Comments on Life At The Tuna Ranch: Béchamel done wrong?

Here's how I make bechamel sauce: In a saucepan, m...

2010-03-11T11:20:10.732+10:00

Here's how I make bechamel sauce: In a saucepan, melt the butter over medium-low; you don't want the butter to burn. Bring the heat back up to medium-high (the butter should be hot and golden) and add the flour. Keep stirring manually with a whisk for approximately 2-3 minutes. The flour should absorb the butter instantly and form a paste (this step will get rid of the unpleasant raw flour taste). Add the milk in 3 stages. Increase the heat while constantly stirring for about 5 minutes. Reduce the heat to low. Add your fave flavorings (cheese, herb, nutmeg, etc) to the sauce. Season with salt and pepper. Stir well. Voila!
The key to homogeneous sauce is to use all the ingredients at the same temperature, so make sure to heat the milk in the microwave for about 2 minutes (or in a saucepan), so it's warm. If you get lumpy pieces in the sauce, don't hesitate to use an immersion blender. Hope this helps!

Thanks for the tips, guys. I think, yes, I do ten...

2009-06-14T20:13:05.844+10:00

Thanks for the tips, guys.

I think, yes, I do tend to panic and add milk too early. Will try cooking longer next time.

heya just make sure once the flour is added that i...

2009-06-14T19:17:37.857+10:00

heya
just make sure once the flour is added that it gets some cooking time before you add the milk. Bechamel sauce is no harder than adding half a scrunched bay leaf to a cheese sauce.

C Word

Yeh. My step one is the same as the above. I do t...

2009-06-13T18:20:48.455+10:00

Yeh. My step one is the same as the above.

I do the mixing in a pot.

Then I heat up the pot and slowly add the milk while stiring in the flour/butter mix which is already in the pot.

Stir until smooth while adding all the milk.

This mix will seem like as you say, "Uncooked flour" until it actually does cook and the thickening process is complete, all the while stiring to keep it smooth.

It shouldn't taste raw.