The Best World Sauces: How Many Have You Tried?

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Béchamel - France

No world sauce list would be complete without the legendary béchamel sauce, one of the five "mother sauces" of French cuisine. In the US, it's also known as "white sauce," although it doesn't have quite the same ring. It's made from a white roux with a 1:1 ratio of butter and flour, plus milk, and it gives other sauces an incredibly rich, creamy texture and taste. Used as a base sauce for many others, it's also found in lasagna, macaroni and cheese, Greek moussaka and other indulgent saucy dishes.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup (50g) butter
• 1/3 cup (50g) flour
• 2 1/2 cups (600ml) milk

Instructions:

1. Melt the butter in a heavy-bottomed skillet over medium heat. Add the flour, and stir with a wooden spoon, without letting it brown. The flour should simply thicken.
2. Gradually pour in the milk, stirring constantly until the sauce thickens. Season with salt, pepper and a pinch of grated nutmeg.