International dishesSauces and DipsEurope and North America15 minutes
Bechamel white sauce has only three main ingredients, butter, flour and oat milk, and yet it is the base for baked pasta with cheese, for lasagna and for boiled vegetables under sauce. Done right it is velvet smooth and falls from the spoon in an even ribbon.
The hardest part is the lumps that form when the milk meets the roux. The roux needs 1 to 2 minutes of cooking to lose its raw flour smell, and the milk is best warmed before it goes in slowly with constant whisking. If lumps do appear, a pass through a sieve puts it right.
This batch weighs about 530g, at roughly 96 calories per 100g.
Method
Melt 30g butter in a small pot over medium heat.
Once the butter has melted, add 15g all purpose flour and stir with a whisk or a wooden spoon for about 1 to 2 minutes until the mixture is smooth and pale gold. This is the roux.
Pour 480ml oat milk into the pot slowly, stirring as you go so no lumps form. Keep stirring for 5 to 7 minutes until the mixture comes to a boil and thickens.
Add 3g salt, 1g white pepper and 1/8 teaspoon grated nutmeg and stir so the seasoning spreads evenly.
Turn off the heat once the sauce is smooth and thick. Use it right away, or cool it, press plastic wrap onto the surface, and keep it chilled for up to 5 days.
Tips
Warming the oat milk before it goes into the roux gives a faster, smoother thickening.
Lumps go away with a pass through a sieve, so there is no need to start again.
A thick sauce loosens with a little more oat milk, and a thin one comes back with a few more minutes on the heat.
Oat milk carries a light natural sweetness, so salt it a little at a time and taste as you go.
The roux needs its full 1 to 2 minutes to lose the raw flour smell, since an undercooked one leaves a floury aftertaste.
Press plastic wrap onto the surface while it cools, as an open surface sets into a firm skin.
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