White Sauce Recipe

White sauce is a foundational sauce in French cuisine. It works as the base for countless dishes like pasta, lasagna, gratins, spaghetti, casseroles, etc. The smooth and creamy texture with subtle flavors brings a delicious taste and luxurious appearance.

It is a simple sauce with wonderful taste and flavors. Preparing the white sauce recipe is not a difficult task. This article presents an easy recipe for making authentic white sauce.

Therefore, after carefully reading this article, you can create the perfect white sauce at home with a velvety texture and subtle flavor. Don’t miss the end to get experts’ tips to achieve the accurate consistency and vegan version. Hold your attention and read carefully till the end.  

Why You Must Try This Recipe at Home?

White sauce is one of the five mother sauces of French cuisine. After learning this basic white sauce recipe, you can make half of the French dishes at home. Hence, this versatile sauce recipe will be beneficial for people who are interested in cooking.

Moreover, making the white sauce at home is easier than you think. You can make this simple sauce using basic ingredients like butter, flour, and milk. If you can make the best white sauce recipe at home effortlessly, then why would you rely on store-bought sauce?

You don’t need to research the recipe. We have done deep research and come up with an easy recipe with experts’ suggestions for making the best white sauce at home. You just need to follow our recipe thoroughly. After that, preparing a perfect white sauce will be hassle-free for you.   

Ingredients and Substitutions You Need for This Recipe

All the ingredients you need to make the French white sauce are familiar to everyone. You already knew the main 3 ingredients. A few flavoring ingredients will also be used. Here, we have attached a table of ingredients with amounts and their easily available substitutions.

Ingredient	Amount	Substitution/Notes
Butter	2 tablespoons	Olive oil or margarine
All-purpose flour	2 tablespoons	Whole white flour for a nutty flavor
Milk	2 cups	Dairy-free milk for the vegan version (Almond milk, soy milk, or oat milk)
Salt	½ teaspoon	Use according to your taste
Ground black pepper	¼ teaspoon	White pepper for a milder flavor
Chili flakes (optional)	1 teaspoon	Red chili powder for a smoother texture
Nutmeg	A pinch	It is optional for extra flavors

• Butter provides a smooth and silky texture to the white sauce for pasta. Besides, the rich flavor comes from the butter.
• Flour helps to thicken the milk and create a sauce-like texture.
• Milk provides the base of the white sauce.
• Salt, ground black pepper, chili flakes, and nutmeg add flavors to the white sauce.
• Chili flakes and nutmeg are optional. You can add chili flakes to enhance spicy flavor and nutmeg to add warmth. 

How to Make White Sauce at Home: Easy 7 Steps

There are very few sauce recipes that are as simple as the French white sauce recipe. We have divided this recipe for homemade white sauce into 7 easy steps.

Step 1: Melting Butter

Initially, check the ingredient list and collect all the required ingredients. Then, measure them precisely according to the list.

• Take a saucepan over medium heat.
• Add 2 tablespoons of butter to the saucepan.
• Allow it to melt nicely for 1 to 2 minutes.
• Be careful that butter does not brown. 

Step 2: Adding Flour

After melting the butter, add 2 tablespoons of flour to the hot butter.

• Whisk the butter gently and cook for about 2 minutes.
• Then, you get the roux – the thickened base of the sauce.
• Professionals suggest stirring constantly throughout this step. 

Step 3: Adding Milk

The roux is ready. It’s time to add the milk to create the liquid sauce base.

• Slowly pour 2 cups of milk into the roux.
• Whisk continuously at the time of the addition of milk to prevent lumps.

Step 4: Heating

Now, it’s time to heat the solution to thicken it.

• Continue heating the milk over medium heat until the sauce thickens and becomes smooth.
• This step may take 5 to 7 minutes 
• Don’t forget to whisk continuously while heating.

Note: Using a whisk to stir while heating could be a great way for easy whisking. 

Step 5: Season and Simmer the Sauce

We will season the sauce in this step.

• After the sauce becomes thick, add salt, ground black pepper, chili flakes, and nutmeg to the sauce base to enhance the flavors.
• Give a nice mix.
• Then, simmer it for 1 to 2 more minutes to meld the flavor wonderfully.
• Again, don’t miss stirring while simmering.  

Step 6: Taste and Adjust

The sauce is almost ready. This step allows you to get the taste according to your preferences.

• Take a spoonful of sauce.
• Taste it, and you can adjust the taste according to your preferences.
• If you want a saltier flavor, add extra salt.
• For spicy sauce, add chili flakes or extra black pepper powder.
• To balance the flavor, you can add some sugar to the sauce.
• Feel free to experiment with ingredients to get a customized white sauce recipe. 

Step 7: Serve and Store

Finally, the white sauce is ready to serve.

• You can use the sauce immediately for pasta, lasagna, or other baked dishes.
• Additionally, you can store the sauce in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Chef’s Tips for Perfect White Sauce

You may find thousands of white sauce recipes on the internet. Then, why should you follow our recipe? The answer is that you can make the perfect white sauce on your first try with our recipe. Additionally, this recipe will also be suitable for vegans. Here, we have provided 2 magical tips to make the best white sauce and 1 useful tip to make it vegan. 

• Milk Preparation

Many professionals use warm milk instead of raw and cold milk. It helps to make the sauce smoother and lump-free. Therefore, we recommend warming the milk before adding it to the flour mixture. 

• Adjust Consistency

Consistency is a great parameter to judge the white sauce. Achieving the perfect consistency is quite challenging. Here, we have come up with a magical solution to adjust the thickness.

• If you think the sauce becomes too light, you can add some whole cream into the sauce, or you can simmer the sauce for longer.
• On the other hand, if the sauce becomes too thick, you can add some warm milk to get your desired consistency.
• Always remember one thing: the sauce will become thicker after cooling. Therefore, stop heating while the sauce seems thinner than your expectation.  

• Vegan White Sauce

Nowadays, a vegan diet is popular. If you are a vegan, don’t be upset. We are here for you. You can also enjoy the white sauce.

• You can use soy milk, oat milk, or almond milk to prepare the vegan version of this sauce recipe.
• Simply soak the soy, almonds, or oats overnight. Then, blend them using enough water. You will get dairy-free milk effortlessly.
• Butter is also a dairy product. Therefore, you can use vegetable oil instead of butter for the vegan version. 

Conclusion

The classic white sauce is commonly known as Béchamel. It is a timeless, cream-based, flavorful sauce that elevates the taste of simple dishes. Once you learn the white sauce recipe, you can quickly and easily make restaurant-like French cuisine at home.

Give it a try and make the best white sauce. Then, you can impress your family and friends with endless culinary creativity with this masterpiece sauce recipe. Happy cooking!

FAQs

Can I Make White Sauce Ahead of Time?

Yes, you can make the white sauce ahead of time. After making the sauce, store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator. That’s how you can store the sauce for up to 3 days. Before using, you should reheat the sauce over low heat. If required, you can also add a splash of warm milk to restore creaminess. 

Can I Make White Sauce Gluten-free?

The white sauce is originally made with flour, which contains high gluten. However, you can easily make gluten-free white sauce by using cornflour, rice flour, or gluten-free flour instead of all-purpose flour.  

What Dishes Go Well With White Sauce?

You can pair many dishes with white sauce. Here is a list.

• Pasta
• Lasagna
• Baked vegetables
• Chicken
• Fish
• Soup
• Spaghetti