How to Make Basic White Sauce (Bechamel)

Basic white sauce, or bechamel, is an important "starter" sauce for myriad recipes. It's used as the base for souffles, for Greek moussaka, for homemade macaroni and cheese, and it's the starting point for dozens of other sauces, like cheese sauce or mustard sauce. This recipe makes about 3 cups, but it's easily adjusted.

Things You'll Need

• 1/2 cup onions - chopped
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup butter
• 5-6 whole sprigs fresh thyme
• 1/4 tsp white pepper
• 4 cups whole milks
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• pinch red pepper flakes
• 1/2 tsp whole black peppercorns
• Pinch Red Pepper Flakes

Instructions

1. 

   Scald the milk in a small saucepan over medium-low heat just until it steams.

2. In another saucepan, melt the butter and onion over medium heat and cook just until the onion loses its raw odor, about 2-3 minutes.

3. Stir in all remaining ingredients except the milk.

4. 

   Cook, stirring constantly, for about 3-5 minutes. Do not let the pan get too hot, and do not let the mixture turn golden. It's important that everything stay white.

5. 

   Slowly whisk in the milk and bring to a simmer. Simmer slowly for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

6. 

   The sauce should be at a medium thickness; to thin it out, add more milk. To thicken it, continue to simmer. Keep in mind that it will thicken considerably as it cools.

7. 

   Strain the sauce into another container and discard the onions, thyme, pepper flakes and peppercorns.

Tips & Warnings

• If you're making this sauce as a starter for other dishes, don't season it too much.

• Be careful when cooking the flour in step 4. Because butter contains milk and dairy solids, it's easy for it to turn golden, which will then turn the sauce golden. Lower the heat if necessary to prevent this.

• Because flour is used to thicken this sauce, it needs to simmer for at least 20 minutes to lose that "starchy" flavor. If using this sauce for a white lasagna or moussaka, however, only simmer for about 5-10 minutes, because the sauce will continue to cook and thicken when baked in the oven.