Bechamel sauce - different versions of the popular European sauce in your kitchen

In cooking, there are many recipes and combinations of ingredients that are already considered classics.

After all, the products perfectly complement each other, creating an incredibly sophisticated combination of aromas and tastes.

Bechamel sauce in combination with mushrooms has become especially popular in the culinary field all over the world. It can be presented as a separate dish or as an addition to the main dish.

The main thing is to observe the correct order in the execution of all processes of preparing a delicious dressing, recommendations and advice.

With champignons

Bechamel is a very delicate sauce, and with mushrooms it becomes even tastier!

Ingredients:

• fresh champignons – 150–200 g;
• milk – 2.5 cups;
• yolks – 2 pcs.;
• butter – 50–60 g;

• flour – 2–3 tbsp. l.;
• water or broth - 1 glass;
• salt – 0.25 tsp. (taste).

Preparation

1. Prepare your food.
2. Finely chop the mushrooms.
3. Heat butter (30–40 g) in a saucepan.
4. Add flour and cook, stirring, over medium heat until golden brown, about 1 minute.
5. Gradually pour in 1.5 cups of milk, stirring continuously until a thick and homogeneous mass is obtained.
6. Mix the remaining milk with the egg yolks.
7. Pour the milk-yolk mixture, water (or broth), water (or broth) into the saucepan and add salt. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly.
8. When the sauce boils, pour in another 0.5 cup of milk.
9. Add mushrooms.
10. Cook over low heat for 15 minutes. Then remove from heat and add the remaining butter. Stir.

Serve mushroom béchamel sauce on top of pasta, chicken, etc.

Bon appetit!

A few tips for proper cooking

1. The base for the sauce is Rublon, a mixture of milk, butter with the addition of flour, boiled until yellowish. In the original, it was cream, but later they started using milk
2. Along with the dairy ingredients, broth is added. Do not add fermented milk products, as at high temperatures they will curdle and there will be lumps in the sauce
3. To obtain the perfect sauce, the proportions of flour and butter must be the same. The amount of liquid can be changed, while experimenting with the thickness of the sauce
4. For flavor, you need to add seasonings to the milk. In order not to strain the sauce from the seasonings, you need to wrap them in cheesecloth, dip them in milk and boil them. Then leave for 30 minutes
5. Bechamel has a light creamy color and light consistency.

With porcini mushrooms

Contraindicated for children under 3–4 years of age: it is too heavy for their stomach, and mushrooms are not digestible at this age.

You will need:

• milk – 1 l;
• butter – 100 g + 1 tbsp. l.;
• wheat flour – 100 g;
• garlic – 1 clove;

• onion – 1 piece;
• carrots – 50 g;
• dried porcini mushrooms - a handful, or 300-350 grams of fresh ones;
• salt, ground pepper, nutmeg to taste.

Preparation:

1. Melt the butter over low heat in a heavy-bottomed saucepan. It should be warm. Do not bring to a boil.
2. Add all the flour at once. It is necessary to stir constantly so that it blooms evenly, otherwise lumps will form. They can be difficult to break. Bechamel flour should be slightly golden in color. Add chopped garlic and remaining spices. The sauce will have the consistency of sour cream. If you need it more liquid, just add less flour.
3. In a separate pan, lightly fry the onion. Finely grate the carrots and add to it. Simmer for 15 minutes.
4. Pour in milk heated to 40–45 degrees. This prevents lumps from forming in the sauce itself. Stir constantly to prevent it from burning. Milk should also be added in small portions - a few tablespoons at a time. This reduces the likelihood of lumps forming.
5. Add prepared mushrooms to the sauce and simmer for another 3-5 minutes.

That's all, the porcini mushroom sauce is ready.

Don't overdo the amount of spices when cooking. They should only slightly emphasize the taste and aroma of mushrooms, but not overwhelm them. The recipe even allows for their complete absence.

Ingredients

The statement that everything ingenious is simple is also true for the “hero” of the article. The product is based on only three components. To prepare the classic French béchamel sauce, you do not need any other ingredients except 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 return the sauce to its homogeneity, broth cooked with fish, meat or vegetables is poured into it. That is why in all recipes with cream this ingredient is always used in tandem with broth. You cannot replace milk with sour cream or other fermented milk products, as they curdle during heat treatment.
2. Flour. You should take wheat that has been previously 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. And also fried onions, cheese, sour cream, tomato paste, mushrooms.

In France, it is customary to season bechamel with bay leaf, and in Belgium and Holland - with nutmeg. If you use milk rather than cream, the calorie content of the product will be about 200 kcal/100 g.

Origin of bechamel sauce

The very simple béchamel sauce was invented by chefs in France during the reign of King Louis XIV and perfected by haute cuisine creator François de la Varenne.

Translated from French it means “white sauce”.

It is prepared on the basis of milk, butter and wheat flour. You can create an endless variety of dishes with it, and if you put sugar instead of hot seasonings and freeze it, everyone’s favorite ice cream will come out.

His recipe was almost lost during the French Revolution at the end of the 18th century: it was a secret of the royal kitchen, the cooks did not write anything down anywhere, but passed it on from generation to generation simply in words.

The common people could not prepare it - all the ingredients were expensive for most artisans.

Nowadays bechamel has ceased to be something special. This is the main sauce with which dozens of famous dishes are prepared. History has not preserved the name of the person who came up with the idea to prepare this sauce with mushrooms, but we should be grateful to him for such an invention.

Bechamel sauce classic

Learning how to make the famous sauce at home is not at all difficult. Hearty and tender pasta with bechamel sauce, the recipe of which every housewife should know, will quickly set the table and feed the whole family a delicious dinner. What’s remarkable is that the necessary products will probably be found in any kitchen.

Ingredients:

• Butter – 30 g;
• Flour – 30 g;
• Milk 2.5% – 300 g.

The proportions of the main ingredients for the classic version of the bechamel sauce recipe are very easy to remember: 1/1/10 – butter, flour, milk. Although some chefs may slightly change the amount of ingredients based on their own preferences. The utensil you will need is a thick-bottomed saucepan. This is important because it will not cool down when cold milk is poured in.

Preparation:

1. Place the butter and flour in a saucepan and place it on the stove, turning on medium heat.
2. Stirring with a spatula, turn the ingredients into a homogeneous mass.
3. Divide the milk into three parts. First, pour in 100 ml in a thin stream.
4. Stirring the contents of the saucepan with a whisk to prevent the formation of lumps, wait until the milk begins to thicken and pour in the next portion.
5. Mix again with a whisk, whisking slightly, and carefully add the remaining milk.
6. Cook the sauce, stirring until the desired consistency is reached. Density can be adjusted. Add a little flour and a piece of butter to the liquid and cook. But if it’s too thick, dilute it by adding hot milk or cream.
7. As it cools, the sauce will become thicker, so remove it from the stove a little in advance. To prevent it from heating in the saucepan, you can pour the sauce into another container and cover it with a lid or film.

The bechamel sauce makes the pasta even tastier. Complete it with grated cheese and fresh vegetables - the perfect dinner for the whole family is ready.

Mushrooms in modern cooking

Mushroom sauces are now widely used in all European cuisines, especially if they are white - the best, noblest and highest quality of all. They are used both fresh and dried - this does not change the taste of the sauce, and the recipe is supplemented by only one point - the need to soak the dried ones.

Bechamel goes very well with mushrooms. The classic white sauce acquires a romantic, delicate aroma and taste. Cooking it doesn't get any more complicated.

Traditional recipe

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

Ingredients:

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

Preparation:

1. Heat a frying pan and add a piece of oil.
2. When it warms up, add flour. Fire it up.
3. Pour milk in a thin stream. At the same time, do not forget to stir the mixture throughout the entire process.
4. Reduce the heat on the stove to medium and keep the sauce for no more than 10 minutes. At the same time, watch the thickness - the ingredients should form a homogeneous viscous mixture.
5. Season and add salt 3 minutes before cooking.

How to make béchamel sauce with mushrooms?

To do this you need to choose the right ingredients. In particular, mushrooms have a direct impact on the quality and taste of the dish.

The classic recipe uses porcini mushrooms or champignons.

For everyday use, you can use other, simpler mushrooms, even russula. Of course, such mushroom sauce cannot be compared with the real, classic one.

All mushrooms must first be boiled, but there are some nuances that should be taken into account:

1. If using dried mushrooms, soak them in cold water for 2-4 hours, rinse well, and boil before cooking. Then cut them into small pieces.
2. If you take fresh ones, just boil them and chop them.
3. There is no need to boil the champignons when cooking.

Prepare the base for the mushroom sauce:

• beat the mushrooms in a blender until smooth;
• If you want to get small pieces, pass the boiled mushrooms through a meat grinder.

What to do if you get lumps and 3 more tips

When preparing the sauce, experienced housewives recommend pouring milk into the butter-flour mixture directly from the bag, without pouring it into a glass: this makes it easier to introduce the product in a thin stream. Here are four more tips that will be useful for béchamel sauce lovers.

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

Knowing how to make bechamel sauce, you can make even familiar dishes unique. Finally, one more trick from resourceful housewives. To save time, you can make 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 it to cool completely and then place it in the freezer.

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