5 Sauces for Everything
Sauces are the building blocks of many great recipes and belong in any good cook’s repertoire. Knowing a handful of good sauces that you can build on makes it easy to whip up a dish in a snap or add pizzazz to standard recipes. Here are five of our favorite sauces along with simplified recipes and cooking tips.
Satay Sauce
This sauce is a favorite in Thai and Indonesian dishes and is a perfect complement to grilled meats and vegetables. Peanut butter is a handy shortcut to lessen cooking time, making this an easy sauce to make with just a couple of speciality ingredients.
Ingredients:
½ cup crunchy peanut butter
2 T kecap manis (Indonesian sweet soy sauce)
4.5 ounce canned coconut milk
1 T lime juice
1 chili pepper, finely diced
Combine all ingredients except diced chili pepper and cook gently over med-low heat for 5 minutes. Stir in diced pepper and serve.
Hollandaise
This thick and creamy sauce is delicious served alongside steamed or grilled vegetables (asparagus!) and fish dishes. Of course, it is also an integral part of eggs Benedict. We’ve simplified the finicky cooking process by using a blender.
Ingredients:
4 egg yolks
1 T lemon juice
½ cup butter, melted
Pinch of hot pepper (cayenne) or dash of hot sauce
Pinch of salt
¼ t Dijon mustard (optional)
Combine egg yolks, lemon juice, pepper, and (optional) mustard in a blender and process for about 5-6 seconds. Turn blender to high speed and add melted butter in a thin stream. Serve! To keep it warm until you’re ready to serve, place the container in a pan of hot water.
Béchamel
Béchamel is the quintessential and versatile white sauce, perfect with veggies or any baked dish. Add a pinch of nutmeg and/or shredded cheese to complement potato and chicken dishes, and substitute chicken or vegetable broth for part of the milk to add flavor.
Ingredients:
1 T butter
1 T white flour
1 c milk
pinch salt
Melt butter in a saucepan and add flour, stirring until bubbly. Slowly add milk and optional ingredients and cook over med heat, stirring frequently, until thick.
Tomato Sauce
Tomato sauce goes great with nearly every Italian dish from pizza to pasta. This super simple recipe from The Kitchn has a basic tomato sauce recipe using ripe tomatoes that you can later season to your hearts desire. Our recipe makes it easy by using canned tomatoes.
Ingredients:
2 32-ounce cans of crushed tomatoes
⅓ – ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 T dried basil
1-2 whole bay leaves
salt and pepper to taste
Heat oil and saute garlic and onion for a few minutes. Add remaining ingredients, cover, and simmer for at least one hour or until it’s as thick as you like. Optional: blend half or all of the sauce for a smoother texture.
Ganache
Chocolate ganache is a ridiculously simple yet elegant sauce that is a perfect topping for nearly any dessert, a filling for cake, or a delicious fruit dip. The quality of chocolate affects the ganache, so choose the best you can
Ingredients:
9 oz bittersweet chocolate
1 cup heavy cream
Optional: 1 t instant coffee, 1 T dark rum, or pinch of cinnamon
Chop the chocolate and place it in a mixing bowl. Heat the cream in a small saucepan over med/low heat. Watch closely and bring cream just to a boil and immediately pour it over the chocolate. Whisk until smooth, then stir in optional ingredient(s). Pour over cake or whip when cool to create a fluffy frosting.
Do you have a favorite go-to sauce or use for one of these sauces? We’d love to hear about it in the comments!
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