Salsa alla Besciamella

Béchamel Sauce

Preparation info
    • Difficulty

      Easy

Appears in
Alastair Little's Italian Kitchen

By Alastair Little

Published 1996

  • About

This is only used once in the book, but it is a good general recipe for a sauce that has gone out of fashion and which I find delicious. The Italians have excellent pre-made béchamel in little cardboard cartons. These have a limited availability in Britain, but I recommend you to try them if you see them.

Ingredients

  • 1 litre milk
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 small onion, peeled and studded with <

Method

Slowly bring the milk to the boil with the bay leaf and the onion. Slowly, because we wish to infuse the milk with the bay and onion flavours.

Melt the butter in another pan (it must be big enough to comfortably hold the milk), then add the flour. Stir in to make a roux by cooking over a medium heat, stirring continuously with a wooden spoon for 10 minutes. Slowly start to add the strai