Sauces

Mother Sauces

A Brief History of The Mother Sauces

The French mother sauces were originally four base sauces set forth by Antonin Careme in the 19th century. Careme’s four original mother sauces were Allemande, Bechamel, Veloute andEspagnole.

In the 20th century, Chef Auguste Escoffier demoted Allemande to a secondary sauce of Veloute, and added Sauce Tomat and Hollandaise.

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Béchamel

Béchamel sauce, also known as white sauce, is made from a white roux and milk. Even though it first appeared in Italian cooking books, it is now considered one of the mother sauces of French cuisine. It is used as the base for other sauces.

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Velouté Sauce

Velouté (prounounced “vuh-loo-TAY”) is one of the fivemother sauces of classical cuisine, which means it’s a starting point from which a number of sauces can be made, rather than a finished sauce itself. It’s sort of like a blank coloring book — you start with the lines and shapes and then color it in any way you choose.

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Espagnole Sauce

Espagnole is a basic brown sauce that is one of the five mother sauces of classical cuisine. It’s also the starting point for a rich and deeply flavorful sauce called demi-glace, which is traditionally served with red meats.

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Tomato Sauce

Sauce Tomat, better known as tomato sauce, is a French Mother Sauce based on tomatoes. This base can consist of fresh tomatoes cooked down into a liquid, canned tomatoes, tomato puree or even tomato paste.

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