Velouté Sauce
France's velouté: fish stock thickened with a blond butter-and-flour roux into a silky pale sauce.
Overview
A foundational French white sauce using stock and roux, creating silky body and subtle stock flavour. This versatile mother sauce serves as a base for countless fish and chicken sauces, providing elegant simplicity and purity of flavour.
Ingredients
- 30g butter
- 30g plain flour (sifted)
- 1 litre cold stock (fish, chicken, or vegetable)
- salt
- pepper
Method
Stage 1 - Make roux
- Melt the butter in a heavy-based saucepan.
- Remove the pan from the heat and add the flour, stirring with a whisk.
- Return the pan to a medium heat and cook for about 3 minutes, stirring constantly.
Stage 2 - Create sauce
- Pour the cold stock on to the roux, stirring constantly.
- Cook the sauce over a low heat for about 30 minutes, occasionally stirring with a whisk.
- Season with salt and pepper.
Notes
- Roux cooking: Essential to remove raw flour taste; take time with this step for proper flavour development.
- Cold stock: Always use cold stock to prevent lumps forming when combined with hot roux.
- Consistency: Adjust consistency by cooking longer for thicker sauce or adding more stock for thinner.
Serving
Use as a base for derived sauces (Bercy, Normandy, Chérubins, etc.) or serve with poached fish and chicken dishes.
Storage
- Keeps refrigerated for 3-4 days in an airtight container.
- Freezes well for up to 2 months.
- Best used as a fresh base for other sauces rather than served alone.
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