Bechamel sauce is a classic homemade recipe. Béchamel sauce: discover the classic recipe for the legendary Italian dressing Béchamel sauce step by step

Bechamel sauce will complement and decorate any dish, but it is considered indispensable for lasagne and julienne. You can cook it with meat and fish, pour it over a side dish or season a casserole.

The classic Bechamel sauce all over the world is made with milk with the indispensable addition of flour. Although the recipe has not undergone any special transformations over time, all chefs try to add a “zest” to it, making it unique - someone adds eggs or herbs, and someone prefers to replace traditional milk with thicker sour cream.

Despite the constituent products, the sauce is prepared according to one recipe - it must be heated in a pan until it thickens and turns into a homogeneous mixture.

To create bechamel sauce at home, you do not need a blender or mixer - all components are heated and mixed by hand.

traditional recipe

Bechamel sauce for lasagna should be quite liquid, so it is prepared with a classic set of products, observing all proportions. This sauce will complement pasta or fried steak. It is preferable to take peppercorns and grind it into the sauce directly with a pepper grinder.

Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp milk;
• 30 gr. butter;
• 3 tbsp flour;
• a pinch of allspice;
• salt.

Cooking:

1. Heat up a frying pan and add a piece of butter.
2. When it's hot, add flour. Ignite it.
3. Pour milk in a thin stream. At the same time, do not forget to stir the mass throughout the process.
4. Reduce the power of the stove to medium and keep the sauce for no more than 10 minutes. At the same time, keep an eye on the density - the ingredients should form a homogeneous viscous mixture.

Bechamel sauce with cheese

The melted cheese makes the sauce thicker. Try experimenting with varieties - one type of cheese will make the taste more creamy, while another can add richness. For Bechamel, cheeses such as Cheddar, Parmesan, Lambert or Maasdam are suitable. But you can go even further in your taste experiments and add Dor Blue or Brie.

Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp milk;
• 3 tbsp flour;
• 50 gr. hard cheese;
• 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil;
• a pinch of allspice and coriander.

Cooking:

1. Grind the cheese on a grater.
2. Heat up the pan. Pour in the oil.
3. Pour in the flour, fry it for 2 minutes. Reduce the power of the stove to medium.
4. Pour in the milk. Stir the mass so that no lumps form.
5. Add cheese. Cook the sauce for another 10 minutes.
6. Season and salt 3 minutes before cooking.

Bechamel sauce from Yulia Vysotskaya

The onion added to the usual components gives a subtle sweetness. This small nuance significantly changes the taste of French sauce.

Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp milk;
• 30 gr. butter;
• 1 onion;
• 3 tbsp flour;
• a mixture of peppers;
• a pinch of coriander.

Cooking:

1. Chop the onion into small cubes or chop into a pulp with a blender.
2. Heat a saucepan in a water bath and dip the oil into it.
3. While the butter is still warm, add the onion. Keep heating.
4. Add flour, mix, avoiding the formation of lumps.
5. Pour in the milk in a thin stream while stirring.
6. Leave in a water bath until the sauce becomes homogeneous and viscous.
7. Season and salt before cooking.

Bechamel sauce with mushrooms

If mushrooms are added to French sauce, then Bechamel can be used as a gravy for a side dish. You can use champignons or forest mushrooms - they must first be boiled.

Ingredients:

• 100 gr. champignons or forest mushrooms;
• 2 tbsp milk;
• 30 gr. butter;
• a pinch of allspice;
• 3 tbsp flour.

Cooking:

1. Chop the mushrooms into cubes.
2. Heat the oil in a frying pan, let it melt. Pour in the flour. Ignite it.
3. Pour milk in a thin stream. Remember to stir the sauce so that no lumps form in it.
4. Add chopped mushrooms. Season and salt.
5. Simmer in a skillet for a quarter of an hour. Mix mass.
6. Serve the sauce chilled.

White sauce with sour cream and cream

Try replacing milk with sour cream. The sauce will be thicker and at the same time tender. You can use natural yogurt instead of sour cream if you like.

Ingredients:

• 200 ml. cream;
• 3 tablespoons of sour cream;
• allspice;
• 20 gr. butter;
• 3 tbsp flour.

Cooking:

1. Melt a piece of butter in a hot skillet.
2. Add flour, fry until golden brown.
3. Pour milk in a thin stream. At the same time mix the mass.
4. Add sour cream. Season and salt.
5. Cook the sauce over medium heat for no more than 10 minutes. Stir constantly during the process and make sure that no lumps form. The consistency should be thick and uniform.

Useful Bechamel

Very often, those who follow the figure have to deny themselves small gastronomic pleasures. This recipe will allow you to please yourself with a delicious sauce without harm to harmony.

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp almond milk;
• 2 teaspoons of starch;
• a pinch of nutmeg;
• a pinch of black pepper.

Cooking:

1. Warm up the milk in a saucepan.
2. Pour in starch. Stir until the mass thickens.
3. Add salt, season. Remove from fire.

Bechamel with eggs

Egg yolks add fluffiness and make the sauce thicker. In addition, the color becomes yellowish - this will help decorate the festive dishes, because such a sauce is good for hot.

Ingredients:

• 1.5 tbsp milk;
• 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil;
• 2 tablespoons of sour cream;
• 2 tbsp flour;
• 2 eggs;
• a pinch of black pepper.

Cooking:

1. Separate the whites from the yolks.
2. Heat oil in a frying pan. Pour in the flour. Roast it for 3 minutes.
3. Pour milk in a thin stream. Stir so that no lumps form. Boil 3 minutes.
4. Add sour cream and yolks. Mix thoroughly.
5. Add salt and season. Boil the sauce for 5 minutes.

Spicy bechamel with parsley

This loose interpretation of the classic sauce is very spicy because of the spices. This sauce can be seasoned with a warm salad or added to pasta. It is aromatic and has a characteristic sourness.

Ingredients

• 1.5 tbsp milk;
• 5 tablespoons of flour;
• 40 gr. butter;
• half a glass of cream;
• a small bunch of parsley;
• ¼ lemon;
• 1 small onion;
• 4 things. cloves;
• 1 leaf of lavrushka;
• a pinch of nutmeg.

Cooking:

1. First, prepare a decoction of spices. Heat 4 tablespoons of water on the stove. Add cloves, parsley and nutmeg. Salt. Bring to a boil, strain.
2. Grind the onion with a blender into a pulp.
3. Melt the butter in a frying pan. Pour in the flour. Roast it for 2 minutes.
4. Pour in the milk. Mix thoroughly.
5. Add onion and cream. Cook for 2 more minutes.
6. Pour in a decoction of spices. Boil 3 minutes.
7. Add finely chopped parsley and squeeze the juice from the lemon. Hold on the stove for another 1-2 minutes.

Bechamel with chicken broth

The broth gives an appetizing aroma, enriches the taste. This sauce is served with chicken dishes or as a side dish.

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp milk;
• 20 gr. butter;
• 4 tbsp flour;
• 1.5 tbsp chicken broth.

Cooking:

1. Prepare the chicken broth ahead of time.
2. Melt the butter in a frying pan. Add flour. Roast for 2 minutes.
3. Pour milk in a thin stream. Stir so that no lumps form.
4. Pour in the broth. Salt. Boil for 10 more minutes.

Bechamel is a versatile white sauce that will add a delicate creamy flavor to any dish. Do not be afraid to make it liquid - such a sauce thickens quickly.

French cuisine is known to gourmets not only for ratatouille, cassoulet and onion soup, but also for sauces, which, according to the most conservative estimates, are about 3 thousand. Surprisingly, they are all prepared on the basis of five dressings, known as great or mother. And among them is the popular bechamel - French white sauce.

Ingredients

The statement that everything ingenious is simple is also true for the "hero" of the article. The basis of the product is made up of only three components. To prepare a classic French béchamel sauce, no other ingredients are required, with the exception of salt.

1. Milk. It is recommended to take a product with a fat content of 2.5%. The original used cream, as in many modern recipes. But when overheated, the structure of the cream undergoes changes, and in order to restore uniformity to the sauce, broth cooked on fish, meat or vegetables is poured into it. That is why in all recipes with cream this ingredient is always used in tandem with the broth. It is impossible to replace milk with sour cream or other fermented milk products, as they curdle during heat treatment.
2. Flour. You should take wheat, pre-sifted.
3. Butter. Choose the best quality product.

To improve the taste, spices can be added: pepper (black and red), nutmeg, horseradish root, thyme, marjoram, garlic and others. As well as fried onions, cheese, sour cream, tomato paste, mushrooms.

In France, it is customary to season bechamel with bay leaves, and in Belgium and Holland - with nutmeg. In the case of using milk, not cream, the calorie content of the product will be about 200 kcal / 100 g.

Technology

If you cook bechamel sauce correctly, it turns out not white, but light cream. The product should have a homogeneous consistency, without lumps. To achieve this, you need to follow the cooking technique.

Stages

Traditionally, the sauce is prepared following a simple algorithm: a thickening base is made from butter and flour, which the French call "roux" (roux), and then mixed with the liquid. There are two ways to prepare the base.

• Method number 1. Fry flour in butter for about a minute until light golden brown.
• Method number 2. Fry the flour in a dry frying pan until it turns golden, and then stir in the butter and wait until it melts.

Milk or cream mixed with broth acts as a liquid component of the sauce. For the thickener, a tablespoon of flour per 100 g of butter is traditionally used (sometimes these components are taken in equal proportions), and the amount of liquid can vary, so more heavy cream is required than less thick milk.

The French "roux" means "red". This is due to the golden-orange color of the flour that appears after roasting.

Principles

During cooking, the sauce should only be mixed in one direction: either clockwise or counterclockwise. There are three more principles, following which you can make bechamel sauce at home no worse than in a restaurant.

1. Slowness. The liquid component should be added to the oily-flour mixture slowly, in a thin stream, otherwise lumps will form due to the fact that the flour will float to the surface.
2. Wooden spatula. Metal utensils should not be used for stirring, as they can pry burnt pieces from the bottom, spoiling the appearance and taste of the sauce.
3. Minimum heat. Cook only on low heat, otherwise the sauce will burn.

You need to make the sauce in a frying pan or in a saucepan with a non-stick coating.

Density

It is traditionally believed that bechamel sauce should be similar in thickness to liquid puree. It should flow from a spoon in a thin, viscous stream. However, if the sauce is used as a gravy for the main course, it may be slightly thinner, and if for baking, slightly thicker.

Ingoda, it is recommended to regulate the degree of density by changing the proportions of flour and milk. However, experienced chefs consider such a measure unacceptable, as the taste of the product may deteriorate. Instead, they suggest keeping the sauce on the heat a little longer to thicken it up.

Milk flavoring

Veteran chefs practice flavoring milk before using it to make sauce. This is done in seven steps.

1. Pour the roots and spices into the pan.
2. Put small spices in a cloth bag and also throw into a bowl.
3. Pour in milk.
4. While stirring, heat the milk over low heat, bringing to a boil.
5. Remove from stove.
6. Insist, waiting for cooling, ten minutes.
7. Take out the bag of spices and strain.

Putting spices in boiling milk is not allowed: only slow heating will help them open up to the maximum.

The classic bechamel sauce recipe and its variations

For those who are just starting to learn the basics of French cooking, experienced chefs recommend mastering a simple classic bechamel sauce recipe. In the future, it will serve as the basis for the creation of others, more original.

Traditional

Peculiarities. The classic version of the sauce is used to season various dishes, most often spaghetti and other pasta, julienne or lasagna. Milk can be replaced with 20% cream (250 ml) and broth (three to four tablespoons).

Required:

• milk - 400-500 ml;
• flour - two tablespoons;
• butter - 80-100 g;
• salt to taste.

Procedure

1. Prepare a buttery-flour base.
2. Remove the pan from the heat and pour in the milk, mix well so that there are no lumps.
3. Place the bowl back on the stove, season with salt, and keep on low heat, stirring, until thickened. This will take about a minute.
4. Mix again until a homogeneous consistency is obtained.

The sauce can be prepared in a slow cooker: instead of a frying pan, a bowl of the appliance is used. It is necessary to cook with the lid open, setting the "Soup" or "Stew" mode.

in the microwave

Peculiarities. The taste of the dish practically does not differ from the traditional one. The only difference is the technology: the sauce is cooked in the microwave.

Required:

• milk - 750 ml;
• flour and butter - 60 g each;
• salt, pepper and nutmeg to taste.

Procedure

1. Place the butter in a microwave-safe container and melt on the highest power setting, this usually takes one to two minutes.
2. Pour in the flour and send it back to the microwave for another minute.
3. Stir in the milk, pouring in the product in a thin stream.
4. At maximum power, boil the mass for five to six minutes, stirring occasionally.
5. Add salt and spices, strain.

To enrich the taste in the manufacture of the sauce, you can use a pinch of Provence herbs.

For fish dishes

Peculiarities. Some sources recommend cooking with lemon juice rather than lemon zest. "Experienced" do not recommend doing this: under the action of acid, the milk will curdle, and the sauce will be spoiled.

Required:

• milk - 200 ml;
• sour cream - 100 ml;
• butter - 40g;
• flour - 30 g;
• yolk of one egg;
• lemon zest, salt, spices to taste.

Procedure

1. Prepare the base sauce and, without removing it from the heat, pour in the sour cream, add the zest, salt and spices, stir well, wait for the mass to heat up.
2. Remove skillet from heat and add egg yolk.

Spanish

Peculiarities. The specificity of the sauce is that it is prepared without butter: olive oil is used instead of this ingredient. It is used for roasting vegetable and meat dishes.

Required:

• milk - 0.5 l;
• olive oil - 100 ml;
• flour - two tablespoons;
• onion - one piece;
• nutmeg, bay leaf, black pepper, salt to taste.

Procedure

1. Grind the onion with a blender and fry the vegetable in olive oil until golden brown.
2. Add flour and continue frying until it also turns golden.
3. Pour milk, without stopping stirring, add salt and spices, cook for eight to ten minutes.

To achieve uniformity of the sauce, without pieces of onion, you can mix the filling with a blender after cooking.

With mushrooms and cheese

Peculiarities. To achieve a savory taste, it is recommended to use blue cheese or a mixture of regular cheese with blue.

Required:

• milk - 300 ml;
• butter - 25 g (for sauce) and a tablespoon for frying mushrooms;
• flour - 25 g;
• mushrooms - five or six pieces;
• cheese - 30-50 g;
• salt and spices to taste.

Procedure

1. Make a classic sauce.
2. Mushrooms fry in butter.
3. Grind the cheese on a grater.
4. Stir the cheese and mushrooms into the base sauce.

With onions and garlic

Peculiarities. To improve the taste, onions and garlic can be lightly fried in a dry frying pan beforehand. But if the sauce will be served with fish dishes, this is not necessary: ​​such dishes “love” a more delicate flavor.

Required:

• milk - 500 ml;
• butter and flour - 45 g each;
• onion - half an onion;
• garlic - one clove;
• bay leaf - one piece.

Procedure:

1. Make milk flavoring using onion, garlic and bay leaf.
2. Prepare bechamel sauce in the traditional way.

With tomatoes

Peculiarities. This method is a step by step recipe for bechamel sauce for lasagna. To make tomato puree, you need to remove the skin from the tomatoes, scald with boiling water, and then chop with a blender.

Required:

• milk - 750 ml;
• flour - 30 g;
• butter - 50 g;
• tomato puree - 20 g;
• salt and spices to taste.

Procedure

1. Prepare bechamel sauce following the classic recipe.
2. At the end of cooking, stir in the tomato puree.

Ready bechamel sauce can be stored in the refrigerator for two to three days, but it is customary to serve it warm: the cooled product is covered with an ugly film. Therefore, you need to add a little milk to the sauce, heat it up, and then put it on the table.

What to serve with

Bechamel sauce is suitable for many dishes: pasta, pork and veal, poultry, white fish, cauliflower, potatoes and other vegetables, not to mention julienne and lasagna. When baked, the sauce is covered with a golden crust, so it is often used for cooking in the oven. Below are some simple recipes.

Zucchini casserole

Peculiarities. Eggplant can be used instead of zucchini. In a similar way, you can bake cauliflower with sauce, after boiling the vegetable. In this case, tomatoes can be omitted.

Required:

• zucchini - two or three fruits;
• tomatoes - two pieces;
• cheese - 100-150 g;
• vegetable oil;
• bechamel sauce - 300-400 ml with the addition of nutmeg.

Procedure

1. Cut the zucchini into slices 1-1.5 cm wide (if the peel of the vegetable is thick and tough, it must first be cut off).
2. Put the workpiece on a baking sheet, sprinkle with vegetable oil and put in a preheated oven for 10-15 minutes.
3. Arrange half of the prepared zucchini in a baking dish, put sliced ​​​​tomatoes on top and pour over the sauce. Then lay out the remaining zucchini and sprinkle with grated cheese.
4. Send the workpiece to an oven preheated to 180 ° C and bake until golden brown.

Cannelloni stuffed

Peculiarities. Cannelloli are large-diameter pasta designed for stuffing. Instead, you can use any pasta, in which case the cooking technology will change somewhat: the product will need to be laid out in a baking dish, and the sauce and minced meat should be put in the next layer.

Required:

• minced meat - 800-1000 g;
• hard cheese - 300 g;
• onion - one piece;
• cannelloni - 10-15 pieces;
• thick sauce - 800 ml.

Procedure:

1. Finely chop the onion, lightly fry in vegetable oil, add minced meat and continue to fry. Salt. When the minced meat is ready, stir in 150 g of cheese, cut into large cubes, remove the pan from the heat.
2. Boil water, salt and pour in a tablespoon of vegetable oil, boil the cannelloli. Drain water, cool pasta.
3. Stuff the boiled products with minced meat and put on a greased baking dish.
4. Pour over the sauce and sprinkle with 150 g of grated cheese.
5. Send to an oven preheated to 180 ° C and bake until golden brown.

Bechamel sauce is not a filling, it is not absorbed into the products and does not evaporate, but remains on top. It is important to remember this, and when baking, do not overdo it by pouring too much of it.

1. How to increase the shelf life. If the sauce is not planned to be used immediately after preparation, you can pour a thin layer on top of it with pre-melted butter. The resulting film will protect the product from winding and drying.
2. How to remove lumps. If the sauce turned out with lumps, you need to filter it through a sieve.
3. How to make thicker. If even with longer heating the sauce does not thicken, you can add a little flour. But in order not to make lumps and not spoil the taste, you need to dilute it in a small amount of cold water.
4. How to do without pain. If the flour is over, instead of it, you can take semolina in equal proportions with butter. True, this sauce is only suitable for lasagna.

Knowing how to cook bechamel sauce, you can make even familiar dishes unique. Finally, one more trick from resourceful housewives. To save time, you can cook a large amount of sauce, and then freeze it. The main thing is to pour the product into molds while it is still warm, wait for the final cooling and then place in the freezer.

Reviews: "For some dishes, it is simply irreplaceable!"

I prepare bechamel sauce for fish, mainly for fried pink salmon, to the standard composition: milk, butter, flour, I add peeled shrimp and it turns out such a pleasant taste that is very suitable for fried pink salmon, the fish does not seem dry. It is very easy to prepare, and for some dishes it is simply indispensable. By the way, my children really like vermicelli with this sauce.

Anastasia Serpova, http://xn--80avnr.xn--p1ai/%D0%95%D0%B4%D0%B0/%D0%A1%D0%BE%D1%83%D1%81_%D0%B1%D0% B5%D1%88%D0%B0%D0%BC%D0%B5%D0%BB%D1%8C

I also add garlic and basil and cook "hedgehogs" (meatballs with rice) in this sauce. Well, it's a classic. I didn’t try pasta with it, but if you “finish it off” with spices, then it should certainly work out well. Add more cheese. A la carbonara.

Guest, http://www.woman.ru/home/culinary/thread/4603894/

White bechamel sauce is about 500 years old, and the recipe was immortalized on paper 200 years ago. Previously, there were simply no records on how to prepare this or that sauce, considering them to be just an addition to the main dishes. However, as the retinue makes the king, so bechamel sauce has made many modern dishes popular (lasagne is the most striking example of this).

It is one of the five basic sauces of European cuisine, the recipe is simple, like everything ingenious, and it can be prepared in the home kitchen after going through a certain educational program.

From our article you will learn the recipe for how to make bechamel sauce, its composition, what dishes it is suitable for and what the Italians serve with dressing!

Brief history, main varieties

Bechamel (which, by the way, is a feminine word, although many mistakenly refer to it as a masculine one) has revolutionized the culinary world: before, bread was put in sauces as a thickener and suddenly began to do without it, with just three easy-to-use ingredients - flour , milk and butter.

This option also gave an excellent result, about which it is customary to say: “You will lick your fingers!”

At the court of Louis XIV, the Marquis de Bechamel was the chamberlain, who once, trying to improve the taste of overdried cod, allegedly flavored it with a sauce later named after him.

The Italians insist that the recipe was born under the sky, and a native of this city, Catherine de Medici, who married a French prince, brought to Paris not only a rich dowry, but also an Italian chef - the author of an exquisite white sauce, which everyone liked and took a worthy place in the menu of the powerful.

The sauce consists of flour that is fried, so that it acquires a beautiful golden hue, milk (or cream) and butter (usually creamy, but in some recipes - olive).

The conciseness of the composition makes this product universal: firstly, it goes well with a large number of dishes, and secondly, it can, if necessary, change itself if some additional ingredients are added to it - marjoram, parsley, pepper, garlic.

There are many varieties of bechamel: in Holland it is prepared with ground nutmeg, in France with onions and bay leaves, horseradish is sometimes included in the Russian recipe for spiciness and piquancy. One version of the sauce is called "Mornay" - it is prepared with Parmesan and Gruyère cheeses.

Tomato paste is added to Aurora, quite a bit so that the classic taste of the sauce does not change, but the color becomes pink, to Cardinal - lobster oil and cayenne pepper.

On the pages of our site you will also find out. We reveal the secrets of cooking a traditional Italian dish!

Features and traditions of use

Usually nutritionists are wary of "foreign" foods., however, bechamel convinced even strict experts that it is a balanced, healthy product.

Added to any meal, it makes it more satisfying, however, it is easily digested, so you can use it not only for lunch or breakfast, but also for dinner, even for those people who are afraid to gain weight.

According to nutritionists, flour, milk and butter are components that are better absorbed by the body. in this combination, providing cells with building material (proteins), as well as essential minerals and vitamins.

Here are the dishes in which bechamel is used:

lasagna

How to make bechamel sauce for? Prepared according to the classic recipe. The ratio of ingredients is as follows: 40 g of butter, 2 tablespoons of flour, half a glass of milk.

Separately, in a frying pan, fry a little chopped onion and garlic, grated carrots and fleshy (watery just do not grate) tomato, grated on a coarse grater. 400 g of minced meat are added to the vegetables. Stew until tender, and then add bechamel to the resulting mass.

By now, 10 lasagne sheets should be ready.(they are boiled in water). After that, in a baking dish, you can begin to “fold” the future dish, alternating sheets with filling and grated cheese (it will take 100 g). Baking time in the oven - 20 minutes.

Cannelloni with minced meat

Large-diameter pasta, called "cannelloni", is very convenient to fill with any filling. Boil them for 2 minutes before cooking.

Bechamel is prepared in the classic way. The best consistency is like thick sour cream. I fry minced meat with onions, and at the final stage put hard cheese cut into small cubes.

Cannelloni are stuffed with minced meat, placed on a greased baking sheet., pour over the sauce and sprinkle with grated cheese. Keep in the oven until golden brown.

In this video you will learn how to make a classic bechamel sauce at home - a famous chef will tell you a simple step-by-step recipe:

The French, who have intercepted the authorship of bechamel from the Italians, say that you can live without meat, but you can’t live without sauce, because it is it that gives a unique taste to any dish. You have the opportunity to make sure they are right by preparing ingeniously simple and exquisite European bechamel sauce in your home kitchen for relatives and friends.

In contact with

Irina Kamshilina

Cooking for someone is much more pleasant than for yourself))

Content

Connoisseurs of French cuisine know bechamel as an exquisite sauce for meat, fish, vegetables and lasagne. Pleasant aroma, spicy taste, which the additive possesses, turn the dish into an exquisite masterpiece. The basic bechamel sauce recipe is very easy to prepare, does not require any special products. By experimenting with the addition of spices, you can get a new original taste.

Step-by-step recipes for making Bechamel sauce with photos

This dish is one of the top five most popular base sauces in France. The top 5 are: Velouté, Espanyol, Dutch, Bechamel, Tomato. The basis of the classic Bechamel recipe consists of flour, milk and butter. Such a base is often used to prepare other sauces, adding cheese, fried onions, nuts and various spices or aromatic herbs. To emphasize the taste of the dish, to give special notes, it is important to learn how to skillfully cook Bechamel. Following the recommendations below, you will learn how to cook in such a way that it will not be a shame to serve food supplemented with it.

Prepare the sauce in several stages: first make a thickener. In France, it is called “roux”, which sounds like “roux”, and after that it is combined with warm milk, sour cream or cream. The sauce, named after Louis XIV's majordomo Louis Bechamel (although many assume that the dressing was created by one of the royal chefs, who only appropriated the recipe for himself), begins by giving the flour a reddish color by frying it in butter.

Throughout its existence, Bechamel has become so popular that it has acquired many variations due to the addition of various components (herbs, spices, vegetables). The only thing that is invariable is the base, although it is prepared in several ways: some add milk, others add cream. How to cook and what to serve "Bechamel" is up to you to choose.

Classic bechamel sauce with nutmeg

This option is perfect for meat, fish, potatoes, pasta. To prepare a classic recipe, you will need the following products:

• milk - 800 ml (the amount depends on the desired density; keep in mind that when cooling, the sauce will become thicker than on the stove during cooking);
• butter - 40 g;
• flour - 50 g;
• nutmeg (ground) - 1 teaspoon;
• salt, pepper - to taste.

Cooking method:

1. Heat the milk well, but do not let it boil.
2. Melt the butter in another container, add the flour and, without removing it from a low heat, stir well until the mixture becomes a homogeneous consistency.
3. Slowly pour the hot milk into the butter-flour mixture, stirring constantly.
4. When the sauce becomes homogeneous, resembling sour cream in thickness, add salt and nutmeg to it.
5. Remove the finished sauce from the heat - it is ready for seasoning dishes.

How to prepare bechamel sauce for baking lasagna

Pasta with filling, called lasagna, is traditionally cooked by Italian housewives with Bechamel sauce. For this dish, a special dressing is made based on the base version. Having conceived the preparation of Bechamel for lasagna, take the following products:

• milk - 750 ml;
• butter - 50 g;
• flour - 30 g;
• tomato puree (sometimes replaced with ripe tomatoes) - 20 g;
• salt;
• spices.

To prepare the lasagna sauce:

1. Prepare products for Bechamel. If instead of mashed potatoes there are tomatoes, they are peeled, ground on a grater. To make this easier, the tomatoes are first poured over with boiling water, and then with ice water - the temperature drop helps to facilitate the process of peeling.
2. In a saucepan or a suitable saucepan, melt the butter and fry the flour in it until it becomes ruddy.
3. Pour preheated milk into a saucepan, mix well, avoiding the formation of lumps.
4. Almost at the very end of cooking, add tomato puree. Set aside from the stove and proceed to the preparation of lasagna.

Recipe for sauce with mushrooms and cheese

Having mastered the preparation of a classic recipe, you can proceed to experiments. The original taste of Bechamel will give a combination of the base base with cheese and mushrooms. This option is perfect for black paste. In cooking, it is better to use not only ordinary, but also blue cheese. Prepare the sauce from the following products:

• milk - 300 ml;
• flour - 25 g;
• butter - 25 g + for frying mushrooms;
• mushrooms - 5-6 pcs.;

The process of preparing sauce with cheese and mushrooms:

1. Cut mushrooms and fry in oil.
2. Grate the cheese.
3. Prepare the main version of the sauce: melt the butter, fry the flour, mix with warm milk.
4. Add grated cheese and pre-fried mushrooms to the Bechamel base. Mix everything well and bring to a boil.
5. Remove from heat and season with sauce.

For fish

Bechamel prepared with the following ingredients will perfectly harmonize with fried or baked fish:

• milk - 1 glass;
• sour cream - 100 g;
• flour - 30 g;
• butter - 40 g;
• egg yolk - 1 pc.;
• lemon juice - to taste;
• salt, spices.

Cooking method:

1. Warm up the milk well.
2. Fry wheat flour in butter until golden brown. Combine with warm milk to avoid lumps. Pour it in very slowly, preferably in small portions. At this time, remove the container from the heat, and after stirring, return it to the stove again and bring to a boil.
3. When the base is almost ready, add sour cream and lemon juice without removing from heat. The resulting mass is well heated over low heat.
4. Remove the sauce from the stove and add the egg yolk to it. Bechamel is ready to serve with fish.

With spaghetti cream

Spaghetti seasoned with Bechamel sauce will be the most successful way. Its recipe is so versatile that it allows you to combine many herbs, spices and other additives. Bechamel will harmonize well with cream. The spaghetti recipe includes:

• cream - 1 glass;
• thick broth (fish, meat or vegetable) - 2 tablespoons;
• butter - 100 g;
• flour - 1 tablespoon;
• Provence or Italian herbs (basil, mint, oregano, sage, thyme, thyme, marjoram) - 1 pinch.

Cooking method:

1. First of all, the cream is well heated (almost to a boil) and a mixture of herbs is added to them. This is necessary so as not to be distracted during the preparation of the “roux” and to give the sauce a richer flavor.
2. Melt the butter and fry the wheat flour on it.
3. Add broth to a frying pan, stewpan or pan, mix everything until smooth (it is better to make movements in one direction: either clockwise or counterclockwise).
4. Without removing from the heat, pour the cream with herbs into the flour. Do this very carefully so that no lumps form.
5. Salt to taste, bring to a boil and remove from heat.
6. Brush the surface of the sauce with butter to keep it from crusting on top.
7. Boil spaghetti and serve with Bechamel.

Video

French sauce is a great addition to almost any dish, with it simple food acquires an unusual refined taste and pleases with a wonderful aroma. But this does not mean at all that the preparation of Bechamel requires some unusual expensive products and special skills. The following video will help you make sure of this, which shows the preparation of not only the sauce, but also a full breakfast. Try to make it yourself!

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Which we prepared in the last article? Today we will talk with you about one of the four main sauces of French cuisine - béchamel.

There are several versions of its origin. The most important one attributes its creation to the Marquis Bechamel. Thus, the sauce got its name from the name of the author. And he made it in his castle of Nointel for King Louis XIV, using meat juice and shallots.

In the modern version, bechamel is quite simple to prepare, like all ingenious. It is based on butter, flour and milk. Differences are only in the seasonings that are added during cooking.

Bechamel is a fairly versatile sauce, so it goes well with almost any dish. It will not take you much time to prepare it, but you will be able to surprise your guests.

Ingredients:

• Milk - 1 liter
• Butter - 100 gr.
• Flour - 4 tablespoons
• Nutmeg

We melt the butter.

Add flour and stir in melted butter.

Pour hot milk (heat, but do not bring to a boil!) In a mixture of flour and butter, mix well until smooth. We add milk in parts, otherwise there will be lumps!

In 1/5 of the milk prepared for the sauce (150-200 ml), add salt and nutmeg.

Pour the milk with dissolved spices into the bulk and mix well. It is best to use a silicone whisk for this.

Cooking lasagna with minced meat and bechamel sauce

After we have mastered the previous recipe, it's time to move on to cooking such a delicious dish as lasagna. After all, bechamel plays an important role in it. Lasagna can be made in several layers - depending on your patience, hunger and the number of ingredients.

Take:

• bechamel sauce
• 200 gr. dough for lasagna (can be puff)
• 120 gr. grated mozzarella cheese

For filling:

• 350 gr. ground beef
• 1 medium carrot
• 1 medium tomato
• 1 bulb
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• Salt and pepper to taste

Step by step cooking method:

Fry onion and minced meat in hot olive oil.

Add salt and pepper to the minced meat, mix.

Put the mashed tomato and mix again.

Add tomato paste. Mix all ingredients thoroughly.

We take a baking sheet, grease with oil, pour bechamel sauce on the bottom.

Lay the dough sheets on top of the sauce.

Then lay out a layer of meat.

Pour bechamel on top.

Sprinkle grated cheese over the sauce. We send it to the preheated oven until cooked. Bon appetit!

How to make bechamel sauce with cheese according to a homemade recipe?

In this dish, cheese adds a certain zest to bechamel. Moreover, in no case does it displace the main taste of the sauce. Try it, you will like it!

We will need:

• milk - 300 ml
• cheese - 150 gr.
• butter - 20 gr.
• flour - 15 gr.
• small onion - 1 pc.
• bay leaf - 1 pc.
• nutmeg - 0.5 teaspoon
• salt, pepper - to taste

Step by step cooking method:

Cut the peeled onion in half, add bay leaf, pour milk, bring to a boil, turn off, cover with a lid and leave for 20 minutes.

Three cheese.

After 20 minutes, strain the milk through a colander. We melt the oil.

Add flour to melted butter and mix thoroughly.

Continuing to stir, add milk.

Add salt, pepper, nutmeg and stir until smooth. Bon appetit!

How to remove lumps from bechamel sauce?

When making bechamel sauce for the first time, lumps may form. How to avoid it? There are some tips and tricks.

1. Sift the flour and add it to the butter gradually. So you will achieve uniform dissolution of flour.
2. Use a whisk so as not to spoil the dishes, take a silicone one. So you will be calm for the safety of the surface of pots and stewpans.
3. Milk must be warmed up before pouring, and little by little pour into the mass of butter and flour, not forgetting to stir. Do not rush and pour all the milk at once!

Bechamel does not like haste and fuss. I hope the tips help you!

Video on how to make bechamel sauce at home

This is a very tasty and delicate sauce with spicy notes of herbs. Bechamel goes well with both pasta and meat dishes. Moreover, it often serves as the basis for the preparation of other more complex sauces.

Ingredients:

• Milk - 500 ml
• Butter - 50 gr.
• Flour - 40 gr.
• Parmesan - 30 gr.
• Salt - to taste
• White (or black) pepper - to taste
• Nutmeg - ¼ teaspoon
• Dried garlic - ½ teaspoon

Well, my dears, have you already tried this delicious French sauce? If yes, please share your experience in the comments. See you on the blog!