How to Make a Basic White Sauce

Tortellini with white sauce

Using basic white sauce as a base, you can make creamed peas, scalloped potatoes, cream soups, cheese sauce, sausage/hamburger or chicken-fried steak gravy. A simple recipe using butter, flour and milk will yield 3/4 cup of basic white sauce.

Things You'll Need

• Metal whisk
• Non-Teflon-coated saucepan
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup 2 percent or whole milk
• Salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions

1. Melt the butter over medium-low heat, but do not allow it to brown or burn.

2. Add the flour and immediately whisk it into the melted butter. Be sure to get all the edges of your pan. Use a rubber spatula, if necessary. The texture should be gooey.

3. Add the milk and increase the heat to medium.

4. Continue to whisk, scraping the sides and bottom of the pan, until the desired consistency is reached.

Tips & Warnings

• Add more flour for a thicker sauce

• Failing to continually stir this recipe will cause the flour to congeal on the bottom of the pan. Remove from heat if you have to step away during the cooking process.