Mother Sauces

Horror stories are usually passed down; if something is going to be truly horrible do you think people whould really sign up and pay for it?    As the saying goes, misery loves company and that's probably what keeps the stories alive.  Plus, it's fun to make people squirm in anticipation of what's to come.

Mother Sauces.  Even the name sounds a little intimidating. It's the class we were all told to fear, and for good reason.  But to tell you the truth, the fellow who needed to fear the class more than students was the lone dishwasher who would have to clean up the mess.  We helped a little, but let's face it...the guy in the dish pit had to bear the brunt.

Mother Sauces are so named because, in the French way of cooking, all sauces are derived from one of these 5: Bechamel, Veloute, Espagnole (brown), Tomato and Hollandaise.  Except for hollandaise, leading sauces are rarely served as is; more often they are used to create the many small sauces.  We also made mayonnaise in a bowl, no mixer or Cuisinart allowed. 

When it comes down to it, there are a few simple things that will either make or break you in the sauce department:  1.) the roux  and 2.) the stock.  You better start with good stock. Then, it's a matter of timing and knowing what will happen if you add too much of anything else: heat, fat, roux, stock, or not enough of the final seasonings, like salt.  Salt is a big deal in the kitchen and more often than not, students use too little.  It's amazing what salt can do to food.

For our table I was responsible for the brown roux, espagnole sauce and the mayonnaise, and also lent a hand in seasoning several of the other sauces along with the creation of some of the smaller sauces.  I love working as a team and everyone counting on one another and consulting with one another prior to the presentation of the sauces.What I liked was just grabbing that sauce pan, our table walking over to Chef for evaluation, and not having to worry about plating.

We did well, although in the entire evening not one of the 3 tables was successful with the hollandaise so I'll need practice that at home or with Chef Jackie next week in NYC. I also did not make the tomato sauce and should do that at home as well.

Our table was successful in creating and presenting all 14 sauces for the evening, but I think that was because we had 4 students and the other two tables had only 3 students each. That extra set of hands is a huge help.

And, if you are into horror stories and things that can really gross you out, check out the history of sauces. Let's just say that sauces were created to disguise the taste of the food, not to enhance it.  Refrigeration is still a relatively 'new' thing so let your mind rest on that for a while and be grateful for electricity and the ability to keep your food cold and fresh.  To sauce or not to sauce...that is your decision.