Today, we are going to see together how to thicken a sauce.
And yes... it has all happened to us to have a sauce that is too liquid!
Do not panic ! It is not worth throwing it away or redoing it.
Did you know that there are simple and effective grandma's tricks to thicken a sauce?
Here are 15 quick and easy tips to catch up on your sauce and make it smooth . Watch:
It's a trick that our grandmothers know well.
Cornstarch is very effective in thickening sauces .
Its use is also very simple.
Just put 2 tablespoons of cornstarch in a bowl. Then pour a little cold water on it (1 to 2 tablespoons).
Mix to dilute. Once well diluted, pour the mixture into the sauce.
Note that it should simmer over low heat. Then just stir until it thickens.
The advantage is that this solution is not only very effective, but it is also gluten-free.
And in my opinion, it is probably the easiest solution to thicken a wine sauce or a veal marengo.
To discover: 32 Uses of Cornstarch That Will Surprise You!
The handled butter ... But what is this thing, you will ask me!
Imagine that it is a mixture of butter and flour , quite simply.
To make a handled butter, you need 1 tablespoon of butter and 1 tablespoon of flour.
Then just mix them with your fingers.
This makes it possible to obtain a homogeneous and smooth paste, without lumps.
Little by little, we add this paste to the too liquid sauce, while mixing.
Mix vigorously so that the butter handled dissolves well.
Then let it cook until the sauce thickens.
This is undoubtedly the solution to remember to thicken the sauce of an osso buco.
Why don't we put all the butter handled at once in the dish?
Because by adding it as you go, it gives time to test the consistency of the sauce.
If you put in all of a sudden and your sauce gets too thick, there's not much you can do...
To discover: The Trick To Incorporate Butter Quickly In A Preparation.
Another great classic in the kitchen, the roux.
The roux is prepared with flour and fat.
We often add butter, but you may prefer to add oil or margarine.
Now that you have the ingredients, you're probably wondering how to make a roux .
Nothing complicated about that.
You need as much flour as fat. For example, you can take 70 g of flour and 70 g of butter.
Start by melting the butter. Then add the flour.
Mix without stopping for several minutes (between 5 and 10 minutes). You will get a paste.
Let it cool and add it to the too runny sauce.
Mix again. Let simmer for 15 to 20 minutes until your sauce has the desired density.
The roux is ideal for thickening the sauce of a ragout, a bourguignon, a stew, a stew or a beef bourguignon.
The downside is that you don't have to be in too much of a rush.
The good news is that you can make a roux ahead of time and freeze it.
You should also know that the roux is the base of the béchamel sauce.
This trick is a well-kept secret!
We all know mashed potato flakes (Mousseline type).
Well, they are very effective in thickening a sauce that is too thin.
As they are dehydrated, they have a pretty impressive thickening power .
Besides, don't add too much at once to test the texture of your sauce as you go.
Heat your sauce over low heat and pour a tablespoon of flakes into it.
Mix well until the sauce has set.
This is a trick you can use to thicken a runny coconut milk sauce.
You probably know breadcrumbs to make beautiful golden breadcrumbs.
Well, it gets even better!
Did you know that it can be used to thicken a sauce ? It's very easy!
Just sprinkle some breadcrumbs over the sauce which continues to simmer.
Add it little by little.
Stir to mix well. Is your sauce thick enough?
So you can stop. If not, you can add a little more.
Don't have breadcrumbs? It doesn't matter.
You can put stale bread or rusks in the blender to make very fine crumbs and have homemade breadcrumbs.
To discover: How to Make Your Free Homemade Breadcrumbs?
Flour is a easy way to thicken a sauce.
But it's not about throwing your flour like that in the sauce.
Otherwise, it will be full of lumps!
Take a ladle of your sauce and put it in a bowl. Let it cool.
Then add 1-2 tablespoons of flour.
Mix well and pour the contents of the bowl into the sauce.
Mix again and simmer over low heat until the sauce thickens.
You can use wheat or rice flour (or any starch).
The principle is the same as with potato flakes.
But here, we're going to use frozen vegetable purée that we find in the form of pebbles.
The ideal is to choose a vegetable puree that is found in your dish.
For example, mashed carrots go well with tomato sauce or beef bourguignon.
Once you have chosen your mash, add a pebble or a spoonful of mash into the sauce.
Stir and check the texture of your sauce. If it's still not thick enough, add a little mashed potatoes.
But beware ! Keep in mind that this solution can change the taste of your sauce .
Powdered milk is the perfect thing to thicken a fresh cream-based sauce like for example:
A chicken with cream, a chicken Stroganoff, escalopes à la normande or a gratin dauphinois...
In short, this is the trick you need to make a white sauce, carbonara or a Roquefort sauce, gorgonzola or any other cheese sauce smooth!
To thicken your sauce, add 1 to 2 tablespoons of powdered milk to the sauce.
Stir to thicken the sauce.
If it is still not thick enough, add a little more powdered milk.
The good news is that the taste of milk is neutral. It will not denature your sauce.
Are you making a tomato coulis and it is definitely too runny?
Take some tomato puree and add it to your sauce.
Your bolo sauce will thicken and keep its authentic taste .
It's simple, fast and effective.
It's also what I use to thicken the sauce of a chili con carne, a too liquid couscous sauce, osso buco sauce or a meat sauce.
And it works well for a curry too.
Can you thicken a sauce with an egg yolk?
The answer is yes!
This is a good technique to thicken a sauce and give it a beautiful texture coating.
It's even a magic trick to have lasagna that isn't too runny!
To do this, separate the egg white from the yolk using this trick.
Put it in a bowl and beat it with a fork.
Add 1 or 2 spoonfuls of the sauce and stir.
Then pour the mixture into the sauce which cooks over low heat.
Mix gently with a wooden spoon.
This is the method to remember to thicken the sauce of a veal blanquette or a béarnaise or gribiche sauce.
But be careful not to put the egg yolk directly into the sauce. The yolk could cook and it would make lumps.
However, you can use several egg yolks.
And if you don't know what to do with the blanks, here are some ideas for reusing them.
A simple trick to thicken a sauce that is too runny is to simmer it for a long time.
Makes sense, you might say. If a sauce is too runny, it has too much water.
You just have to make sure that the water evaporates.
How? 'Or' What ? Very simple.
Just bring it to a boil. This way, your sauce reduces, that is to say it decreases in volume.
She becomes more concentrated and its flavors are even more pronounced .
You can also let it simmer over low heat for a long time.
You will get the same result, but it will take longer.
This trick is ideal for Bolognese or Provençal sauces or a stew of meatballs, for example.
Of course, it must be taken into account that there will be less sauce in the end.
Therefore, it is always better to prepare more tomato sauce. If there's too much, you can always freeze it.
But that's not all...
This technique is also perfectly suited to thicken a teriyaki sauce too liquid.
Let it simmer longer than intended for a delicious syrupy sauce.
Same remark with the barbecue sauce .
However, if you have molasses, you can add a spoon to give more consistency to your sauce.
If you're making tomato sauce, chances are you're cooking pasta, right?
So here is a little cooking secret of Italian mamas.
They use the pasta water to bind the sauce .
Thanks to starch contained in the pasta water, it makes an excellent thickener for the sauce.
Perfect for your spaghetti sauce! Find out how here.
Do you have a Thermomix?
Do you know that it can be a great help to catch up on your sauce ?
Here's how:
Dilute a spoonful of cornstarch with a little water or sauce.
Pour this mixture and all the sauce into the bowl of the food processor.
Mix everything for 1 min at speed 4.
For a tomato sauce, you can add a teaspoon of tomato puree to your sauce.
And pass everything in the blender for 1 min at speed 4.
Easy and fast! Know that it also works with a Cookeo.
If your cold sauce is too runny, you have several options:
You can use gelatin first . For this, take a gelatine sheet .
Put some water in a bowl and dip the gelatine sheet in it to soften it.
Take some sauce and heat it until it simmers.
Remove the sauce from the heat and stir in the gelatin sheet. Then put in the fridge so that the gelatin freezes.
Know that you need 1 sheet of gelatin for 25 cl of sauce.
You can also choose agar-agar . It is a very effective natural gelling agent .
It must be directly incorporated into the preparation. As it is very powerful, it is necessary to put very little. A knife point is enough.
Next, heat your sauce until it simmers. Count about thirty seconds. And put the sauce in the fridge.
Last option, guar gum . Its use is very simple .
You have to put it directly in the sauce and hop in the fridge! Count 1 teaspoon of agar-agar for 50 cl of sauce.
The advantage of these 3 thickeners is that they are tasteless.
They do not change the taste of your preparations. They work well with desserts such as custard or fruit coulis.
To discover: 21 Grandmother's Tricks To Succeed Your Pastries EVERY TIME.
Are you vegan?
Then most of these solutions are not going to work for you.
On the other hand, you can use walnuts, almonds or cashews to thicken your sauces.
They are also used in Indian cuisine to thicken the delicious korma sauce.
Put them in the blender to make a puree. Add this puree to your sauce and mix vigorously.
There you go, you now know how to make up for a too liquid sauce :-)
Easy, fast and efficient, right?
Of course, you can always use a commercial thickener, such as Knorr or Maïzena.
These are powders that thicken your sauce.
They are effective, but we don't always have them on hand.
And you never really know what's in those sauce bases.
While with these grandma tricks you know exactly what you're doing.
