Cream Sauce Recipes

According to the basic recipe, you need milk, butter, and flour in equal proportions. Melt the butter in a saucepan and pour flour into it. Put on medium heat and cook, stirring for no longer than 3 minutes. Then you need to add milk – its volume depends on the density of the final product. Stir the mixture with salt and pepper until thickened, 5-7 minutes. After that, the product can be considered ready.

Advice

The cream should not be added to the heated mixture when cold – otherwise, the dairy product may curdle or exfoliate. The same rule applies to milk or sour cream: letting the products warm up to room temperature is advisable.

Classical

The classic creamy sauce involves one ingredient not quite familiar to Russian cuisine – ground nutmeg (you can also use whole, but then it must be removed from the finished product). In our latitudes, such an additive is often considered optional, but if you want a real French product, remember nutmeg.

What other spices can be added to the creamy sauce? Any fragrant herbs that you like and are combined with the main dish will do. It can be thyme, marjoram, rosemary, or oregano. You can cut fresh herbs directly into the dish when serving – chives, dill, parsley, or cilantro.

Interesting fact

Bechamel sauce is one of the most popular sauces in France. It is believed that bechamel was invented by the chef Francois de La Varenne, who served at the court of Louis XIV and founded haute cuisine in Versailles. The name, according to this version, comes from the name of Louis de Bechamel – the marquis-manager of the kitchen, the court king. Allegedly, the chef dedicated his recipe to him. However, the Italians are sure that they are the creators of the white sauce. And they have a reason for it! Since ancient times, balsamella has existed in Italian cuisine, prepared precisely according to the same recipe. The Italians believe that the French borrowed balsamella and pass it off as their own invention. And Catherine de Medici brought the recipe to France.

Creamy garlic

Creamy Garlic Sauce is an excellent gravy for hot pasta, pizza, or meat dishes. In the recipe with the photo below, it is proposed to use cream, but you can also take full-fat milk. Only it will need to take 1.5 more volume than cream. In this case, the sauce will be a little more liquid but light. Private chef London offers the best Creamy Garlic Sauce to their clients.

Mustard

The option with the addition of mustard is also perfect for Russian cuisine. Or complement snacks, burgers, or french fries. Some chefs add a spoonful of honey to the mixture at the end of cooking – then the mustard sauce acquires a special sweet-spicy shade. One of the famous French modifications is the egg cream sauce. Finely chopped chicken or quail egg makes the product more saturated.

Mushroom

You can add mushrooms – for example, fresh or frozen champignons. Depending on the cut, the sauce will be more or less homogeneous. But in any case, it will turn out to be fragrant because the mushrooms will give him their fragrant juice when frying.

with bacon

The cream sauce can be made by adding bacon pieces to the base recipe. It makes a fantastic hearty gravy for spaghetti, lasagne, or hot sandwiches. You can use both milk and cream – thereby adjusting the density and calorie content of the final product.

Milk and cream

You can also make a mixed white sauce by bringing milk and cream together, as in our recipe below. This option is denser and thicker; it can be stored in the refrigerator so that it can be used as a gravy for main dishes, an addition to snacks or a dressing for soups at the right time.

Recipes of the peoples of the world

Paste

Italians are masters of using cream sauce in national dishes. They are poured over pizza, lasagna, and, of course, a variety of types of pasta. Below you will find a recipe for a tender and relatively low-calorie pasta with salmon and white sauce. You can use heavy cream and other fish, such as trout, instead of milk.

gratin

French oven-baked potatoes – gratin – can also be cooked with white sauce. The recipe’s author uses dry bagged bechamel, but you can make your own for the gratin. The main thing is that it will undoubtedly add piquancy and taste to the dish. You can cook cauliflower with white or classic sauce for those who do not eat meat. And vegans should consider: that butter can be replaced with olive oil and cow’s milk with soy or coconut.

Udon

The creamy sauce is also used in Asian cuisine – for example, it is added to udon noodles, as in our recipe below. You can use both milk and cream.

Seafood

An Asian-style mix of squid and shrimp can be prepared with a creamy sauce that uses coconut instead of cow’s milk. The dish will turn out with a special slightly sweet aftertaste.

Sweet potato

You can cook mushrooms with a creamy sauce, and add sweet potato to them instead of potatoes. Its more pronounced sweetness and spicy gravy make the dish unusual and tasty.