Béchamel step by step
Béchamel is a roux (equal parts butter and flour) with milk whisked in. The butter coats the flour grains so they spread without clumping, and the starch swells as it heats and thickens the milk. Use 2 tablespoons of each per cup (240 ml) of milk.
Simmer to finish
Béchamel thickens fully at a gentle simmer, about 85°C (185°F), and needs 5 to 10 minutes to lose the raw flour taste. Keep whisking and season with salt and a little nutmeg. Stir in cheese off the heat so it melts smoothly.
Test yourself
Questions from the interactive lesson, with the answer and the why.
A recipe says to cook the butter and flour together for a minute before adding milk. What does that minute do?
It coats the flour in fat and cooks off the raw taste. Fat keeps the flour grains apart, and a minute of heat removes the raw flour taste.
True or false: Adding warm milk to a roux a little at a time while whisking helps prevent lumps.
True. Adding milk gradually lets the paste loosen evenly instead of clumping.
What went wrong? You pour cold milk into a hot roux all at once. The sauce turns lumpy and the lumps refuse to whisk out.
Adding all the milk at once clumped the flour. A large pour clumps the flour before it spreads. Add milk in small splashes, whisking.
Fill the blank: Leftover béchamel keeps in the fridge for about ___ days.
Leftover béchamel keeps in the fridge for about 3 to 4 days. Milk and butter sauces keep about 3 to 4 days if chilled within 2 hours.
Your béchamel is as thick as paste. What do you do?
Whisk in warm milk a splash at a time. Warm milk thins the sauce gently without making lumps.