Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 1/2 small white onion, cut into 1/2-inch dice
- Kosher salt
- 3 heaping tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 quart milk
- Pinch grated nutmeg
- 1 bay leaf
- 1/2 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
Directions
Add the butter and onion to a large saucepan over medium heat. Season the onions with salt, to taste, and cook until they become translucent and very aromatic. Add the flour and cook until the flour and butter resemble wet sand, about 3 to 4 minutes. Gradually, whisk in the milk until incorporated. Add the bay leaf and nutmeg and season with salt, to taste. Slowly bring the milk/flour mixture to a boil, stirring frequently to prevent scorching on the bottom. Be sure that the milk comes to a boil or the flour will not cook out and you will be left with a very objectionable starchy feeling on your tongue.
Once the sauce has come to a boil and has thickened, remove it from the heat. Discard the bay leaf. Stir in the grated Parmigiano, taste and adjust seasoning, if needed.
Use right away or refrigerate, covered, until ready to assemble dish.
Creamy!
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By Harleywood
Morgan Hill, CA
on July 26, 2012
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This is an amazing sauce, but to the Folks who need to know if this is actually a bechamel or a mornay sauce... according to Wikipedia, a "Bechamel sauce, also known as white sauce, is one of the mother sauces of French cuisine and is used in many recipes of Italian cuisine, for example lasagne. It is used as the base for other sauces (such as Mornay sauce, which is bechamel with cheese. A Mornay sauce is a Bechamel sauce with shredded or grated cheese added. Usually, it consists of half Gruyere and half Parmesan cheese, though some variations use different combinations of Gruyere, Emmental cheese, or white Cheddar.
It is often served with seafood or vegetables, and serves as a key ingredient in an authentic Hot Brown sandwich." However, I have seen many of the chefs on this site (and others refer to a white sauce with Parmesan cheese a bechamel more often than a Mornay... maybe its the Gruyere cheese that is really the determining factor....
By Redheadedelfie
Sunnyvale, CA
on March 11, 2012
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Super tasty and really easy to make. I used this to make an eggplant dish and wow...off the hook. The nutmeg really makes a difference too. I don't have fresh nutmeg so I used a tad bit more of the pre-ground that I have, and it was great. Also don't have Parm-Reg cheese, so I used straight freshly-grated parmesan, and again, it was perfect. I highly recommend this sauce. It would make a great pizza sauce too...yum!
By pompy58
on February 14, 2012
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Delicious, easy, and creamy! I loved it!
Read all 12 reviews