Basic Sauce and Gravy Recipes

BASIC SAUCES

WHITE SAUCE:

This sauces can be made in several thicknesses and is the basis of lots of other sauces. Below is a chart with the proportions necessary for making this sauce in various thicknesses.

Melt butter in heavy saucepan. Blend in flour and salt, and cook, stirring until bubbly. Using wire whisk, stir in liquid. Cook just until smooth and thickened.

	THIN	MEDIUM	MEDIUM THICK	THICK
BUTTER	1 T.	2 T.	3 T.	4 T.
FLOUR	1 T.	2 T.	3 T.	4 T.
SALT	1/4 t.	1/4 t.	1/4 t.	1/4 t.
LIQUID	1 c.	1 c.	1 c.	1 c.

VARIATIONS:

CHEESE SAUCE: Use milk as liquid. Add 1/2 c grated cheddar cheese after milk.

MUSHROOM SAUCE: Use milk as liquid. Add 1/4 c. chopped mushrooms and 1 T finely chopped onion in butter before adding flour.

CELERY SAUCE: Use milk as liquid. Add 1/2 c. chopped celery and 1 T. onion to butter before adding flour.

CHICKEN SAUCE: Use chicken broth as half the liquid. Add 1 t. poultry seasoning or sage to season.

BASIC GRAVY:

Using the pan you prepared your meat in, drain all fats from the bottom of the pan except 1-4T.

Using the proportions listed in basic white sauce. Stir in the flour, making sure to loosen the “browning” in the bottom of the pan. Season with salt and pepper.

Add liquid.. Milk for milk gravy; water for regular gravy, or do not add salt and use the water you cooked potatoes in for mashed potatoes. It is already salted and will also add the starches and nutrients from the potatoes to your gravy. Cook until smooth and thickened.

You can add onions or mushrooms to the meat drippings for more flavorful gravy.

BASIC TOMATO SAUCE:

You can make your own “Italian” sauce by using the basic white sauce recipe and substituting tomato juice for the liquid.

To the butter, saute 1/4 c. chopped onion, 1 clove garlic minced. Add 1/2 T. oregano, 1/2 T. sweet basil, and 1 T. Parsley to the sauce.

You can also add 1/4 c. parmesan cheese to give a extra flavor to your sauce.

BASIC FRUIT SAUCE:

1 T. Cornstarch
1/2 c. sugar
1 c. fruit juice

Combine cornstarch and sugar. Gradually stir in fruit juice or liquid til well blended. Cook over low heat (being careful not to scorch) or in the top of a double-boiler over boiling water in the bottom.