Best Basic White Saucebechamel Sauce Recipes

BASIC WHITE SAUCE

Basic White Sauce image

For years, I've used this smooth white cream sauce for pasta to make many dishes. The recipe can easily be doubled or tripled. -Lois Gelzer, Standish, Maine

Provided by Taste of Home

Time 10m

Yield 1 cup.

Number Of Ingredients 5

Ingredients

2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
Dash white pepper
1 cup 2% milk

Steps:

In a small saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Whisk in the flour, salt and pepper until smooth. Gradually whisk in the milk. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Use immediately or refrigerate.

Nutrition Facts : Calories 51 calories, Fat 4g fat (2g saturated fat), Cholesterol 12mg cholesterol, Sodium 81mg sodium, Carbohydrate 3g carbohydrate (1g sugars, Fiber 0 fiber), Protein 1g protein.

CLASSIC BECHAMEL: WHITE SAUCE

Classic Bechamel: White Sauce image

Provided by Tyler Florence

Time 25m

Yield 2 cups

Number Of Ingredients 6

Ingredients

1 cup milk
2 bay leaves
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons flour
Pinch salt and white pepper
2 garlic cloves, crushed

Steps:

In a small saucepan, heat the milk and 1 bay leaf to a gentle simmer, stirring so it doesn't scorch the bottom of the pan. Keep the milk on low heat.
Make a white roux by melting butter over low-medium heat in a thick-bottomed saucepan. Just as the foam subsides, add the flour, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon or whisk to prevent lumps. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes to coat the flour and remove the starchy taste. Do not allow to brown. Remove from heat, then gradually add a bit of the warm milk to the roux and whisk vigorously. Return the saucepan to the heat and bring up to a low simmer, continuing to add more milk and whisk. Cook for 5 minutes until sauce is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Check seasoning; add salt, white pepper, garlic and the remaining bay leaf.
To prevent a skin from forming as the sauce cools, lay a piece of plastic wrap directly on the surface.
Serve with fish, shellfish, vegetables or egg dishes.

BASIC BECHAMEL (WHITE SAUCE)

Basic Bechamel (White Sauce) image

This classic sauce, sometimes simply called white sauce, adds a rich and creamy quality to a variety of vegetable dishes. It can be spooned over hot cooked vegetables just before serving or mixed with them to make an easy yet elegant creamed vegetable course. To turn the creamed vegetables into a gratin, place in a baking dish, top with cheese and then bake in the oven until golden. Personally, my favorite use of bechamel sauce is to make Recipe #514039. (Sorry about that, folks... but that is what my mother always called it). Enjoy. Note See steps #5 & #6 if desiring a thinner bechamel or a cheese sauce. Note: I have also been known to sub 1/4 cup of the liquids with 1/4 cup white wine (but that's my little secret... at least it used to be).

Provided by rosie316

Categories Sauces

Time 10m

Yield 2 cups

Number Of Ingredients 7

Ingredients

3 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 pinch paprika (optional)
1 pinch nutmeg (optional)
1 bay leaf
2 cups milk, heated (or 1 cup each milk and chicken stock, heated)
salt and fresh ground white pepper, to taste

Steps:

In a saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Stir in the flour and cook, stirring, until blended, 1 minute. Add the paprika and/or nutmeg (if using) and add the bay leaf.
Gradually add the warm milk, whisking constantly. Reduce the heat to low and continue to whisk until the sauce is smooth and slightly thickened, 4 to 5 minutes. Season with salt and white pepper.
Increase the heat to medium and simmer to blend the flavors, 2 minutes. Discard the bay leaf before using.
Now you can use your sauce any way you like. Like I said before, my personal favorite use is for making Recipe #514039, but I also like eating this bechamel, AS IS, on veggies or making a cheese sauce (see *Notes below). Enjoy!
*Note: For a thinner sauce, reduce the flour and butter to 2 tablespoons each, but stay the same with the liquid(s). (I highly recommend this if you plan to make a cheese sauce with this (posted below).
*Note: To create a cheese sauce, whisk 1/2 cup (or more) of grated Gruyère, Parmigiano-Reggiano, Sharp Cheddar or Farm-house White Cheddar (my fav) or any other cheese into the finished béchamel sauce. If a lighter cheese sauce is desired, substitute chicken stock for part of the milk, or use a lesser amount of the flour & butter ratio (like posted above).