White sauce (for lasagne) Qs and recipes

maypole

1oz flour
1oz butter
1 pint milk for a pouring sauce or half a pint for a thicker sauce.

melt butter gently in a saucepan, add the flour and cook gently while stirring for a minute, this is called making a roux. Take off the heat, gradually add the milk, stirring or whisking all the time, bring to the boil while stirring, then lower the heat and simmer for a few minutes, you must do this otherwise it tastes floury. If it is a sweet sauce add the sugar at the end and stir until dissolved.

cheerfulness4

Or you could go the delia's all in one method. I've long since forgotten the quantities but its easy peasy.

In a small saucepan, pop in milk to reach half way up. Put on heat. Drop in a rounded teaspoon of marg and a dessert spoon of p flour. whisk it all together with a balloon whisk until it thickens when coming to the boil and then add your s & p and a little nutmeg if you prefer. (I always do.) Allow to simmer for a couple of mins and you're done.

I add other things to the basic mix. Grated cheese and tsp mustard for cheese sauce etc.

Murtle

the roux is always 50% fat to 50% flour (we use olive oil) and then add milk to the required thickness (as per maypoles suggestion!!)

Then for a cheese sauce - add cheese
For a parsley sauce - add parsley

etc!! It is so easy to make so long as you are patient when adding the milk to get a "non-lumpy" consistency....but if it goes lumpy just use a whizzer machine and the world will be all ok again!!!

Upsey_daisy_2

Thanks for replies..I shall go and give it a go

Pink.

Hi Upsey_daisy,

The search facility can be very tempermental. There is an older thread that should help too so I've added your thread to it to keep all the replies together.

Pink

kethry

i'd agree with what someone else said about heating/flavouring the milk (with a bayleaf, peppercorn, onion, celery, carrot) but if you can't be bothered to do this, and you're making a cheese sauce for, say, cauliflower cheese, then you can lift water from the pot that the veg was bubbling in and stir that into your sauce, to get a mix of half milk and half water. that way you get some of the nutrients back from the veg. The only thing to be wary of is if you salt your veg, and add cheese, TASTE before you add extra salt cos if you salt without tasting or thinking it may end up saltier than you bargained for!

HTH

keth
xx

C1aire

My foolproof method (which even BF can manage) is to skip the roux step (apologies if this is the same as the Delia one mentioned above). Mix the flour and butter until you have what is basically a pastry dough. Gently heat the milk and add bits of the 'pastry'. Keep stirring gently, I find a whisk is better than a wooden spoon.

Then add cheese, seasoning, (chopped smoked bacon for really tasty cauliflower cheese ), etc.

orchid-96

Hi, I am making a chicken and ham pie for tea and I usually use a can of campbells condensed soup, as I havn't got any in, I thought rather than nip to the shop (and probably come back with several things!!) I would try to make a sauce myself..

Anyone have any ideas? it does need to be as easy as poss as I am not a particularly able cook!

noonesperfect

How's this?

http://www.cookingbynumbers.com/frames.html Hit "Skills by numbers" and it's no25.

If sauce starts to go lumpy (and it shouldn't) whisk briskly and they should disappear (But not in your best non stick pan!)

horsechestnut

Microwave White Sauce.

Half pint of milk
One rounded tablespoon of cornflour
Salt & pepper to taste

Blend the cornflour with a little of the milk

Put milk in large non metal container and heat for approx 3/4 mins untill boiling

Add blended cornflour mix to hot milk and stir well

Reheat for a further mintue and stir well again

It may take longer or less time depending on your microwave

If sauce is too thick add more milk. If it is too thin then blend a little more cornflour and cold milk and add it to the hot sauce.