5 Mother Sauces

Food & Nutrition II

Unit Objectives Students will be able to:

Identify the functions of sauces

Recognize and classify mother sauces

Prepare mother sauces

Use thickening agents properly

Sauces• A flavorful, thickened liquid used to enhance food:

• Adds moisture & flavor

• Adds intensity to the dish

• Improves appearance / color

• Should complement the food

• Stimulate the appetite

3

Sauce Quality Factors

• Color

• Opacity

• Luster

• Taste

• Texture

• Consistency

4

Compound/Secondary

Sauces• Compound sauces are leading sauces with other

ingredients & flavors added to it

• Second generation of a Mother Sauce

5

Compound Sauces

• Bechamel Cheddar cheese

• Espagnole Mushroom

• Tomato Meat Sauce

• Hollandaise Bearnaise

• Veloute Cream

Bechamel

Liquid – Milk or Cream

Thickener – White roux

Color – White/Ivory

Espagnole

Liquid – Brown Stock

(Beef or Vegetable)

Thickener – Brown Roux

Color – Brown

Tomato

Liquid – Tomatoes

Thickener – Tomato Paste

or a roux

Color – Red

Hollandaise

Liquid – Clarified Butter &

lemon juice

Thickener – Egg Yolk

Color – Yellow

Velouté

Liquid – White Stock (Veal, Chicken, or Fish)

Thickener – White or Blonde Roux

Color – Amber

5 Mother Sauces

12

Sauce Liquid Thickener Color

Béchamel Milk White roux White/Ivory

Espagnole Brown

Stock

Brown

roux

Brown

Tomato Tomatoes Tomato

paste

Red

Hollandaise Clarified

Butter

Egg yolk Yellow

Velouté White Stock Blonde roux Amber

Thickening Agents• Roux

Equal parts by weight of fat and flour cooked together used to thicken liquids

Butter

Bread or AP flour

Sift flour

13

How to make a Roux

Heat fat (usually clarified

butter) in a saucepan

Make paste by adding all of

the flour and stirring

Using medium heat, cook

paste until it is the

consistency of sand and the

right color

Stir roux often to keep it

from burning

Roux types

• White Roux - Least amount of cooking time

(2-3 minutes) Example: Béchamel Sauce

• Blonde Roux - Takes on a light golden color

(4-8 minutes) Example: Veloute Sauce

• Brown Roux - Nutty Aroma / dark brown color

(8-12 minutes) Example: Espagnole Sauce

15

Thickening Agents

• Roux

White

Blonde

Brown

• Incorporating roux into a liquid

Cool stock into a warm roux

Room temperature roux into a hot stock

Thickening Agents

Cornstarch:

• Equal parts cold liquid to cornstarch

• Blended mixture is called a slurry

• Add slurry to hot liquid

• Thickens immediately