. Now add a sprinkle of marjoram. Don't think I don't know what I'm talking about. Just try it and taste it again (with a clean spoon please - no double dipping here.) The marjoram takes it from homemade to pro doesn't it!?!
also...
After you make this a few times you'll never measure any of these things. You will know what it should look like and what it needs.
Now you can use this beautiful Béchamel sauce with your vegetables like I did here for New Potatoes and Peas in Cream Sauce.
Or you can throw in some grated cheese to make au gratin potatoes or homemade Mac-n-cheese. Or start the whole process with pan drippings from your meat and you've got a yummy country gravy.
Béchamel sauce is one of the "4 Mother Sauces" in the cooking world. I consider it THEE mother sauce.
original publish date
April 28, 2011
sauce, white sauce, cream sauce, au gratin, scalloped, country gravy