ROUX (courtesy persnicketypicnic.blogspot.com)

You really can’t cook well, or even passably, without knowing how to make a roux (pronounced ROO) and the resulting sauces. For our friends in France (those clever cuisiniers who fill their éclairs with chocolate cream – genius!) there are several basic (or mother) sauces that form the foundation of French cooking, and for my money, there’s no better food on the planet. They are white sauce (aka béchamel), velouté, espagnole, hollandaise, mayonnaise and vinaigrette.

Now we’ve discussed vinaigrette, which is probably the most commonly used sauce day to day. At least that was what I thought before my recent trek through the heartland, which is why I think we all need to take a look at white sauce. If you all are consuming condensed soups at the rate it appears you are, we need to revisit this, the simplest of sauces. It is so much better than anything from a can and so easy to make. Look!

Read the rest of this entry →