Sauces

If you ask a chef what the most important element of a meal is, many of them will tell you that it is the sauce you serve it with. In fact, it can change the whole taste and make it wonderful or simply destroy the entire dish. There are tricks to make better sauces. Here are a few of them.

Headlight Your Sauces

You should not be afraid to make your sauce the star of your meal. How do you that? You use a gourmet saucer plate, from the best French dinnerware on the market. It is like placing it on a pedestal, and saying to your guests: Now, try this! Sauces are meant to be at the forefront of a dinner or a lunch. Of course, you first need to be proud of the ones you prepare, so let’s get to the “how,” right now.

The Number One Rule in the Kitchen: Use Fresh Ingredients

If you don’t follow that rule, for any part of your meal, don’t ever expect to have it come out great, in the end. It is the freshness of the ingredients that makes the overall difference in any meal. You need to choose your next recipe in regards to what is available at the market; not what you would theoretically like to prepare that day. This naturally applies to sauces as well. All the vegetables that will be inserted into the preparation will need to be fresh and crispy. Otherwise, in the end, your sauce will simple taste the same as the look of the vegetables you used: a little flat. 

Do not use Already Made Stock

Everyone should keep some homemade stock ready to go. It is not everyday that you will have time to boil a chicken, or some beef and pork, just to keep the juice that will come out of it. However, using commercial stock should be a definite “no.” First of all, it is certainly not suggested health wise, and secondly, it will only add too much salt to your recipe, instead of tasteful flavours. 

Make it Thicker by using Starch

If your sauce is running like water, it simply won’t look good, as it falls over your meal. You need to thicken sauces, so that they have some kind of consistency. Although you can do so in different ways, the best one is to use starch. Some people believe that adding flour will automatically thicken it, but it is quite frankly not that simple. You can use a roux, which is made of butter and flour, if you want. It will also give it a golden look.

Create a Pan Sauce

That is the simplest way to create a tasty sauce. When you are done browning the meat in the pan, remove it and add a variety of spices and vegetables, cut in small dices (optional). Sauté all of them, but don’t get the crust on the pan to melt with it. Deglaze with wine or beer, and you will have a wonderful sauce ready for the meat, later on.