Basic Brown Sauce

Name: Basic Brown Sauce
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 55 min
Ingredients: 4 tbsp. clarified butter; 1 cup red onions, chopped; 1/2 cup celery, diced; 1/2 cup carrots, diced; 1/2 tsp. chervil (substitute tarragon); 4 tbsp. unbleached all-purpose flour; 4 cups cold low-sodium beef stock; freshly ground black pepper, to taste (I always use mixed peppercorns); ground Himalayan pink salt, to taste; 1 large bay leaf

Author: Francine Lizotte

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Posted on May 29th, 2018

by Francine Lizotte

When it comes to sauces, I can’t imagine cooking without them. I personally think they wrap up a dish so beautifully. That wasn’t always the case in my culinary journey. When I just got out on my own, cooking wasn’t my “forte” 😕 and more often than I can remember, sauces saved my dish.

Someone who really helped me during my learning process was my mother. How many times did I call 📞 her in the middle of a recipe because I was “stuck” and didn’t know what to do? Every time it happened, I wished I’d participated more in the kitchen as a child…

There’s a sauce that I requested from her right after I moved into my new apartment and it was her brown sauce. The reason behind it was this was easy for me to make a Salisbury Steak with some sautéed onions 🧅 and mashed potatoes – although back then I was playing it safe in the kitchen, I still managed to burn a few recipes here and there!

In French cuisine, there’s what is called “The Classic 5 Mother Sauces”. I shared a few of them 🥣 with you already; Béchamel Sauce aka White Sauce and some of its secondary sauces are Mornay Sauce, Soubise and Cheddar Cheese Sauce.

Besides Béchamel, there are 4 others; Hollandaise, Velouté, Espagnole, and Sauce Tomate.

Although extremely similar, my “own” mom’s Basic Brown Sauce is not an Espagnole sauce because there is no tomato purée 🍅 in it. It might be a small factor but it makes a big difference in taste. Do I also use the French classic Espagnole Sauce in my recipes? Of course! As long as the subtle flavor from the tomato purée goes well with the selected recipe.

Talking about flavor, there’s a herb 🌿 that is quite popular in French cuisine and it’s chervil. I grew up with my mother using it in her recipes. This fine herb has great flavors of anise, celery and parsley which is where it’s “French parsley” nickname comes from. A great substitute for this herb would be tarragon or parsley.

In my mom’s recipe, she uses chervil. Because of its delicate flavor, many chef’s/cook’s 👩‍🍳👨‍🍳 add this herb at the end of cooking. Adding this fine ingredient in the roux is absolutely acceptable because the flour mixture will absorb and keep its flavor.

This Basic Brown Sauce is a fabulous condiment to have in your recipe folder. It’s easy and fairly quick ⏳ to make. After squeezing out the solid ingredients, you are left with a beautiful smooth sauce ready to be used. From there, you can always modify it for another recipe… that’s the beauty of it. Next time you need a tasty brown sauce, here’s an amazing one from my “own” mother.
Bon Appétit!🍽

Here are more fabulous sauce recipes for you to enjoy…😀
– Hawaiian Style Teriyaki Sauce
– Enchilada Sauce
– Iguana’s Mushroom Sauce
– Homemade Tzatziki Sauce
– Triple Chili Wing Sauce
– Citrus Cranberry Sauce
– Turkey Gravy without Drippings
and for more sauce recipes 🥣, click on this link… Recipe Category • Marinades & Sauces

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