Last week I decided to share a mixed vegetable lasagna recipe on my Instagram stories, using 100% homemade ingredients. That included homemade pasta, tomato paste, and this homemade bechamel sauce. When it comes to bechamel sauce, I’ll let you in on a secret – I’ve never tried a single supermarket version that has tasted anywhere near as good as homemade. Not only that but sometimes it has tasted so bad that I’ve practically had to force myself to eat it. Worse yet, pantry versions are filled with stabilizers and gums and can have ingredient lists that are 20+ in length, and they work out far more expensive than making it homemade. In comparison, homemade white sauce uses just three ingredients as its base: butter, flour, and milk! Once prepared, it’s buttery, silky, and creamy (no surprises there!)
What Is bechamel?
Bechamel (also referred to as white sauce) is a French “mother sauce” (meaning it’s one of the building blocks of classic French cuisine) made from a simple roux (butter and flour mixture) and milk combination; often with salt and nutmeg added in. Fun fact: The full list of “Mother Sauces” is béchamel, velouté, espagnole, hollandaise, and tomato! Béchamel has several uses, including as a lasagna sauce, for Moussaka, within a fish pie, for pasta bakes (I used a dairy-free alternative for a vegan bechamel pasta bake, for instance), and it is used to create other sauces too. For example, by adding cheese, you have a simple cauliflower cheese sauce/mac ‘n’ cheese sauce (also called ‘mornay sauce’). It can also become a type of white gravy sauce or even work within casseroles!
The Bechamel Sauce Ingredients
Flour: general all-purpose flour will work wonderfully in a homemade bechamel sauce.Butter: unsalted butter is the traditional ingredient within bechamel. Though, feel free to use salted if it’s all you have – you can then adjust the amount of salt in the rest of your recipe. You could alternatively use ghee (clarified butter).Milk: use whole milk for the creamiest results. Though skim milk will work fine too.Nutmeg: you won’t necessarily taste this in the white sauce – yet you’d know it’s missing if it weren’t there. Somehow it has a magical ability to add depth to the bechamel.White pepper powder: this is optional, but I like the extra flavor it provides.
How to Make Bechamel Sauce (white sauce)
Step 1: Prepare the roux
In a large pan or saucepan, melt the butter over low heat. Once it’s fully melted, add the flour, and cook it for around 1 minute. The mixture should be pale and foaming – that’s when it’s ready for the next step.
Step 2: Add the milk
Turn off the heat from the pan and then gradually add in the milk. Just add in a little at a time, constantly stirring to incorporate. If you add it all in at once, the sauce will become lumpy – so avoid this at all costs! Once all the milk is added, place it back over low heat and bring it to a boil, stirring constantly. The sauce will thicken as it heats. Once thickened to your desired level (it should coat the back of a spoon), add the spices, reduce the heat to a gentle simmer for two minutes, then it’s ready to use as a lasagna bechamel or for whatever purpose you’d prefer!
Recipe Notes
The milk temperature: I remove my roux from the heat before adding the milk, which means I can usually get away with adding cold milk without is spitting and/or going ‘crazy.’ However, to eliminate all risk feel free to heat up the milk in a saucepan or in the microwave before adding it to the roux.For a quick cheese sauce: add in around ½ cup of sharp cheese in the last two minutes before removing the white sauce from the heat.Make sure to cook the flour enough: you don’t want it to be brown, but you also don’t want your homemade bechamel to have a raw floury flavor. So, make sure to allow the roux to cook for a while until it’s fragrant.Use a whisk and spoon/silicone spatula: if I can (i.e., those days when I remember where my whisk is…), I like to use both tools when making the homemade bechamel sauce. A whisk is excellent for breaking up lumps for a smooth sauce, but a spatula or spoon can be used to properly stir the bottom of the pan and ensure nothing is burning or sticking to the pan.
Other Simple Sauce Recipes
Easy Vegan Bolognese (Spaghetti Sauce)Homemade Roasted Tomato Sauce (Homemade Pasta Sauce)Simple Roasted Red Pepper SauceCreamy Avocado Pasta Sauce (Green Pasta)Delicious Vegan Basil Pesto (with pistachios)Quick Easy Brown Vegan GravyGarlic Cream Sauce (Garlic Alfredo Sauce)
If you try this lasagna bechamel sauce recipe, I’d love to hear your thoughts/questions below. Also, I’d appreciate a recipe card rating below, and feel free to tag me in your recipe recreations on Instagram @Alphafoodie!
