The Five Mother Sauces

Types of Sauces

A sauce should fall into one of three categories
1. A roux – Four of the above five start out with a roux
2. An emulsification
3. A reduction

Roux

A Roux is made by cooking equal parts flour and butter – usually about 2 TBL each and 1 C of liquid

• Put flour and cold butter into a skillet
• Cook until they have cooked together and have just started to brown
• Add 1/4 C of your other liquid and stir until smooth.
  If you add it all at once, you will get lumps (dumplings) that will never disappear.
• Whisk continually adding more liquid, bits at a time until it reduces and thickens

These five sauces are the building blocks for most other sauces.

1.  Béchemel

– A white sauce – Above roux made with 1 C dairy – usually milk or cream

GREAT FOR

• Homemade macaroni and cheese, classic croque madame, lasagna,
• Mornay sauce – Béchemel plus grated Gruyére or Parmesan (optional w/ Cayenne)
• Mustard sauce – Béchemel plus Dijon mustard
• Soubise – Béchemel plus shallots or onion
• Cheddar Sauce – Béchemel plus shredded Cheddar
• Sawmill Gravy – Béchemel plus cooked sausage

Step by Step Bechemel

1. In saucepan cook 2 TBL flour and 2 TBL butter over medium heat.
2. Cook until the butter completely melts and the flour barely starts to color – about one minute.
3. Slowly whisk in 1 C milk, salt, pepper and nutmeg – just a little at a time
4. Bring to a boil, whisking constantly.
5. Reduce heat and simmer until mixture thickens slightly, about 5 to 7 minutes.
6. Remove from heat and whisk in cheese until melted. Set aside.

2.  Velouté

– A white sauce – Above roux made with 1 C clear stock – usually chicken, vegetable or fish

Supreme Sauce

– A Supreme Sauce is a velouté made with 3/4 chicken stock, and then finished with 1/4 cream (mixed) butter and lemon.  It is a child sauce of Velouté

Allemande Sauce (German Sauce)

– Allemande Sauce is a velouté made with 3/4 C veal stock, and then finished with 1/4 C (mixed) egg yolks and heavy cream.

Poulette Sauce

– Poulett Sauce is made with Allemande Sauce as the base, and then finished with minced mushrooms, parsley and lemon

3.  Espagnole

– Espagnole is a roux made with a brown stock – veal or beef

4.  Tomato Sauce

– A Tomato Sauce is a roux plus tomatoes
– Italian style skips the roux and just reduces tomatoes

5.  Hollandaise

– At its most basic :: 4 egg yolks, 1 tsp Karo syrup, 1 bay leaf, plus 1 tsp acid – usually lemon or white wine – whisk continually with a whisk having lots of tines – halfway through the baking process, after it is very warm, add 1 tsp water mixed with 1 tsp corn starch and 12 TBL cold butter (one at a time)  – whisk continually until thickened.

Step by Step Hollandaise

1. Bring double boiler water to a simmer
2. Add in 3 egg yolks and 1 tsp of water and 1/4 tsp of sugar
3. Whisk continually OFF the heat until it starts to turn light yellow
4. Add 5 TBL of cold butter pieces
5. Don’t stop whisking through the entire process
6. Whisk until the butter melts and it starts to lighten
7. Add another 3 TBL cold butter pieces
8. Whisk until a ribbon forms
9. Add teaspoons of water if it starts to thicken too much
10. Remove from the heat and add 6 more TBL of cold butter one at a time
11. Season with 2 tsp lemon juice and scant cayenne pepper and salt
12. Store in a thermos or in a glass dispenser placed in a pan of hot water.
13. If clumps have formed, you can strain it.

Bearnaise Sauce

Bearnaise is a child of Hollandaise.  Start with Hollandaise and add minced shallot, chervil, peppercorns and tarragon just after Step 4 of the Hollandaise Step by Step.

Strain or press through sieve to remove pieces and serve over steak, fish, vegetables, etc.

Maltaise Sauce

Another child of Hollandaise.  Start with Hollandaise, but at Step 10 rather than using lemon, add 1/4 C orange juice reduced down with a few peppercorns.  Add 1 TBL of the reduced liquid instead of lemon.

Pan Sauce from Fond

• After you finishing browning or cooking a protein, the remainder is very tasty.
• Use 3/4 C chicken, beef or vegetable broth to deglaze
  • Broth is from meat
  • Stock is from bones
• Add broth to the pan and scrape off the bits of fond.
• Reduce with 3 TBL Cognac or Brandy and 1 TBL green peppercorns to create a beef pan sauce, then add 3/4 C cream
• Reduce to a thicker sauce (nappe) which is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.

Starches as Thickeners

Always introduce via a cold slurry – water, wine, cognac, tomato juice

• • Flour
    • Clumps worse than anything.
    • Must be brought to a full boil to work
    • Combines with fats to make a greasy sauce
    • Has protein in it which creates scum
  • Corn Starch
    • Used in many Asian dishes
    • Thickens at a lower temperature than flour
    • not much needed, but is not heat stable.  Overheating will destroy the bonds
  • Tapioca or Cassaba Starch
    • Good for pie fillings
    • Can be tricky to use in sauces
  • Potato Starch
    • Works a lot like corn starch
  • Arrowroot
    • More stable and versatile, but never use with dairy
    • In 1 quart of liquid, use 2 TBL  of Arrowroot
      approx 2 tsp of arrowroot per cup of liquid
    • Often use other starches and label it “Arrowroot”
  • Japanese Arrowroot
    • Made from Kudzu

More info BY CLICKING HERE, if you need it.