Sauces and Dressings

Sauces are the most important, yet, perhaps the most daunting area of cookery. The day I made my first flour-based white sauce, however, I suddenly realized the creative possibilities that cooking held, and how exciting it could be. For this reason, I would always advise new cooks to learn to make this most reliable of sauces as soon as possible. Flour-based sauces have sometimes been out of favour but they should not be scorned; they are the perfect base for variation, and can be adapted to suit all kinds of dishes; once mastered they also give you confidence to attempt the more tricky, emulsified sauces. Good sauces can transform and enhance your cooking, can raise humble or leftover ingredients to sublime heights, and can widen your repertoire immeasurably. Confidence is the vital first step to making them.