Bechamel sauce is considered one of the most paramount delicious additions used in preparing different types of dishes, as it gives a delightful taste and a special flavour to the food, in addition to its ease of preparation, low cost, time, and effort to prepare it. It can be added to many foods, such as lasagna, fettuccine, and others. In this article, we will talk about how to make béchamel sauce, mentioning some of the dishes it is used in.
Tips for a Successful Bechamel Sauce
Putting salt on the bechamel depends on taste because the milk and flour need a good amount of salt, so do not add salt until you taste it.
Try to avoid putting the bechamel in the freezer, as the bechamel can remain in the refrigerator for four days.
You can freeze the bechamel sauce in the freezer. When used, leave it out of the freezer at room temperature, then boil it a little in a non-stick pot.
You can use ready-made bechamel sauce in packets. Still, homemade bechamel sauce is tastier because it can control the flavour and quantity, such as adding broth cubes, cinnamon, oregano, and nutmeg, or hot chilli spices.
Adding cheese is always optional, so you can add it or leave it out according to your desire.
Sifting the flour is very important to avoid the presence of flour lumps in the mixture.
You should not leave the butter until it burns. The best way to make the sauce is for all ingredients to be at room temperature.
You can double the quantities and use them as you need. If the sauce has lumps, you can easily solve the problem by straining it or using a hand blender to make it smooth.
You can heat the sauce before using it in the microwave.
How to Make a Bechamel Sauce?
Preparing bechamel sauce is always a challenge for beginners, but here is an easy and beginner-friendly way to prepare it:
Ingredients
Three tablespoons of flour.
Three tablespoons of liquid butter.
Three tablespoons of liquid milk.
A cube of chicken broth.
Half a teaspoon of fresh, finely grated nutmeg.
Half a teaspoon of white pepper, or as desired.
Half a teaspoon of salt, or as desired.
How to prepare
Put the butter in a deep pot, put the pot on low heat, and melt it well. Add flour to it, stirring continuously using a wooden spoon for no less than two minutes.
To obtain a cohesive mixture so that it does not clump.
Gradually add liquid milk, stirring continuously for a few minutes.
Add the stock cube, nutmeg, white pepper, and salt to the previous ingredients, stirring until completely combined.
Leave the sauce on very low heat, stirring constantly for about ten minutes until it thickens slightly.
Remove it from the heat and leave it aside for a quarter of an hour.
Let it cool before use.
Chicken Pan with Bechamel Sauce
Here is how to prepare this delicious recipe:
Ingredients
Two pieces of boiled and crumbled chicken breast.
Half a cup of corn.
A cup of finely grated Edam cheese.
A cup of pre-prepared béchamel sauce.
How to prepare
Preheat the oven to a high temperature.
Bring a glass tray for the oven, and place the boiled and crumbled chicken inside it, along with the corn.
Pour the previously prepared bechamel sauce over the ingredients well, and place the grated cheese on top.
Place the tray in the well-heated oven and leave it for at least half an hour until it is completely cooked and the cheese is browned.
Take it out of the oven and leave it aside for a little bit before serving.
Pasta with Bechamel Sauce and Mushrooms
This dish takes around 15 minutes for preparation and 8 minutes for cooking.
Place the pasta in a large pot, put it over high heat, and leave it for ten minutes until it is well boiled while keeping the boiling water in the pot.
Put the vegetable oil in a wide frying pan on high heat, and add the onions and mushrooms, constantly stirring until their colour changes.
Continue stirring the ingredients, and add salt, black pepper, ginger, and mixed spices.
Place half of the prepared bechamel sauce in the bottom of the oven tray and pour the pasta and mushrooms over it.
Add the remaining amount of pasta over the mushrooms, covering all of this with the rest of the bechamel, and sprinkle grated cheese on top of the tray.
Place it in the oven for about half an hour until completely cooked, and the cheese melts.
Take it out of the oven and serve it hot.
Lasagna with Minced Meat and Bechamel
Here is how to prepare this delicious recipe:
Ingredients
Three-quarters of a kilogram of minced meat.
Three onions.
Three crushed garlic cloves.
Egg yolk.
Half a cup of mozzarella cheese.
Half a kilogram of lasagna pasta.
Salt and pepper.
A bunch of chopped parsley.
Five cups of bechamel sauce.
Half a cup of butter or vegetable oil.
A tablespoon of tomato sauce.
How to Prepare
Melt the butter, add in the chopped onions and stir until golden.
Throw in the minced meat and garlic and stir for five minutes.
Add the sauce, salt, pepper, and tomato juice, and leave the pot on low heat.
After cooking, sprinkle parsley on the meat.
Prepare the bechamel sauce and put part of the cheese on it after grating it.
Boil a quantity of water, then put the lasagna in it and leave it until it becomes soft.
Put a layer of bechamel sauce in the pot in which we will bake the lasagna, and put a layer of lasagna on top of it, then a layer of minced meat, then lasagna again.
Sprinkle the rest of the cheese on the plate and place it in the oven for a third of an hour.
Take the dish out after it is cooked and decorate it with vegetables as desired, such as parsley, green pepper, lemon, and mint.
Pasta with Bechamel Sauce
This dish takes around 20 minutes to prepare and 10 minutes to cook
Put the oil in a medium-sized, thick-bottomed pot, then put it over medium heat.
Add the meat and continue stirring it until it dries completely.
Add the onion and garlic, then stir until the onion becomes soft.
Add the spices, salt, black pepper and coriander.
Stir well until completely mixed, then set aside.
For the tomato sauce:
Two tablespoons of corn oil.
One small chopped onion.
Two cloves of crushed garlic.
One large chopped tomato.
Four tablespoons of tomato paste.
One teaspoon of salt.
¼ teaspoon of black pepper.
Half a teaspoon of mixed spice.
Preparing the tomato sauce:
Put the corn oil in a pot on the stove.
Add the onions and garlic to the pot, then stir them well until you get a golden colour for the onions.
Add the chopped tomatoes and tomato paste to the onions and garlic,
Add the black pepper, spices, and a cup of water.
Leave the ingredients to boil for five minutes to obtain a consistent mixture.
How to prepare
Prepare the oven at 180 degrees, install the middle rack, and bring a large dish.
Put a cup of water in a deep pot, let it boil over high heat, then add a tablespoon of salt and corn oil.
Add the pasta to the water, then boil it for 15-20 minutes until cooked. Drain the pasta well from the water using a large strainer, then wash it with cold water.
Prepare the tomato sauce, add the pasta to it, stir until the sauce is absorbed, and leave it aside.
Prepare the bechamel sauce, then pour one cup of bechamel over the pasta and continue stirring.
Place half the amount of pasta in the oven tray, then distribute the meat over it, then place the remaining amount of pasta on top of it.
Distribute the bechamel sauce over the pasta, making sure to cover all the pasta with the bechamel.
Put butter on top of the sauce and place the tray in the oven for 30-40 minutes until its top is browned, then serve it hot.
Mushroom Bechamel Sauce
Here is how to prepare this super easy dish:
Ingredients
Two and a half cups of milk.
A small onion, finely chopped.
Two tablespoons of butter.
Two tablespoons of oil.
Three mushrooms are cut into tiny pieces.
A third of a cup of starch.
A third of a cup of flour.
A cup of water.
A small pinch of cinnamon.
A small pinch of white pepper.
A cube and a half of chicken broth.
How to prepare
In a medium-sized dish, put the water, then add the flour and starch, and stir until they combine together, then leave them aside.
Heat the oil and butter in a medium-sized stainless-steel pot, then add the onions and mushrooms and stir until they soften.
Then add the milk, chicken broth cube, pepper, and cinnamon.
Add the flour and starch mixture, and stir them over medium heat until you get a thick sauce.
Let the sauce cook for a few seconds, stirring constantly.
Bechamel Sauce with Cardamom
Here is how to prepare this delicious dish:
Ingredients
A quarter cup of flour.
Four cups of liquid milk.
Two tablespoons of butter.
Three tablespoons of cream cheese.
A little amount of ground cardamom.
Half a clove of garlic.
A teaspoon of dry thyme.
Bay leaf.
A little amount of black pepper.
An amount of salt, as desired.
How to prepare
Boil the milk on high heat, then add the following spices: black pepper, dry thyme, cardamom, bay leaf, and garlic.
Leave them on the stove for ten minutes.
Leave the mixture covered for an entire night. It is preferable to keep it in the refrigerator until its taste is concentrated.
Filter the milk from the spices the next day.
Put the butter and flour on medium heat, then add the cheese and milk to them.
Stir until you get the desired consistency.
Bechamel Sauce with Chicken Broth
This is one of the easy dishes for beginners:
Ingredients
Seven tablespoons of powdered milk.
Four tablespoons of flour.
Two and a half cups of water.
White pepper, as much as desired.
A cube of chicken broth.
How to prepare
Add the pepper, the broth cube, and the powdered milk to the water.
Put the flour in a pot, then put it on heat and continue stirring until the flour dissolves, then add the milk until it is combined.
In a pot on medium heat, stir the flour with the butter with a wooden spoon, then add the milk gradually and stir until it becomes warm and small bubbles begin to appear at the edge of the pot, which means it thickens. Then, remove it from the heat.
Next, add the cream, cheese, and nutmeg to the milk and stir until they mix well with each other.
Place the butter in a saucepan over low heat, then add the flour and stir for two minutes.
Add the milk gradually, stirring constantly so that the flour does not clump.
Add the cream and leave the bechamel over low heat, stirring constantly, until it boils, then season it with salt and pepper.
Vegetarian Bechamel
This dish takes around 10 minutes for preparation and 7 minutes for cooking.
Ingredients
A quarter cup of olive oil.
Two tablespoons of flour.
Two and a half cups of soy milk.
A pinch of salt and black pepper.
How to prepare
Put the oil in a pot over low heat until it is hot, then add the flour and toast it for two minutes.
Add the soy milk and stir quickly with a whisk so that the flour does not clump, and stir the mixture until it boils.
If the flour clumps, it can be filtered before use or placed in the blender jug and turned on until it dissolves.
Remove the bechamel from the heat and season with salt and pepper.
Bechamel with Mustard
Here is how to prepare this delicious recipe:
Ingredients
Half a cup of butter cut into cubes.
Half a cup of flour.
Three cups of whole milk.
A pinch of red pepper.
Half a teaspoon of mustard.
A quarter teaspoon of nutmeg.
A pinch of salt and black pepper.
Two cups of grated cheddar cheese.
How to prepare
Put the butter in a pot over low heat, then add the flour and stir until toasted, then add the milk and stir well.
You may not need the full amount of milk because some types of flour do not need a large amount of liquid.
Stir the sauce until it thickens for 7-10 minutes, then remove it from the heat and season it with salt, pepper, nutmeg and mustard.
Then, add the cheese and stir fast until it melts. You can also omit it.
Bechamel with Eggs
This dish takes around 7 minutes for preparation and 5 minutes for cooking.
Ingredients
Half a cup of unsalted butter.
Half a cup of all-purpose flour.
Three cups of liquid milk.
Two egg yolks, slightly beaten.
One and a half teaspoon of salt.
Half a teaspoon of white pepper.
How to prepare
Put the butter in a pot over medium heat, then add the flour and toast it for three minutes.
Then, add the milk and stir quickly for 3-5 minutes until the mixture becomes thick in consistency.
Mix two tablespoons of bechamel in a small dish with the egg yolks.
Then, add the mixture to the sauce pot while stirring quickly.
Season your preferred spices, and serve it hot.
Now that you have all it takes to prepare a delicious bechamel sauce recipes, do not hesitate to prepare some for your next dishes. Enjoy the experience and the great taste with your loved ones.
Salma Ihab 