Bechamel sauce


Bechamel sauce
Bechamel sauce is a classic, made from a cooked butter-flour mix called "roux", where milk is added and slowly cooked. We get a thick sauce, used in many recipes.
447 K 4.0/5 (46 reviews)
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Last modified on: June 13th 2024
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For 350 ml, you will need:

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Times for this recipe
Preparation: 3 min.
Cooking: 15 min.
All in all: 20 min.
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If you start now, at , you will finish around : ?.Change start time
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Step by step recipe


Stage 1 - 3 min.
Bechamel sauce : Stage 1
Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a pan on low heat.

When it sizzles, add 2 tablespoons flour all at once.

Stage 2 - 5 min.
Bechamel sauce : Stage 2
Mix well and cook, stirring continuously, until the mixture become light brown.

This mix, which can be prepared beforehand, is called a "roux", and in this case a "blond roux". If you continue cooking, you will get a "brown roux".

Stage 3 - 10 min.
Bechamel sauce : Stage 3
Pour 2 glasses milk (cold) onto the roux, all at once. Mix thoroughly.

You have there the secret of succeeding with a bechamel:
  • if roux is hot, add cold milk
  • if roux is cold (perpared beforehand), add hot milk


Salt, pepper and add grated nutmeg.

Leave to cook on low heat, stirring up continuously until bechamel thickens.

Stage 4
Bechamel sauce : Stage 4
The thickness of bechamel is a question of taste.

Stage 5
Bechamel sauce : Stage 5
You can make variations on béchamel, such as Mornay sauce, which is a béchamel sauce to which egg yolks and grated cheese are added.
Remarks
Bechamel can be easily made beforehand, and reheated when necessary.
Keeping: Several days in the fridge, in a closed jar.
Source: Home made.
Nutritional information
Proteins (gr)Carbohydrates (gr)Fats (gr)Energy value (in k-calories)Energy value (in k-joules)
Whole recipe10 RDI=6 %40 RDI=4 %40 RDI=6 %550 RDI=30 %2,310 RDI: 30 %
Per 100 g5 RDI=2 %10 RDI=1 %10 RDI=2 %200 RDI=10 %830 RDI: 10 %
The % figures are calculated in relation to the Recommended Dietary Intake , or RDI of 2,000 k-calories (or 8,400 k-joules) per day for a woman
Possible allergens in this recipe: milk, Gluten
How much will it cost?
  • For 350 ml : 0.50 €

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Note: Be careful, these prices are only an estimate, you can consult the table of prices by ingredients used for this estimate.
Some other recipes using this recipeSee them all 32
Bolognaise lasagne
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Lasagne is an Italian pasta that comes in rectangular sheets. These are used to separate layers of filling, like a large savoury oven-baked millefeuille. A bolognaise lasagne combines bechamel sauce, minced meat and tomato sauce.
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Harvest Gratin

Purple artichokes, cauliflower and mozzarella combined with bechamel sauce in a gratin to cheer up the end of summer.
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Spiced butternut gratin
Spiced butternut gratin

For this recipe, the butternut squash is cooked in two stages: first roasted, then finished in a gratin with Mornay sauce (bechamel with cheese).
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Endives
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A very classic recipe, but which can easily fail due to two main errors: too much water in bottom of dish because endives give off a lot, and endives that are too bitter so that children hate it. Here is a method which avoids these two problems.
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Grilled ham and bechamel sandwiches
Grilled ham and bechamel sandwiches

Tartines topped with a generous layer of béchamel sauce, grilled ham cubes and baked au gratin.
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This recipe uses (among others)
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