I want to talk to you a bit about sauces for food. I am going to give you some helpful simple recipes that you can use to go with your favorite protein. I used to always find myself saying “and what will i have with this chicken breast tonight?”. You have your veggies…check! your protein…check! but you forgot about what you will drizzle over them. Take these recipes and use them as a cheat sheet and at a moments notice you will be able to whip up some awesome sauce to go with your creation. And do not worry about the butter, even butter has a place in a healthy diet, just teach yourself to balance well. Sauces that are buttery, choose to have them with steamed veggies or fish. You can always work what you want into your diet with a little compromise.
Basic White Sauce
This is a spin on a classic 19th century recipe!
2 tablepsoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup celery, finely chopped
1/2 cup carrot, finely chopped
3 strips, turkey bacon
2 tablespoons all- purpose flour
2 cups whole milk
small handful parsley
fresh cracked pepper
1. Place butter in small saucepan and heat on low.
2. Add onion, carrot, celery and bacon, cook for about 10 minutes. add flour and stir
3. Add milk in four parts, stirring with a fork or whisk. add parsley, salt and pepper.
4. bring to a simmer or until the sauce begins to thicken.
5. strain sauce
This makes about 2 cups, each serving is about 2 tablspoons. This sauce goes great with Pasta, Chicken or Pork.
My favorite Chicken/Fish Sauce
It’s my favorite sauce to serve with chicken or fish, decide which way you wanna go by either choosing fish stock or chicken stock.
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
2 tablespoons all purpose flour
2 cups chicken/fish stock
salt and pepper
1. melt butter in small saucepan over low heat
2. Add flour to pan and cook for 3-5 minutes.
3. Add stock in 3 parts, constantly stirring until a smooth consistency is reached
4. Bring to a simmer until it becomes thick
5. season with salt and pepper
Red Wine Reduction
Since I am the type of chef that likes to cook fast, you can buy the demi glaze at gourmet stores or buy online.
1 cup cabernet sauvignon
1/2 cup finely chopped shallots
3 tablespoons demi glaze
small handful thyme
1 bay leaf
1/2 stick unsalted butter
salt and pepper
1. Add red wine, shallots, demi glaze, thyme and bayleaf to a small saucepan and bring to a boil for about 10-15 minutes
2. Add butter in 3 pieces, stirring constantly until smooth consistency is achieved.
3. Season to taste.
This goes extremely well with beef, veal or even duck !
There you have it, 3 simple sauces to make in no time to take your meal to another level !
