Cooking Techniques7 min read
The Secret to Making Restaurant-Quality Sauces
Great sauces are what separate home cooking from restaurant cooking. Here's how to make them.
Sauces are the foundation of restaurant cooking. With a few techniques, you can make restaurant-quality sauces at home.
The five mother sauces are béchamel, velouté, Espagnole, sauce tomato, and hollandaise. From these, countless variations are possible.
For a simple pan sauce: after searing meat, add shallots and garlic, deglaze with wine, add stock, reduce by half, finish with butter. This technique works for any protein.
The All-Clad Saucepan is perfect for sauces—its even heat distribution prevents scorching.
The key to great sauces is reducing—cooking until flavors concentrate and the sauce coats a spoon. Patience is everything.