Béchamel is a very versatile sauce because it has a very mild flavor and is prepared with only three ingredients: flour, butter, and milk.
Béchamel sauce is used in all kinds of recipes, as it's ideal for both coating (covering things with sauce) and filling. Preparing a good béchamel sauce is much simpler than it seems, and you can use it in countless dishes: croquettes, lasagna, spinach, or even on top of delicious green beans . We love using it to cover our delicious chicken, mushroom, and caramelized onion cannelloni .
Below we show you how to prepare béchamel step by step so that you always have a perfect, light, and lump-free béchamel.
Index
- 1 Necessary ingredients
- 2 How to prepare the Bechamel sauce
- 3 Tips for a Good Bechamel Sauce
- 4 How to remove lumps from béchamel?
- 5 What do I do if my bechamel is too thick?
- 6 And too liquid?
- 7 Ingredients
- 8 Instructions
Necessary ingredients
How to prepare Bechamel sauce
Tips for making a good Bechamel
- Cook the flour and butter for at least 4 or 5 minutes to prevent the bechamel from tasting like raw flour.
- The mixture of flour and cooked butter is called Roux, and can be frozen for use when needed.
- Use a whisk instead of a wooden spoon. This way, you'll be able to combine the flour and prevent lumps from forming.
How to remove lumps from béchamel?
If, despite all precautions, you still end up with lumps in your béchamel, don't worry; you won't have to start over. Instead of trying to break them up one by one with a spoon, pour the béchamel into a bowl, add a splash of milk, and blend it with a hand blender for a couple of minutes. Once you have a smooth sauce, you can return it to the pan to finish cooking.
What do I do if my bechamel is too thick?
If your bechamel sauce is too thick, you can thin it out by adding milk little by little and stirring with a whisk until you achieve the desired consistency.
And too liquid?
If, on the other hand, your béchamel sauce is too runny, don't add flour directly, as you risk undercooking it and ending up with raw flour. The easiest way is to let the béchamel sauce simmer a little longer until some of the milk evaporates.
Servings 20
- Amount per serving
- % Daily Value *
- Saturated Fat 2.8 g14 %
- Fiber 0.1 g1 %
- Sugars 2.3 g
- Calcium 5 %
- Vitamin D 3 %
*Percent daily values are based on a 2,000-calorie diet. Your daily value may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
