When I cooked professionally, one of my jobs each week was to make both light and dark roux which would be used a thousand times in the coming week to create sauces, soups and stews and at times be a part of a favorite pastry. Roux is the basis for classic sauces and a must for Sauce Béchamel, Sauce Veloute, Sauce Espagnole or Sauce Allemande which comprise the Mother Sauces of French Cuisine and very useful in making custards.
In the professional kitchen I worked in, the chef required the roux be made with food grade, bulk, oil along with all-purpose flour to make the roux; the light roux cooked gently and the dark roux was cooked a bit more until the flour browned.
The best light roux is made with butter and flour of equal proportions, by weight, cooked gently to insure that the flour and butter do not brown. The end result is a sauce thickener that will add depth of character to your sauce and thicken it without the possibility of lumps.
1 tablespoon roux thickens 1 cup broth or milk to equal a think sauce.
Light Roux Recipe Ingredients
- 8 ounces unsalted Butter
- 8 ounces all-purpose Flour
Method
Heat the butter in a heavy bottomed sauce pan until melted; Stir in flour with the wooden spoon until the mixture is thick.
Stir continually with the wooden spoon over low heat until the roux cooks and is a golden brown color; it should be cooked through in 3 to 4 minutes. Store in refrigerator or divide into tablespoon sized portions and freeze for later use in sauces, soups and stews.
Tips for Success
While I like to make roux using butter which is great for everyday use in soups, sauces, stews and custards any fat can be used. Bacon fat makes a wonderful roux, add that to milk and you have the classic Southern White Gravy which is great on biscuits. Bacon fat, however delicious on biscuits is not great as a part of a chocolate pudding so if I am making roux ahead I use butter.
