THE FIVE MOTHER SAUCES

You should always remember that when you are making a sauce to be used on a food, it is the first thing to touch the tongue. A sauce is only as good as the ingredients you put into it and the care you take while preparing it. On the other hand, a good sauce does little to make inferior food taste better. Always put a good sauce on good food. Thankfully, we no longer use sauces to mask “off-tasting food” as was once the thinking in times before modern refrigeration! Some people to this day think that the chef is trying to hide something by using a sauce. A good chef will not cover the whole food that they are putting the sauce on for presentation and to prove nothing is being hidden.

In the 19th century, the chef Antonin Carême classified sauces into four families, each of which was based on a mother sauce (Also called grandes sauces). Carême’s four mother sauces were: Béchamel, Espagnole, Velouté, Allemande
In the early 20th century, the chef Auguste Escoffier updated the classification, adding sauces such as tomato sauce, butter sauces and emulsified sauces such as Mayonnaise and Hollandaise.

A sauce which is derived from one of the mother sauces is sometimes called a small sauce, or secondary sauce.

Most sauces commonly used in classical cuisine are small sauces, or variations of one of the above mentioned mother sauces. Mother sauces are not commonly served as they are; instead they are augmented with additional ingredients to make small (derivative) sauces. For example, Bechamel can be made into Mornay by the addition of Gruyère or any cheese one may like, and Espagnole becomes Bordelaise with the addition and reduction of red wine, shallots, and poached beef marrow.

Tomato — Tomato is considered to be among the 5 mother sauces, however, it actually came about later…although it certainly has earned the title since it is the base for a large variety of sauces in today’s cookery.

Variations: Modern variations concentrate more on seasonings giving rise to sauces such as Creole, Marinara, Portuguese and Spanish Sauce Tomat., Meat sauce, pizza sauce

Béchamel — the classic white sauce, was named after its inventor, Louis XIV’s steward Louis de Béchamel. The king of all sauces, it is often referred to as a cream sauce because of its appearance and is probably used most frequently in all types of dishes. Made by stirring milk into a butter-flour roux, the thickness of the sauce depends on the proportion of flour and butter to milk. The proportions for a thin sauce would be 1 tablespoon each of butter and flour per 1 cup of milk; a medium sauce would use 2 tablespoons each of butter and flour; a thick sauce, 3 tablespoons each.

Variations: Cream Sauce, Mornay, Cheddar Cheese Sauce, Mustard Sauce, Nantua

Espagnole – or brown sauce, is traditionally made of a rich meat stock, a mirepoix of browned vegetables (most often a mixture of diced onion, carrots and celery), a nicely browned roux, herbs and sometimes tomato paste.

Variations: Demi-Glace, Bordelaise, Sauce Robert, Lyonnaise, Sauce Madeira, Sauce Bercy, Sauce Chasseur

Hollandaise and Mayonnaise — are two sauces that are made with an emulsion of egg yolks and fat. Hollandaise is made with butter, egg yolks and lemon juice, usually in a double boiler to prevent overheating, and served warm. It is generally used to embellish vegetables, fish and egg dishes, such as the classic Eggs Benedict. Mayonnaise is a thick, creamy dressing that’s an emulsion of vegetable oil, egg yolks, lemon juice or vinegar and seasonings. It is widely used as a spread, a dressing and as a sauce.

Variations: Tartar Sauce, Thousand Island Dressing, Aïoli, Remoulade, Bearnaise, Maltaise, Mousseline, Foyot, Choron

Velouté – is a stock-based white sauce. It can be made from chicken, veal or fish stock. Enrichments such as egg yolks or cream are sometimes also added.

Variations: Bercy Sauce, Supreme Sauce, Sauce Allemande, Normandy

Tags: Blog, Cooking Tips, Sauces