It took me a couple of years after becoming a serious cook to try to make a classic French Béchamel sauce because I was so intimidated to try something so complicated and fancy (or at least that’s what I assumed). It’s not until I actually made it that I realized that it’s just a simple milk gravy (or white sauce) like my grandmother used to make when she made us Dried Beef & Gravy (as pictured above).

Ingredients:
3 Tbsp Butter
3Tbsp Flour
2 cups Milk
1/4 tsp Salt
1/8 tsp Pepper
Pinch of Nutmeg, freshly grated

How I make It:
– Melt butter in medium saucepan over medium heat
– Whisk in flour to create a roux and cook about 2-3 minutes, or until the flour smells a little nutty.
– Gradually pour in milk and whisk vigorously to avoid lumps, pouring in more milk while whisking the mixture smooth until it has all been combined.
– Add salt, pepper, and nutmeg and whisk continuously for 3-5 minutes, until the sauce has completely thickened.
– Taste for seasoning and add additional salt and pepper as needed.

Tips:
* Warming the milk before adding it will make it easier to whisk the sauce smooth. I put mine in the microwave on high for about 1 1/2 -2 minutes.
* While whole milk is pretty standard, you can use a combination of milk, cream, and/or half and half, depending on what you have in your fridge. I don’t recommend a sauce made only from skim milk as it won’t hold together very well, but I often do a skim milk and half and half combo because that’s what I have around.
* To make this gluten free, substitute rice flour for regular all purpose flour and it will take an additional 3 minutes or so of whisking for the sauce to completely thicken after adding the milk.
* If you need to thin the sauce out at all, just whisk in a little more milk until you get the consistency you want and bring back to a low simmer.

Optional Ingredients:
– 4 oz of dried beef, chopped and added to make Dried Beef & Gravy (pictured above)
– 4 oz of crumbled cooked sausage (Use the fat left from the sausage and add butter as needed to make the roux for a fabulous sausage gravy to go with biscuits!).
– Fresh herbs to finish (Parsley and Chives are my favorite)

This sauce is a great base for a variety of other sauces, including any Homemade Cheese Sauce you can imagine, replaces canned creamed soups in casseroles, is the basis for comfort food classics like Mac & Cheese and Scalloped Potatoes, is added to many baked pasta dishes like Lasagna, and classic sandwiches like the Croque Monsieur.

Making your own Béchamel sauce is a great way to enhance your recipes, transform leftovers, and give you greater control over what goes into your food.

Happy Eating!