Cooking Cove: The five French mother sauces for Mother’s Day

Cooking Cove: The five French mother sauces for Mother’s Day

Hollandaise Sauce. Stock photo

By Barbara Beltrami

The five classic sauces that are often called  the Mother Sauces of French cuisine are béchamel, velouté, espagnole, hollandaise and tomate. From them are derived many other sauces that we’ve all most likely tasted at one time or another. 

The béchamel is that creamy white sauce made from a roux of butter and flour with hot milk and with cheese added becomes a Mornay sauce. A velouté is another creamy white sauce made from meat or fish stock, cream and egg yolks. That brings us to hollandaise, a blend of egg yolks, butter and lemon juice or vinegar. A sauce espagnole rarely used on its own but often as a base for other sauces is a rich emulsion of a dark brown roux, browned bones and meat, vegetables, brown sugar and various seasonings. And finally is the one we’re probably most familiar with, sauce tomate, which consists of pork, a roux, herbs and seasonings and of course, tomatoes. 

Why am I telling you all this? Because there’s nothing like a savory classic sauce to jazz up an otherwise ordinary dish. And because for Mother’s Day and every day, Mom deserves something jazzy and elegant crowned by one of the Five Mother Sauces. Fancy names aside, these pillars of French cuisine aren’t famous and popular for nothing. Here are three of those five sauces for you to try.

Béchamel Sauce

Béchamel Sauce

YIELD: Makes about 2 to 2 1/4 cups

INGREDIENTS: 

2 cups milk

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

2 tablespoons flour

Pinch nutmeg

Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS:

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, scald the milk, then put over very low heat to keep it hot. In another medium saucepan melt butter over low heat and when it is bubbling, whisk in flour, nutmeg and salt and pepper and cook 3 to 4 minutes until golden. Whisking constantly, pour in milk slowly but steadily and keep whisking and stirring until sauce is thickened, about 10 minutes. Use for creamed veggies, mac and cheese, lasagna, moussaka or anything that would taste better with a cream sauce.

For variation: Whisk in 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese to make a Mornay sauce.

Hollandaise Sauce

Hollandaise Sauce

YIELD: Makes about 2/3 cup

INGREDIENTS: 

8 ounces unsalted butter

2 egg yolks

1 tablespoon water

Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice or to taste

DIRECTIONS:

Set a large saucepan with a few inches of water on low heat to simmer. Place butter in a glass measuring cup and set in simmering water until butter is melted, but don’t let water come to top or get inside cup. Carefully skim white residue off top, reserve clear yellow liquid and discard white on bottom of cup. In a small saucepan, using a wire whisk, vigorously beat egg yolks with a tablespoon of water. Place saucepan in a larger saucepan of simmering water, beating constantly, and, continuing to beat constantly, add clear yellow liquid from butter. Keep over simmering water and continue to beat until mixture thickens and has the consistency of a thick liquid. Stir in salt and pepper and lemon juice; combine thoroughly and serve immediately over poached eggs, steamed asparagus, cooked lobster pieces or crabmeat or poached salmon 

Sauce Velouté

Sauce Velouté

YIELD: Makes about 2 cups

INGREDIENTS: 

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

3 tablespoons flour

Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

2 cups hot chicken broth

DIRECTIONS:

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Stir in flour, salt and pepper and cook, stirring constantly, two minutes. Whisk in chicken broth, half a cup at a time, until smooth.  Bring mixture to a low boil, reduce heat to low and cook, stirring frequently, about 15 minutes, until thick and smooth. Serve over fish, shellfish, or poultry with a delicate green salad.