ISO help/tips on making cheese sauce

[otuatail]

Hi. Never made cheese sauce. Bisto granules work for me. Problem is I can't get them at the moment. Someone suggested using white sauce and adding cheese.

I have a jar of White sauce mix 340g. How much cheese would I need to get the proportions right? I could melt cheese in a bowl in a microwave and add the sauce. I would only be making enough for 2 portions of cauliflower cheese, so a saucepan would be too much. I don’t want to make it too cheese.

I wiil at a later date try making this myself.

Thanks.

Desmond.

 

[Silversage]

First, grate the cheese and have it handy. Heat the sauce in a small saucepan - you may need to thin it down a bit with some milk, since the cheese will act as a thickener. Stir the grated cheese into the hot sauce. Voila! Cheese sauce!

You do not want to get the cheese hot first - the hot sauce will melt the cheese gently without causing it to seize up.

 

[pictonguy]

Why not just make a bechamel and add cheese.

 

[Silversage]

Why not just make a bechamel and add cheese.

He said he already has a jar of white sauce - that's the same thing as bechamel. He's obviously a beginner and trying to keep it simple. Telling people to make things from scratch isn't helpful to them.

 

[otuatail]

No. I can cook. not a novice, just never made the sauce. I looked at a BBC recipie and it looked like a ration of 400g Milk, butter, flower to 80g cheese. Works fine.

 

[Andy M.]

No. I can cook. not a novice, just never made the sauce. I looked at a BBC recipie and it looked like a ration of 400g Milk, butter, flower to 80g cheese. Works fine.

It's really fairly simple to make for future reference.

 

[taxlady]

I could melt cheese in a bowl in a microwave and add the sauce. I would only be making enough for 2 portions of cauliflower cheese, so a saucepan would be too much. I don’t want to make it too cheese.

I would probably make up as much of that white sauce as you want for your two servings of cauliflower and heat that in the microwave. Silversage is right about the cheese seizing up if it is all hot at once. Do what Silversage recommends and add the grated cheese once the white sauce is hot.

First, grate the cheese and have it handy. Heat the sauce in a small saucepan - you may need to thin it down a bit with some milk, since the cheese will act as a thickener. Stir the grated cheese into the hot sauce. Voila! Cheese sauce!

You do not want to get the cheese hot first - the hot sauce will melt the cheese gently without causing it to seize up.

 

[dragnlaw]

When I make a cheese sauce for say something like macaroni, well, anything actually, once the sauce is made - take it off the heat then stir in your grated cheese.
sometimes if you do it while still on the burner your cheese could possibly go stringy or grainy.

so - grate cheese (or cut into small chunks) - heat sauce - take off heat - stir in cheese = done.

 

[jennyema]

Dont get the white sauce too hot. Add the cheese off the heat. Cheese hates heat. It will sieze up or get granular if it gets too hot. And you cant fix it.

 

[Jusa]

I think that will work nicely.

I typically just use heavy cream and cheese because I am not a huge fan of stuff with flour or cornstarch (corn flour in the UK) as a thickener, but hey, I would use what I had on hand with some good cheese if I didn't have cream in the refrigerator. But cream is something I almost always keep on hand.

Yeah, I do realize that using a thickener is more heart healthy than heavy cream, LOL.

I am also quite terrible about measuring things (except when baking) so I tend to taste the food (or sauce) until it tastes right (to me)...which is why when I cook there is a sink full of tasting spoons afterwards!

 

[blissful]

If you aren't afraid of using chemistry in the kitchen, weighing and measuring, using sodium citrate is amazing at making a smooth sauce out of cheese that might melt in a grainy way. I started using it back when I was learning to make cheese. It's inexpensive (amazon), you use a very small amount, and it's easy to use. https://www.cheeseprofessor.com/blog/sodium-citrate-cheese-sauce


- 50g aged white cheddar, grated (1.8 ounces-grated cheese ~1/2 cup)

- 50g manchego, grated (1.8 ounces-grated cheese ~1/2 cup)

- 85g water or beer of your choice (3 ounces liquid)

- 4g sodium citrate (1 teaspoon)

- Cracked black pepper (to taste)

- Diced pickled jalapeños (to taste)

Will make a nice nacho cheese sauce.

 

[Jusa]

If you aren't afraid of using chemistry in the kitchen, weighing and measuring, using sodium citrate is amazing at making a smooth sauce out of cheese that might melt in a grainy way. I started using it back when I was learning to make cheese. It's inexpensive (amazon), you use a very small amount, and it's easy to use. https://www.cheeseprofessor.com/blog/sodium-citrate-cheese-sauce


- 50g aged white cheddar, grated (1.8 ounces-grated cheese ~1/2 cup)

- 50g manchego, grated (1.8 ounces-grated cheese ~1/2 cup)

- 85g water or beer of your choice (3 ounces liquid)

- 4g sodium citrate (1 teaspoon)

- Cracked black pepper (to taste)

- Diced pickled jalapeños (to taste)

Will make a nice nacho cheese sauce.

That's awesome to know, thank you!

 

[taxlady]

Bliss, I just happened to see a YouTube short about doing something like that.

 

[blissful]

Cool! @taxlady

 

[dragnlaw]

bliss - how do you purchase your sodium citrate? Amazon? grocers?

 

[Jusa]

bliss - how do you purchase your sodium citrate? Amazon? grocers?

Both Amazon and Walmart sell it (has to be shipped when ordered through Walmart). I am guessing my local kitchen supply store probably carries it as well, and my husband's cousin (who grows, preserves, cans, pickles, etc.) might even have some in his cupboard. I know he had some curing salt in bulk that he gave me a bag of some years ago so I wouldn't be a bit surprised. I am going to ask him before I go buy it, because it's usually sold in 1 lb or more size and I just don't need that much.

 

[blissful]

bliss - how do you purchase your sodium citrate? Amazon? grocers?

Amazon

 

[dragnlaw]

I might try the soda and lemon first - those prices are all over the place. As I can't see me using a whole lot of the stuff don't want to buy and use once and clutter up my cupboards with all the rest of the "only ever used once" items.

 

[Jusa]

I am just wondering if the soda and lemon is a stronger flavor that might not meld with the flavor of cheese very well? I mean, yeah, it is basically the same thing and I read that sodium citrate is referred to as "sour salt"...but maybe they figured out a way to tamp down the flavor in the commercial stuff to make it less bold flavored?

 

[jennyema]

Try flour, butter, milk and cheese.

Sodium citrate is fun and all but not at all needed for making Mornay sauce (cheese sauce)

It was the first thing my mother let me make at the stove when I was 5 years old