Smooth and silky velouté simply consists of roux and stock. Many different sauces and dishes can be created from this classic, French mother sauce.
Chef's notes
Velouté is one of the five classic mother sauces in French cuisine. This simple, stock-based sauce forms the base of many other sauces, such as:
Allemande - classic velouté thickened with egg yolks
Bercy - velouté made with fish stock, white wine and shallots
Suprême - classic velouté made with mushrooms and cream
Steps
1
Making the Velouté Sauce
Ingredients
3 tbsp unsalted butter
3 tbsp all-purpose flour
2 cups white chicken stock (approx.)
kosher salt (to taste)
white pepper (to taste)
To start the velouté, first melt the butter over medium-low heat. Add the flour and whisk until fully incorporated. Cook the roux until it turns a blond color.
Slowly add the stock, a bit at a time. Whisk and let it come back to a gentle boil each time before adding more stock. Add the stock until you reach a silky-smooth consistency.
Once done, season with salt and white pepper to taste. The sauce may thicken slightly as it cools, so if you’re not planning to use it right away, you may need to loosen it up with a bit more hot stock before using.
Velouté sauce can be used in many dishes, from soups to sauces. It goes particularly well with poultry and seafood dishes.
9 Comments
Barb B•
I'm making chicken cordon bleu for a diner party, what kind of sauce would I make to enhance the elegence of the dish?
For sauces you have several options. You could make a veloute or a bechamel sauce. You could also just make a light sauce such as this one here (see Step 4 of the recipe). You could also make a Dijon cream sauce (search "Dijon" on Rouxbe for a recipe). For more ideas you could even do an online search as there are many more sauce ideas that could work for this dish. Good luck and enjoy your dinner party. Cheers!
Adding liquid slowly to roux is done to ensure there are no lumps. If the ratios were the same, the liquid will thicken no matter what was used (milk, water, stock). You might find it helpful to check out the lesson on Veloute Sauce in the cooking school. Cheers!
Hi, I'm making my first Veloute and just want to make sure I have the ratios correct. I'm using "more than gourmet classic fish stock" paste which yields 6 cups of stock. Am I making a rue of 1 tablespoon of flour and one tablespoon of butter per cup of stock equaling a total of 6 tablespoons of each for the total amount of stock (6 cups)? Thanks.
Hi Paul- That is a good starting point in terms of ratios, but you should adjust as needed as sometimes you will find that you need to adjust up or down.
Also, depending on the cook time and final use, you may want a thicker or thinner final sauce. ~Ken
Hi- Sure, it's an all purpose sauce. Also, there no need to ask us permission to try a new food.... or a new combination with a sauce. Lemon and garlic are great together, especially when finished with a fresh herb to add more brightness.
You get to decide what tastes good for you or not! Enjoy it and let us know how it works out. ~Ken
Dawn T •For sauces you have several options. You could make a veloute or a bechamel sauce. You could also just make a light sauce such as this one here (see Step 4 of the recipe). You could also make a Dijon cream sauce (search "Dijon" on Rouxbe for a recipe). For more ideas you could even do an online search as there are many more sauce ideas that could work for this dish. Good luck and enjoy your dinner party. Cheers!
Kimberley S • Rouxbe Staff •Adding liquid slowly to roux is done to ensure there are no lumps. If the ratios were the same, the liquid will thicken no matter what was used (milk, water, stock). You might find it helpful to check out the lesson on Veloute Sauce in the cooking school. Cheers!
Ken R • Rouxbe Staff •Hi Paul- That is a good starting point in terms of ratios, but you should adjust as needed as sometimes you will find that you need to adjust up or down. Also, depending on the cook time and final use, you may want a thicker or thinner final sauce. ~Ken