White Sauce (Bechamel) for Pasta
White sauce (bechamel) for pasta in 20 minutes with 4 ingredients: butter, flour, milk and nutmeg. The step-by-step method for a lump-free sauce.
What white sauce for pasta is and what its ratio is
White sauce for pasta is bechamel: a French sauce of butter, flour and milk, seasoned with nutmeg, salt and white pepper, the sauce of the classic fideos con salsa blanca. It comes together in 20 minutes with just 4 ingredients. The classic ratio is 50 g of butter and 50 g of flour per liter of milk; for pasta we use 30 g and 30 g per 500 ml, which yields 4 servings. The method is to melt the butter, cook the flour for 2 minutes to form the roux, add the cold milk gradually while whisking constantly and cook for 5-8 minutes until it thickens. The secret to a lump-free sauce is cold milk over a hot roux; if lumps appear, a blender or a sieve fixes them.
Ingredients
Instructions
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Melt the butter over medium heat
Place the 30 g of butter in a small saucepan over medium heat and let it melt completely without browning. If it turns brown, the flavor changes; pull the pan off the heat for a few seconds and lower the temperature.
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Add the flour and cook the roux for 2 minutes
Add the 30 g of flour all at once and stir with a whisk until you get a smooth paste: that is the roux. Cook it for 2 minutes, stirring constantly, to remove the raw flour taste; it should smell faintly of biscuit without taking on color.
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Whisk in the cold milk gradually
Pour in the 500 ml of cold milk in 3 or 4 additions, whisking vigorously after each one until fully incorporated before adding more. This contrast of hot roux and cold milk is what prevents lumps; the most common mistake is dumping in all the milk at once and stopping whisking.
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Cook until it thickens (5-8 minutes)
Raise to medium heat and cook for 5 to 8 minutes, stirring often and scraping the bottom so it does not stick. The sauce is ready when it coats the back of a spoon and running a finger through it leaves a clean trail.
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Season with nutmeg, salt and pepper
Off the heat, add the pinch of nutmeg plus salt and white pepper to taste, and mix well. For a mornay sauce, stir in the 50 g of grated cheese now and mix until melted.
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Serve immediately over the pasta
Toss the sauce with freshly cooked pasta and serve right away: bechamel thickens as it sits. If you need to wait a few minutes, cover it with plastic wrap touching the surface so it does not form a skin, then loosen it with a splash of milk.
Foodtastico Tip
White sauce keeps for up to 3 days refrigerated in an airtight jar with plastic wrap touching the surface. Reheat over low heat with a splash of milk, whisking until it regains its texture. Do not freeze it: it splits and separates when thawed.
Nutrition information
| Calories | 130 kcal |
|---|---|
| Protein | 5 g |
| Carbs | 11 g |
| Sugars | 6 g |
| Fat | 8 g |
| Trans fat | 0 g |
Values per serving (1 of 4).
Frequently asked questions
How do I make white sauce without lumps?
Three keys: cook the roux (butter + flour) well for 2 minutes, add the cold milk gradually over the hot roux, and whisk constantly after each addition. The common mistake is pouring in all the milk at once and stirring with a spoon: that is where lumps come from.
Are white sauce and bechamel the same thing?
Yes, they are the same preparation. In Chile and Argentina it is called salsa blanca (white sauce), while in Spain and in classic French cooking it is bechamel: a mother sauce made of butter, flour and milk. Pasta with white sauce is simply pasta with bechamel.
Can I make white sauce without butter or with plant-based milk?
Yes. Butter can be replaced with the same amount of olive oil or margarine, and milk with an unsweetened plant-based drink (soy or oat thicken better than almond). The texture is slightly less creamy, but the method is identical.
Can white sauce be frozen?
It is not recommended: when thawed, the milk-and-flour emulsion breaks and the sauce turns grainy and separated. It is better to make it the same day, or refrigerate it for up to 3 days and reheat over low heat with a little extra milk.
How do I fix a white sauce that turned out lumpy or too thick?
If it has lumps, pass it through a fine sieve or blend it for a few seconds with an immersion blender, then reheat gently. If it is too thick, add warm milk a tablespoon at a time while whisking over low heat until you reach the desired texture.
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