The word “sauce” comes from the French word that means “a relish to make food more appetizing.” All types of sauces are important in cooking. A good sauce adds flavor, moisture, richness, color, and visual appeal. Sauces should complement food, not disguise it. You can also use sauces as a contrasting flavor. For example, the sweetness of roosted pork goes well with a Dijon sauce (a brown sauce with Dijon mustard).
Sauces come in many forms and are made in many ways – gravy, salsa, fruit coulis, pan sauces. All of these fall into the broad category of sauces.
There are three sauces we make VERY frequently when catering and running events: Veloute, Bechamel, and Hollandaise. All culinary students must become very comfortable with these three mother sauces.
Veloute
Ingredients
- 2 cups chicken stock
- 1.5 ounce clarified butter
- 1.5 ounce all-purpose flour
- white pepper to taste
- kosher salt to taste
Instructions
- Heat the chicken stock to a simmer in a medium saucepan, then lower the heat so that the stock just stays hot.
Make Roux
- In a separate heavy-bottomed saucepan, melt the clarified butter over medium heat until it becomes frothy. Take care not to let it turn brown.
- Stir the flour into the melted butter a little bit at a time, until it is fully incorporated. Continue to cook until light blond in color. Remove from heat.
- Allow the roux to cool slightly.
- Using a wire whisk, slowly add the roux to the hot chicken stock, whisking vigorously to make sure it’s free of lumps.
- Simmer for about 30 minutes or until the total volume has reduced by about one-third, stirring frequently to make sure the sauce doesn’t scorch at the bottom of the pan. Use a ladle to skim off any impurities that rise to the surface.
- The resulting sauce should be smooth and velvety. If it’s too thick, whisk in a bit more hot stock until it’s just thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.
- Remove the sauce from the heat. For an extra smooth consistency, carefully pour the sauce through a wire mesh strainer lined with a piece of cheesecloth.
Béchamel
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups whole milk
- 30 grams clarified butter
- 30 grams all-purpose flour
- 1/4 onion peeled
- 2 whole cloves
- 1 fresh bay leaf
- Kosher salt to taste
- Ground white pepper to taste
- Pinch Ground nutmeg
Instructions
- In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, warm the milk over medium heat, stirring occasionally until it reaches110*F.
Make the roux:
- Meanwhile, in a separate heavy-bottomed saucepan, melt clarified butter over medium heat.
- Stir the flour into the melted butter a little bit at a time, until it is fully incorporated. Cook until the flour taste is gone and the roux has a light blond color. Remove from heat.
- Using a wire whisk, slowly add the roux to the warm milk, whisking vigorously to make sure it’s free of lumps.
- Attach the bay leaf to the onion using the cloves, and add them to the sauce.
- Simmer for about 20 minutes or until the total volume has reduced by about 20 percent, stirring frequently to make sure the sauce doesn’t scorch at the bottom of the pan. The resulting sauce should be smooth and velvety. If it’s too thick, whisk in a bit more milk until it’s just thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.
- Remove the sauce from the heat. Retrieve the clove-stuck onion and discard. Carefully pour the sauce through a wire mesh strainer lined with a piece of cheesecloth.
Hollandaise Sauce
Ingredients
- 4 egg yolks
- 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter melted
- Pinch cayenne
- Pinch salt
Instructions
- Vigorously whisk the egg yolks and lemon juice together in a stainless steel bowl until the mixture is pale yellow, thickened and doubled in volume.
- Place the bowl over a saucepan with barely simmering water; the water must not touch the bottom of the bowl.
- Continue to whisk rapidly. Be careful not to let the eggs get too hot or they will scramble.
- Slowly drizzle in the melted butter and continue to whisk until the sauce is thickened and doubled in volume. Remove from heat, whisk in cayenne and salt.
- Cover and place in a warm spot until ready to use. If the sauce gets too thick, whisk in a few drops of warm water before serving.
Notes
Troubleshooting:
A tell-tale sign of a broken hollandaise sauce is if it’s grainy in texture, the butter is pooled on top, or it’s thin in consistency. Broken sauces happen typically because the emulsion never formed in the first place, due to various causes.- Adding in the butter in too quickly
- The egg yolk heated up too much and the emulsifying properties are lost
- The yolks are overcooked and the sauce is curdled and grainy
- The butter is too hot when it was added in
Variations:
- Noisette Melt the butter over medium-low heat and continue to cook until it has a nutty fragrance and the milk solids have fallen to the bottom and turned golden, about 7 minutes. Skim the surface but use the golden milk solids from the bottom. Continue with the hollandaise recipe. The subtle nutty notes of the brown-butter pair beautifully with sole or flounder.
- Béarnaise Simmer 1/4 cup white wine vinegar and 2 Tbs. dry white wine with 2 Tbs. minced shallot and 2 sprigs of fresh tarragon until reduced to 1 Tbs. of liquid. Remove the tarragon sprigs. Continue with the hollandaise recipe, using the vinegar reduction instead of the lemon juice. Finish with 2Tbs. chopped fresh tarragon instead of the lemon zest. This is a classic served with a pan-seared filet mignon.
Macaroni & Cheese
Prep Time: 15 mins
Bake: 20 min
Total Time: 35mins
Servings: 6
Servings 25
Ingredients
- 1 pound elbow macaroni
- 1/4 cup butter
- 1/4 cup AP flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoon dry mustard
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ½ teaspoon white pepper
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ Cup Heavy Cream
- 2 Cups milk
- ½ onion finely minced
- 1 egg
- 10 oz shredded cheddar cheese plus 4 oz for topping
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- additional salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Cook macaroni in large pot of boiling, salted water. Drain when al dente. Chill pasta by running cool water over pasta in colander.
Make sauce:
- In medium saucepan, melt butter over medium heat.
- Saute onions until translucent.
- Stir in flour, and cook for 3-5 minutes to form a thick, blond roux – pale brown with an aroma of toasted nuts
- Add seasonings: salt, pepper, red pepper, nutmeg, and dried mustard; Whisk till smooth
- Slowly add milk, stirring well after each addition. Add heavy cream.
- Continue to cook, stirring constantly, until bechamel is bubbly and thick.
- Temper in egg.
- Stir in cheese a small amount at a time until fully melted. Remove from heat
- Mix cooled pasta and sauce until well coated. Place in baking dish. Garnish with additional cheese and paprika.
- Chill tightly wrapped OR bake for thirty minutes, uncovered, until cheese is bubbly and golden brown.
- CCP: Bring to 165℉ for 15 seconds.
