Vegan Bechamel Sauce
A simple vegan béchamel made with vegan butter, rice flour, cornstarch, and dairy-free milk, seasoned with nutmeg, salt, and pepper.
Servings: 2 servings
Ingredients
Ingredients
- 2 TbspVegan butter
- 2 TbspRice flour
- 2 TbspCorn starch
- 2 cupDairy-free milk
- 1/8 tspNutmeg
- 1/2 tspSalt
- 1/8 tspPepper
Instructions
Instructions
- Place a medium saucepan over medium-low heat and add 2 Tbsp vegan butter. Heat until the butter is melted.
- Add 2 Tbsp rice flour to the melted butter and whisk or stir constantly to form a smooth paste (roux). Cook for 2–3 minutes, stirring, until it bubbles lightly and the raw flour smell is gone; do not let it brown.
- In a small bowl, whisk 2 Tbsp cornstarch into 1/2 cup of the dairy-free milk until completely smooth and free of lumps.
- Reduce the heat to low. Slowly whisk the cornstarch–milk slurry into the roux until fully incorporated and smooth.
- Gradually add the remaining 1 1/2 cups dairy-free milk in small batches (about 1/3–1/2 cup at a time), whisking thoroughly after each addition until the sauce is smooth and uniform. Scrape the bottom of the pan as you whisk to prevent lumps.
- Cook the sauce over low heat, stirring frequently, for about 3–5 minutes more until it reaches your desired thickness.
- Remove from heat and stir in 1/2 tsp salt, 1/8 tsp nutmeg, and 1/8 tsp pepper. Serve warm.
Equipment
- Non-stick frying pan (10.5 inch / 26 cm)
Notes
Cook it on low heat-> You can start on medium until the butter is melted, then turn the heat low. If I make a larger batch, I even take it off the heat initially.
Add milk in batches-> I usually go with ½ cup at a time.
Use a whisk-> I always use a silicone whisk, as I found it foolproof to make the white sauce lump-free.
Add seasoning at the end->If the sauce is not thick enough or too thick, you need to adjust the flour and the milk amounts (see notes below). If you add salt, pepper, and nutmeg only at the end when the sauce reached the right consistency, you can be sure that the sauce will not turn out to be too salty or too peppery.
Not thick enough?-> Add more flour but make sure you first dissolve it in a bit of milk. Like 1 Tbsp flour or starch – 2 Tbsp milk. Alternatively, you can take it off the heat, wait for it to cool a bit, and add flour or starch directly to the sauce and stir vigorously with a whisk to avoid any lumps.Note:The sauce will thicken a bit more when it is cooling down.
Too thick?-> Add more milk, like ¼ cup at a time.
How to get rid of lumps?-> Strain the sauce through a fine-mesh sieve before adding more milk.
Add milk in batches-> I usually go with ½ cup at a time.
Use a whisk-> I always use a silicone whisk, as I found it foolproof to make the white sauce lump-free.
Add seasoning at the end->If the sauce is not thick enough or too thick, you need to adjust the flour and the milk amounts (see notes below). If you add salt, pepper, and nutmeg only at the end when the sauce reached the right consistency, you can be sure that the sauce will not turn out to be too salty or too peppery.
Not thick enough?-> Add more flour but make sure you first dissolve it in a bit of milk. Like 1 Tbsp flour or starch – 2 Tbsp milk. Alternatively, you can take it off the heat, wait for it to cool a bit, and add flour or starch directly to the sauce and stir vigorously with a whisk to avoid any lumps.Note:The sauce will thicken a bit more when it is cooling down.
Too thick?-> Add more milk, like ¼ cup at a time.
How to get rid of lumps?-> Strain the sauce through a fine-mesh sieve before adding more milk.