A sauce is a thick, liquid preparation eaten with some foods in order to give additional flavor and nourishment. It is thickened by the addition of some ingredients (liasions) such as roux, eggs, butter and farinaceous products. Its use is to supply additional richness; or to add some nutriment to a dish by its food value, and sometimes to counteract the richness of some food and to add piquancy of flavor.Simple sauces may be divided into the following groups:
1. Those made with a roux, the simple ones being household, white, and brown sauces. There are also some superior sauces made with a roux.
2. Those thickened with cornflour, flour, custard powder, rice flour, etc
3. Those made with an egg base, eg, custard sauces.
4. Cold sauces, eg mayonnaise
5. Unclassified sauces, eg meat sauce, bread sauce, jam sauce.
HOUSEHOLD SAUCES
Plain white sauce
The ingredients: Butter or margarine and liquid suitable for the food with which the sauce is served. For savoury sauces meat, fish, or vegetable stock and milk are used in equal quantities. For sweet sauces, milk and water. The roux is equal quantities of flour and fat cooked together, the proportion of liquid varying with the purpose for which the sauce is intended.
There are three types of white sauce: coating sauce, pouring sauce and binding sauce or panada.
Basic proportions
Pouring sauce coating sauce panada
15g flour 25g flour 50g flour
15g fat 25g fat 50g fat
250ml liquid 250ml liquid 250ml liquid
Seasoning Seasoning Seasoning
1. Melt the fat in a saucepan
2. Add the flour. Mix smoothly with a wooden spoon and cook over a gentle heat for 3-4 minutes stirring all the time without allowing the roux to brown.
3. Remove from the heat and add the liquid, a little at a time, to the roux, stirring all the time until the mixture is smooth and creamy. A lumpy sauce will result if the liquid is not added gradually
4. Add the remaining liquid and mix thoroughly.
5. Return to the heat, bring to the boil, stirring all the time to prevent lumps of forming
6. Continue boiling and stirring for 4-5 minutes to cook the flour thoroughly, otherwise the flavor will be raw, the sauce will not thicken properly, the consistency will be incorrect and the appearance dull instead of glossy.
7. Season well but carefully
8. If the sauce is too thick add a little liquid, bring to the boil and boil, stirring all the time. If too thin, reduce by boiling rapidly, stirring all the time, as it is apt to burn at this stage.
If the sauce is allowed to stand over a gentle heat once it is made, dextrinization takes place and the sauce becomes thin. To save time at the last minute, make the roux and add the liquid. Allow this to stand and finish cokig immediately before serving.
A skin forms on the top if the sauce is cooked and allowed to stand. To prevent this, cover the surface closely with a piece of greaseproof paper dipped in cold water and place the lid on the saucepan. To re-heat it, stir vigorously to prevent lumps from forming and then heat gently.
Brown-sauce-basic recipe
15g fat 250ml brown stock or water 1 onion
15g flour 1 small piece carrot salt and pepper
1. Prepare vegetables and slice them.
2. Melt the fat and fry the vegetables till brown but not burnt
3. Add flour, cook until the roux becomes a good brown colour
4. Remove from the heat, add liquid a little at a time, mixing smoothly.
5. Return to he heat, and bring to the boil stirring all the time. Add salt
6. Allow to simmer, for about 3 minutes to ensure thorough cooking of the vegetables.
7. Skim, strain, season and re-heat
Sauces thickened cornflour etc
Basic recipe
½ level tablespoon cornflour, rice 250ml liquid (water or milk with water)
Flour, custard powder or flour
½ tablespoon sugar or ½ teaspoon of salt and a pinch of pepper.
1. Mix the starchy ingredient to a thin paste with a little of the cod liquid
2. Bring the remaining liquid to the boil
3. Pour on to the thin paste stirring all the time.
4. Return to the saucepan, bring to the boil and continue boiling for 2-3 minutes, stirring continuously.
5. Add seasoning or sweetening.
Cooked egg sauces
Basic recipe
1 egg ½ teaspoon vanilla (optional)
250 ml milk 1 dessertspoon sugar
1. Heat the milk
2. Beat the egg with the sugar and pour on to the hot milk gradually, strain to remove threads etc from egg
3. Return to gentle heat and stir until custard thickens. Do not boil, otherwise it will curdle.
To prevent curdling, cook in a double saucepan. This sauce may be varied by the addition of strong flavouring, eg coffee.
Coffee custard sauce
Use 125ml strong coffee and 125ml milk, or 250ml milk less one tablespoon of coffee essence. Continue as for egg custard.
Cold sauces
Mayonnaise sauce
The chief ingredients of this sauce are oil and egg yolk
1 yolk of egg 2 tablespoon vinegar
150ml of salad oil salt and pepper to taste
1. Separate the ylk carefully from the white. Mix together the yolk and seasoning in a bowl
2. Add the oil drop by drop stirring all the time. Use a teaspoon to drop the oil and work in a cool place. The sauce will thicken as the process continues. If before all the oil is used, it becomes too thick, add a few drops of the vinegar to thin it down. Continue with the oil.
3. When thick and smooth add the vinegar gradually, stirring all the time. Essential to success are (i) the thorough mixing of the oil with the egg yolk to give it a smooth and glossy texture and (ii) the use of good quality salad oil and a fresh egg yolk.
French dressing-basic recipe
1 tablespoon salad oil 1 teaspoon salt
1 dessertspoon vinegar 1 teaspoon white pepper
1. Mix together the oil wit the seasoning
2. Add the vinegar very gradually, stirring all the time until it is smoothly blended.
Cream salad dressing-basic recipe
I hard boiled egg white pepper to taste
1 teaspoon sugar ¼ teaspoon salt
1 dessertspoon vinegar 2 tablespoon evaporated milk
1. Separate the white from the egg yolk
2. Mash the yolk smoothly in a bowl. Add the seasonings
3. Add the milk gradually, stirring all the time
4. Add the vinegar very gradually.
Cream salad dressing 2
Ingredients as in basic recipe together with 150ml salad oil
1. Mash yolk in a bowl. Add seasonings
2. Add oil gradually stirring all the time
3. When thick and smooth add milk and vinegar very gradually.
Unclassified sauces
Tomato sauce
250g tomatoes ½ teaspoon cornflour
1 small carrot 1 dessertspoon margarine
150ml white stock salt and pepper
1 small onion or shallot
1. Chop onion, slice carrot and tomatoes
2. Melt margarine in a saucepan. Add prepared vegetables
3. Simmer for 30 minutes. Skim
4. Rub through a sieve. Re-heat sauce
5. Mix cornflour with a little water and add to sauce
6. Add seasoning. Boil for 5 minutes. Colour if necessary.
Jam or marmalade sauce
150ml water 1 teaspoon cornflour
1 tablespoon sugar rind and juice of ¼ lemon
1 tablespoon raspberry jam or marmalade colouring
1. Put sugar,jam and lemon rind and juice in a saucepan
2. Stir over gentle heat until the sugar and jam dissolves
3. Infuse for 10 minutes
4. Strain sauce into another pan. Blend cornflour with a little cold water. Add to sauce and boil for 3 minutes.
Hard sauce
100g butter 150g icing sugar
Brandy or 25g ground almonds almond essence
1. Sieve icing sugar and cream thoroughly with the buter
2. Work in sufficient brandy to give a distinctive flavor
3. Pile or pipe on to a small dish. Serve with any rich pudding eg Christmas pudding
4. If brandy is undesirable substitute 25g ground almonds after creaming, add almond essence. Rum may be used instead of brandy.
Ata sauce
12 large peppers 1 large onion
1 tablespoon ground chillies 1 large fresh tomato
250ml groundnut oil 1 cup dried shrimps
Salt to taste
1. Grind peppers, onion and tomato
2. Wash shrimps thoroughly; grind the heads and cut the bodies into bits.
3. Heat the oil until a blue haze appears. Fry the ground ingredients until cooked: add the shrimp bits and continue cooking for 5 minutes.
4. Serve as an accompaniment to boiled or fried root
Fried gravy
4 large peppers 1 large onion
2 medium sized tomatoes 2 tablespoons oil
Salt to taste.
1. Grind or chop the peppers, onion and tomatoes.
2. Heat the oil, fry the onion, peppers and tomatoes. Add salt at the beginning to bring out the flavor. Continue frying, stirring frequently to prevent burning until gravy is cooked. Add a little water if necessary to ensure thorough coking of ingredients.
3. Serve as an accompaniment to fried fish, fried plantains, sweet potatoes etc
The oil used for frying the fish or other foods with which the gravy will be served should be used for making the gravy, but it should be strained to get rid of burnt pieces of food that will spoil the colour and flavor of the gravy.
1. Those made with a roux, the simple ones being household, white, and brown sauces. There are also some superior sauces made with a roux.
2. Those thickened with cornflour, flour, custard powder, rice flour, etc
3. Those made with an egg base, eg, custard sauces.
4. Cold sauces, eg mayonnaise
5. Unclassified sauces, eg meat sauce, bread sauce, jam sauce.
HOUSEHOLD SAUCES
Plain white sauce
The ingredients: Butter or margarine and liquid suitable for the food with which the sauce is served. For savoury sauces meat, fish, or vegetable stock and milk are used in equal quantities. For sweet sauces, milk and water. The roux is equal quantities of flour and fat cooked together, the proportion of liquid varying with the purpose for which the sauce is intended.
There are three types of white sauce: coating sauce, pouring sauce and binding sauce or panada.
Basic proportions
Pouring sauce coating sauce panada
15g flour 25g flour 50g flour
15g fat 25g fat 50g fat
250ml liquid 250ml liquid 250ml liquid
Seasoning Seasoning Seasoning
1. Melt the fat in a saucepan
2. Add the flour. Mix smoothly with a wooden spoon and cook over a gentle heat for 3-4 minutes stirring all the time without allowing the roux to brown.
3. Remove from the heat and add the liquid, a little at a time, to the roux, stirring all the time until the mixture is smooth and creamy. A lumpy sauce will result if the liquid is not added gradually
4. Add the remaining liquid and mix thoroughly.
5. Return to the heat, bring to the boil, stirring all the time to prevent lumps of forming
6. Continue boiling and stirring for 4-5 minutes to cook the flour thoroughly, otherwise the flavor will be raw, the sauce will not thicken properly, the consistency will be incorrect and the appearance dull instead of glossy.
7. Season well but carefully
8. If the sauce is too thick add a little liquid, bring to the boil and boil, stirring all the time. If too thin, reduce by boiling rapidly, stirring all the time, as it is apt to burn at this stage.
If the sauce is allowed to stand over a gentle heat once it is made, dextrinization takes place and the sauce becomes thin. To save time at the last minute, make the roux and add the liquid. Allow this to stand and finish cokig immediately before serving.
A skin forms on the top if the sauce is cooked and allowed to stand. To prevent this, cover the surface closely with a piece of greaseproof paper dipped in cold water and place the lid on the saucepan. To re-heat it, stir vigorously to prevent lumps from forming and then heat gently.
Brown-sauce-basic recipe
15g fat 250ml brown stock or water 1 onion
15g flour 1 small piece carrot salt and pepper
1. Prepare vegetables and slice them.
2. Melt the fat and fry the vegetables till brown but not burnt
3. Add flour, cook until the roux becomes a good brown colour
4. Remove from the heat, add liquid a little at a time, mixing smoothly.
5. Return to he heat, and bring to the boil stirring all the time. Add salt
6. Allow to simmer, for about 3 minutes to ensure thorough cooking of the vegetables.
7. Skim, strain, season and re-heat
Sauces thickened cornflour etc
Basic recipe
½ level tablespoon cornflour, rice 250ml liquid (water or milk with water)
Flour, custard powder or flour
½ tablespoon sugar or ½ teaspoon of salt and a pinch of pepper.
1. Mix the starchy ingredient to a thin paste with a little of the cod liquid
2. Bring the remaining liquid to the boil
3. Pour on to the thin paste stirring all the time.
4. Return to the saucepan, bring to the boil and continue boiling for 2-3 minutes, stirring continuously.
5. Add seasoning or sweetening.
Cooked egg sauces
Basic recipe
1 egg ½ teaspoon vanilla (optional)
250 ml milk 1 dessertspoon sugar
1. Heat the milk
2. Beat the egg with the sugar and pour on to the hot milk gradually, strain to remove threads etc from egg
3. Return to gentle heat and stir until custard thickens. Do not boil, otherwise it will curdle.
To prevent curdling, cook in a double saucepan. This sauce may be varied by the addition of strong flavouring, eg coffee.
Coffee custard sauce
Use 125ml strong coffee and 125ml milk, or 250ml milk less one tablespoon of coffee essence. Continue as for egg custard.
Cold sauces
Mayonnaise sauce
The chief ingredients of this sauce are oil and egg yolk
1 yolk of egg 2 tablespoon vinegar
150ml of salad oil salt and pepper to taste
1. Separate the ylk carefully from the white. Mix together the yolk and seasoning in a bowl
2. Add the oil drop by drop stirring all the time. Use a teaspoon to drop the oil and work in a cool place. The sauce will thicken as the process continues. If before all the oil is used, it becomes too thick, add a few drops of the vinegar to thin it down. Continue with the oil.
3. When thick and smooth add the vinegar gradually, stirring all the time. Essential to success are (i) the thorough mixing of the oil with the egg yolk to give it a smooth and glossy texture and (ii) the use of good quality salad oil and a fresh egg yolk.
French dressing-basic recipe
1 tablespoon salad oil 1 teaspoon salt
1 dessertspoon vinegar 1 teaspoon white pepper
1. Mix together the oil wit the seasoning
2. Add the vinegar very gradually, stirring all the time until it is smoothly blended.
Cream salad dressing-basic recipe
I hard boiled egg white pepper to taste
1 teaspoon sugar ¼ teaspoon salt
1 dessertspoon vinegar 2 tablespoon evaporated milk
1. Separate the white from the egg yolk
2. Mash the yolk smoothly in a bowl. Add the seasonings
3. Add the milk gradually, stirring all the time
4. Add the vinegar very gradually.
Cream salad dressing 2
Ingredients as in basic recipe together with 150ml salad oil
1. Mash yolk in a bowl. Add seasonings
2. Add oil gradually stirring all the time
3. When thick and smooth add milk and vinegar very gradually.
Unclassified sauces
Tomato sauce
250g tomatoes ½ teaspoon cornflour
1 small carrot 1 dessertspoon margarine
150ml white stock salt and pepper
1 small onion or shallot
1. Chop onion, slice carrot and tomatoes
2. Melt margarine in a saucepan. Add prepared vegetables
3. Simmer for 30 minutes. Skim
4. Rub through a sieve. Re-heat sauce
5. Mix cornflour with a little water and add to sauce
6. Add seasoning. Boil for 5 minutes. Colour if necessary.
Jam or marmalade sauce
150ml water 1 teaspoon cornflour
1 tablespoon sugar rind and juice of ¼ lemon
1 tablespoon raspberry jam or marmalade colouring
1. Put sugar,jam and lemon rind and juice in a saucepan
2. Stir over gentle heat until the sugar and jam dissolves
3. Infuse for 10 minutes
4. Strain sauce into another pan. Blend cornflour with a little cold water. Add to sauce and boil for 3 minutes.
Hard sauce
100g butter 150g icing sugar
Brandy or 25g ground almonds almond essence
1. Sieve icing sugar and cream thoroughly with the buter
2. Work in sufficient brandy to give a distinctive flavor
3. Pile or pipe on to a small dish. Serve with any rich pudding eg Christmas pudding
4. If brandy is undesirable substitute 25g ground almonds after creaming, add almond essence. Rum may be used instead of brandy.
Ata sauce
12 large peppers 1 large onion
1 tablespoon ground chillies 1 large fresh tomato
250ml groundnut oil 1 cup dried shrimps
Salt to taste
1. Grind peppers, onion and tomato
2. Wash shrimps thoroughly; grind the heads and cut the bodies into bits.
3. Heat the oil until a blue haze appears. Fry the ground ingredients until cooked: add the shrimp bits and continue cooking for 5 minutes.
4. Serve as an accompaniment to boiled or fried root
Fried gravy
4 large peppers 1 large onion
2 medium sized tomatoes 2 tablespoons oil
Salt to taste.
1. Grind or chop the peppers, onion and tomatoes.
2. Heat the oil, fry the onion, peppers and tomatoes. Add salt at the beginning to bring out the flavor. Continue frying, stirring frequently to prevent burning until gravy is cooked. Add a little water if necessary to ensure thorough coking of ingredients.
3. Serve as an accompaniment to fried fish, fried plantains, sweet potatoes etc
The oil used for frying the fish or other foods with which the gravy will be served should be used for making the gravy, but it should be strained to get rid of burnt pieces of food that will spoil the colour and flavor of the gravy.
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