It is not easy to give a perfect consistency to a sauce, but luckily in every pantry there is a thickening ingredient whose effectiveness has been tested over time: flour. For a quick and easy approach, just mix the flour with a little cold water and mix it with the sauce as it cooks. With a little more effort, you can mix flour with a fat to make a particularly delicious and creamy sauce.
Steps
Method 1 of 2: Use a mixture of water and flour
Step 1. Mix some water and flour in a bowl
Use 2 tablespoons (about 16-18 g) of flour and 60 ml of water for every 250 ml of sauce to thicken. Stir the mixture until you have eliminated all the lumps.
- Use cold water. If you use hot or lukewarm water, lumps are more likely to form.
- For a thicker sauce, add a little more flour. Conversely, use less if you want the sauce to have a more liquid consistency.
Step 2. Add the flour and water mixture to the sauce to thicken
Make sure it's free of lumps, then slowly pour it into the saucepan with the sauce. Gradually add the mixture of water and flour to the sauce without ever stopping mixing, to prevent lumps from forming.
Stir until the mixture is well distributed in the sauce to give it a homogeneous consistency
Step 3. Cook the sauce over medium heat until it thickens
After adding the flour and water mixture, let the sauce cook until it starts to boil. At that point it should begin to thicken. Keep stirring to prevent burning.
The sauce will thicken further as it cools, so turn off the heat just before it reaches the desired consistency. You may want to try several times to get the perfect density
Step 4. Let the sauce cook for another minute after it has thickened
Never lose sight of it while it cooks to understand when it has reached the desired consistency. At that point, let it cook for a last minute before turning off the stove and taking the pot away from the heat. This way, the flour will have time to cook and you won't risk its flavor spoiling the taste of the sauce.
To make sure the flour is cooked, you can also wait for the sauce to come to a full boil, but in this case, be careful not to burn it
Method 2 of 2: Using a Roux
Step 1. Choose a fat to make roux with
Keep in mind that your choice will affect the flavor and texture of the sauce. The most common options include:
- Butter, for a rich and creamy taste. This choice is particularly suitable for sauces based on milk or cream, such as bechamel or alfredo sauce.
- An animal fat, such as lard. This choice is particularly suitable for sauces and meat-based soups.
- Vegetable oil. This is the most neutral option. The oil has a mild taste compared to butter and lard. In addition, it is also suitable for vegans and is less prone to burning than butter.
Step 2. Mix the selected fat and flour in equal parts in a saucepan
Use 2 tablespoons (30g) of fat and 2 tablespoons (about 16-18g) of flour for every 250ml of sauce to thicken. For a thicker sauce, use a little more flour. Combine the fat and flour by mixing them in the pot with a wooden spoon, until they are perfectly blended.
If you have chosen a fat with a solid consistency, such as butter, you will need to melt it in a saucepan before mixing it with the flour
Step 3. Cook the roux over medium-low heat, stirring constantly
When the flour and fat are well blended, start cooking the roux. You will need to keep stirring to prevent it from burning. In particular, roux made with butter burns very easily, so don't lose sight of it while it cooks.
Draw an 8 in the pot as you stir the roux with the spoon to help it cook evenly
Step 4. Let the roux cook until it becomes the desired color
The longer you let it cook, the darker it will become. As it darkens, it will acquire a more complex taste, reminiscent of toasted seeds, but will lose some of its thickening power.
- If you want to make a "white" roux, suitable for thickening sauces that contain milk or cream, let it cook for 3-5 minutes. It is important that the flour has time to cook so as not to smell and taste it inside the sauce. However, be careful not to cook it for too long or it will start to turn brown.
- If you want to prepare a "blond" roux, ideal for thickening soups and for tying sauces based on white bases (chicken, veal, fish and shellfish), let it cook for 6-7 minutes.
- If you want to prepare a "dark" roux, suitable for thickening dark sauces and brown bottoms, you can let it cook for 8-15 minutes.
Step 5. Let the roux cool before adding it to the sauce to be thickened
When it has reached the desired shade of color, take the pot away from the heat and let it cool. You can use it hot, but it doesn't have to be hot. You can also chill it in the refrigerator and use it cold.
- If you add the hot roux to the sauce, it will separate and form lumps.
- As a general rule, the sauce and roux should have a similar temperature when you mix them. For example, if you haven't started heating the sauce yet, add the roux while both are cold or warm.
Step 6. Add the roux to the sauce by mixing it with a whisk and let it simmer for at least 20 minutes
When the roux has cooled, add it little by little to the sauce. Stir constantly to make sure it thickens evenly. Let the sauce simmer for 20 minutes or until tasting it no longer perceives the taste of raw flour.
