GORDON RAMSAY RECIPES

From cooking times to possible lumps, here are our tips for preparing bechamel, but also other sauces (such as Mornay) that are made with this preparation

The recipe seems simple, yet on bechamel everyone has his say. Why? Because it is a great classic, for which each chef (or mother) has their own tricks. The fact is that those who know how to cook must be able to prepare a béchamel, as Bruno Barbieri reminded us several times in the various editions of Masterchef when, merciless, he asked the competitors to point-blank what the basic ingredients were. We all agree on this: milk, flour and butter they are the protagonists of the bechamel sauce. But how to get the right result? Here are ours advice.

The basic recipe of bechamel

The rule that you must always remember is that for every 10 grams of flour it will take 10 grams of butter is 1 deciliter of milk. The preparation is simple: melt the butter over a low heat in a small pan with high sides, then pour the flour, all at once, and let it lightly brown (this base is called roux). Then pour the milk at room temperature or slightly cold, even in this case in one stroke, and continue, to break up any lumps, with a whisk or a wooden spoon. When the consistency seems right, lower the heat and let the béchamel cook for five minutes with the lid. If you sail the spoon then the sauce is ready.

Bechamel sauce: is there the right consistency?

Yes and no. Or rather, it all depends on what preparation you want to get. For the lasagna for example the density must be classical, so follow the proportion 5 decilitres of milk, 50 grams of flour and 50 grams of butter. If instead you have to stuff croquettes or soufflé you will need a firmer sauce and to have it you can slightly increase the dose of flour, reaching 60 grams per 50 of butter (or decreasing the milk), or you can cook longer.

How to cook the bechamel?

To obtain the right béchamel density it is important to evaluate the cooking times. The more it will remain on the fire, the more it will thicken. The important thing is never to lose sight of it, so as to check how the consistency changes and find the right one for the dish you want to prepare.

In extreme evils …

Don't tell Barbieri, but, if you're really desperate, for the lumps that you have formed in your béchamel you can give in to blender until it becomes smoother, then continue heating it in a saucepan. When the bechamel cools it can form on the surface one pellicina: attention, if it falls into the compound it risks creating lumps. So try to remove it with a spoon. In any case, once ready, if you don't have to use it right away, cover the béchamel with the film.

Bechamel sauce and more

This extraordinary sauce is the basis for many dishes, from first to second courses, from lasagna to sufflé. Not everyone knows, perhaps, that the béchamel is also perfect as the main ingredient for the preparation of other sauces: we discover the three most famous with the correct doses for preparation.

Mornay sauce

Let's start with a great classic, the Mornay sauce. Of derivation French, this delicious sauce adds taste and creaminess with bechamel sauce. How? With the cheese! It can be used to accompany vegetables au gratin or for example for delicious crepes. Here are the correct doses to prepare it.

Ingredients
450 ml of béchamel
2 egg yolks
60 g of butter
120 g grated cheese (parmesan, pecorino cheese, grana cheese)
120 ml of liquid cream
Salt and Pepper To Taste.

Method
You will need a few steps to prepare the Mornay sauce. After making the béchamel, add the eggs (only the egg yolks), the grated cheese (also a mix of those you have chosen) and the cream. Cook on a low heat and gradually add the butter until it is completely melted. Season with salt and pepper and your Mornay sauce will be ready.

Aurora sauce

If you want a sauce to accompany it with taste vegetable and the meat or to season in a different way than usual a traditional first course like le noodles or the ravioli, the Aurora "sauce, created by the famous French chef Escoffier, can do it for you. Here's how to prepare it.

Ingredients
500 ml of béchamel
300 g of tomato sauce passed
50 g of butter

Method
Separately prepare the two sauces according to traditional recipes. Then add the tomato sauce to the béchamel while it is still hot – and let it cook together for a few minutes. Then add the butter into small pieces little by little and cook until it is perfectly melted inside the Aurora sauce. Pour then still hot to season. A little tip: if you season a first course, add a little more flour in the preparation of the béchamel, it will make it a little less fluid.

Parmesan cream

If you want a cream with a strong taste to combine with a crouton of bread, a vegetable parmesan or a risotto, the Parmesan cream is the one for you. It is prepared in no time and is versatile and very appetizing.

Ingredients
750 ml of béchamel
250 g of grated Parmigiano Reggiano
60 g of butter

Method
Prepare the béchamel and, still on the heat, add the butter. Continue to turn the sauce until it is free of lumps, then add the Parmigiano Reggiano and stir vigorously. A few minutes to completely melt the cheese and your parmesan cream sauce will be ready to season your dishes.

The classic recipe of béchamel prepared in minutes and all the preparations to eliminate it in favor of other ingredients would be a serious mistake

Until a few years ago, béchamel was abundant in many recipes. Appetizers, first and second rich and tasty dishes seemed not to be able to do without that delicate and creamy touch capable of transforming the simplest of baked pastas into a masterpiece. But over time this ingredient has been seen more and more as that oneextra of which we could even do without. But are we really sure?
Here below a collection of recipes that need béchamel to be cooked to perfection. So, if you are preparing them without, be ready to rediscover how good they are by re-inserting one of the basic ingredients.

The recipes that require bechamel

Pies
Of vegetables, meat, pasta, rice. We like them because they combine many ingredients and bring taste and joy to the table. Perfect also to recycle the leftovers from the day before, they require a creamy note that can mix all the elements and give softness when baked.

Vegetables au gratin
These recipes are a great way to appreciate cauliflowers, broccoli, fennel, sprouts and many other vegetables to those who turn up their noses in front of these boiled or steamed dishes. But the formula often used with grated cheese and breadcrumbs is not as tasty as the classic recipe. To make this dish unforgettable, a veil of béchamel is enough to distribute evenly over all the vegetables.

soufflé
Soft, soft and rich. This appetizer conquers all with its tasty notes and a greedy and airy consistency. But because it is good, it must be prepared as expected from the classic recipe. So always use it in the mixture of ingredients that you will be going to bake without trying to replace it with plant or milk.

lasagna
Some people put sliced cheese, some vegetable condiments, some nothing. The result? The lasagna is dry. The bechamel, which is a very important ingredient in baking, helps pasta and sauce not to dry and it is therefore important to put it between one layer and another and at the end, as suggested by the original recipe.

Crepes and cannelloni
In the same way as lasagna, even crepes and canelloni need to remain soft and blend well with the filling. Therefore, even if you insert other cheeses, such as gorgonzola, you will do well to dissolve them in the béchamel and keep it as a base. On the pan and to complete, however, always use it without additions: the recipe will be more delicate.

In the pies
Also in this case the softness and creaminess of the final result make the difference. If the intended ingredient is the cream, it will be sufficient to use it in the indicated doses. When the béchamel appears instead, follow the recipe because it gives more body to the dough that otherwise could be liquid.

On baked pasta
Whether it's red or white, it wants béchamel. For a less messed up result, you can distribute it in tufts taking care not to leave out any part of the pan.

The homemade béchamel sauce: the classic recipe

Although it is ready in all supermarkets, preparing béchamel at home will allow us to use a product without preservatives and prepared with controlled ingredients. The simplicity of the classic recipe, then, will allow us to have the sauce ready in a few minutes: over time, we will develop the ability to obtain the density sought in each recipe, keeping it slightly more liquid to sustain long oven cooking.
To prepare your béchamel, start from the preparation of the ingredients. It will take a liter of milk, 100 grams of butter and 100 grams of flour, a pinch of nutmeg and salt.
Start to melt the butter in a saucepan, preferably copper. Then add the flour and mix it with a wooden spatula. At this point you will have obtained one roux, or a base of butter and flour to which you will combine, always mixing with a whisk, milk. Bring to the boil and, always turning, let it cook for about 7 minutes. Once ready, turn off the heat and salt and flavor with nutmeg.
This sauce is preferably warm and fluid. If you need to wait, keep it in a bain-marie, sprinkled with a little bow of butter and covered.

Tag: bechamel

How to prepare the béchamel of the right consistency – Italian Cuisine