Classical basic sauces — mother stocks

Although the modern kitchen is far freer in its composition than a hundred years ago most sauces still today build on a small set of basic principles. The five classic mother sauces were systematised by French chef Auguste Escoffier in his work 'Le Guide Culinaire' in the early 1900s with roots back to Marie-Antoine Carême's earlier fourfold system. The idea is simple: a mother sauce is a basic sauce which you can vary infinitely by adding different flavourings — they are therefore also called 'daughter sauces'.

§The Five Mother Sauces

§Roux — the basis for three of the sauces

A roux is a simple mixture of equal parts butter and flour cooked together over low heat. The longer the roux cooks the darker and more nutty it becomes — but it also binds slightly less. A light roux is used for béchamel and velouté while a dark roux gives espagnole its deep color and taste. The roux is whisked gradually into the hot liquid to avoid lumps and the sauce must then simmer for a long time so the flour taste disappears completely.

§Hollandaise — the emulsion's balancing act

Hollandaise differs from the other four in that it does not use roux, but instead a warm emulsion of egg yolk and melted butter. The egg yolk is whisked over a water bath until it thickens and becomes airy (a 'sabayon'), after which the melted butter is added in a thin stream under constant whisking. The balance is hairline: too high heat separates the egg yolk, and too much butter at once makes the emulsion unstable. If successful, you get a creamy, tart sauce that is the basis for, among other things, béarnaise with tarragon and shallots.

§The stock is the foundation

Behind Every Good Sauce Lies a Good Stock. A Stock is Drawn Slowly From Bones, Trimmings and Vegetables, Often for Hours at Low Heat, So the Flavours are Extracted Without the Liquid Becoming Cloudy or Bitter. Skimming Along the Way Removes Impurities and Fat, and a Clear, Well-Flavoured Stock is the Very Backbone of the Sauce Kitchen — Without It, No Amount of Seasoning Can Save a Flat Sauce.

§From classical to modern application

Today mother sauces are rarely used in their pure heavy classical form for everyday serving but the principles live on: a light beurre blanc is family with hollandaise emulsion a modern jus is often a shortened version of espagnole and a simple cream sauce follows velouté's logic. Understanding the classical structure gives a solid professional language to build on regardless of how modern or minimalist the kitchen style otherwise is.

“Know the rules well enough to know when you can break them.”

— Classical kitchen principle