How to make a roux (2024)

FAQs

What are the 3 ingredients in a roux? ›

What is Roux? Roux is made by cooking equal parts flour and fat together until the raw flavor of the flour cooks out and the roux has achieved the desired color. Butter is the most commonly used fat, but you can also make roux with oil, bacon grease, or other rendered fats.

A roux is a sauce built on a simple ratio of 1 part butter to 1 part flour. You start by melting butter, then add in flour, and cook the mixture over low heat until it's thick and lump-free. At this point, most recipes will instruct you to slowly add a liquid such as broth or milk, and this is where the magic happens.

Yield: Use 3 ounces roux per 4 cups liquid for a light sauce, 4 ounces for a medium-thick sauce, and 6 ounces for a thick sauce.

Roux is a combination of flour and fat that is cooked and used as a base to thicken and flavor sauces. The method for making roux uses 1 part oil or fat to 1 part flour, whisked constantly over heat until it reaches an optimal shade of color—ranging from white to dark brown.

Rogerkf5 writes on nola.com: A roux should be a 1 to 1 ratio but by weight, not by volume. One cup of oil weighs 7.7 ounces, and 1 cup of flour weighs 4.5 ounces. So, a proper ratio would be 1 cup of oil, and 7.7 ounces by weight of flour, close to 1-3/4 cup of all-purpose flour.

Make the Roux

As a general rule, you'll use 2 tablespoons butter and 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour for every 1 cup of milk. Dice the butter into small cubes and melt it in a saucepan over low heat. Once the butter is melted, begin whisking in the flour.

Whisk the flour into the fat until you have a smooth, thick paste. If it's too thick to whisk, add a little more fat. If it seems runny, add more flour.

Too much flour and your sauce will be too thick. Too much fat and it won't be thick enough. The ratio will depend on what you want to use your roux for, but the classic roux for thickening sauces is a one-to-one ratio of flour and butter.

There's no right or wrong to which fat you use; it just depends on what flavor you want. In a dairy-heavy sauce, like milky béchamel, butter is the common choice (and is also the more common fat in most French roux), while oil is often preferred in Creole and Cajun cooking.

Making roux isn't hard, if you pay attention to the details. For a great roux, you'll want to avoid these common mistakes. Don't use a thin pan and/or too high heat: We advise using a heavy-bottomed pan (Dutch oven, cast-iron skillet, heavy sauté pan) and cooking over medium-low heat.

What are the 4 stages of a roux? ›

There are four different types/stages of roux – light, blonde, brown and dark. Each type of roux differs in taste and colour, but they all have the same starting ingredients – butter and flour. What separates a light roux from a dark roux is the amount of cooking time and heat applied.

It consists of equal quantities of butter and plain flour. The fat is melted, the flour is mixed through over a gentle heat. Hot liquid is then gradually mixed into the paste to make a silky sauce which needs a few minutes more cooking before serving or using.

Types of Roux: There are three main types of roux: white, blond, and brown. Each type offers a distinct flavor profile and complements specific culinary creations.