This week we’ll be learning the 5 mother sauces to kickstart some kitchen confidence! Sauces will make all the difference in your food, and knowing how to execute them is great for your toolbox! Back to the mother sauces: Four out of the 5 sauces start with a roux.. so before we do ANYTHING else.. we must learn what a roux is, and how to make it.

Roux; a fancy word for cooking fat and flour together before adding liquid to be thickened. Equal parts fat and flour cook together over medium heat, then your liquid gets added to reduce, thicken, and create a glorious base for your sauce - homemade macaroni and cheese anyone?

There are 3 categories of roux that depend on the cook time:

white roux: flour is browned, but pale in color - use this for creamy, light sauces (like béchamel!)
blonde roux: darker in color, and as the flour continues to cook there is an amazing nutty aroma
brown roux: deepest flavor, color, and smell

Recipes using a roux will tell you the type of fat to use, usually it’s butter. Also, its a 1:1 ratio meaning if you use 2 tablespoon of butter, you would use 2 tablespoon of flour and 1 cup of liquid. Ok, let’s do this:

First Step:

-melt butter in heavy pan over low heat and watch the foam - you’ll want to add the flour once the foaming subsides.

Second Step:

-keep it movin’! Once the flour is added, you want to keep stirring with a whisk so you don’t burn your roux.

Third Step:

-don’t stop stirring - the flour will be cooking, the mixture will start to thicken, and there will be a wonderful nutty aroma

Fourth Step:

-once you’ve reached the color (white, blonde, or brown) you’re looking for, add milk or stock continuing to whisk until incorporated… boom sauce! *many different opinions on adding hot liquid or cold liquid - I’ve always added cold, a little at a time to help with lumps.

Thanks for hangin’ with me, and congrats - now you can roux!

Welcome to Sauce Week!