Béchamel

The classic French sauce, a must-learn for any cook since it's a base for a lot of nice dishes. It also goes well on plain pasta.

• Preparation: 5min.
• Cooking: 15min.
• Quantity: 1 liter.

Ingredients ~

• 50 g unsalted butter.
• 50 g flour.
• 1 liter whole milk.
• Salt to taste.
• Pepper to taste.
• A pinch of nutmeg, freshly grated.

Directions ~

1. Put the butter in a pot and let it slowly melt on medium-low heat.
2. Once the butter is fully melted, add the flour and stir it in to make a roux.
3. Keep stirring the roux on medium-low heat until it gets lightly golden brown.
4. Add about a glass of your whole milk and stir until combined; repeat this process until you have a thick sauce in your pan and new milk you add easily combines. Never stop stirring!
5. At this point you can add the rest of your milk; if you skip the previous step you will end up with lumps of roux that are hard to get out.
6. Lower your heat to low and keep stirring. Don't forget to get in the corners of the pot, the sauce would easily burn.
7. Once your sauce has the desired thickness, taste it and add salt and pepper until it becomes to your liking. A pinch of nutmeg will also go a long way.