• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to privacy navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Jo Cooks

Simple - Easy - Comfort

Join my free recipe email club!
Free eBook
  • Recipe Index
  • Cookbook
  • ABOUT JO
  • Contact
  • Facebook Instagram Pinterest Twitter YouTube
  • Dinner Ideas
  • Instant Pot
  • Slow Cooker
  • 30 Minute Meals
  • One Pot
  • Desserts
  • a plate of rice topped with chicken in oyster sauce
    Oyster Sauce Chicken
  • tzatziki sauce in a bowl with an olive on top surrounded by pita chips.
    Homemade Tzatziki Sauce
  • a plate of mashed potatoes topped with meatballs in mushroom sauce
    Meatballs with Mushroom Sauce
  • close up shot of boneless bbq wings in a bowl
    How to Make Boneless Chicken Wings with Homemade BBQ Sauce
  • a bowl of pasta shells in cauliflower alfredo sauce
    Pasta Shells with Cauliflower Alfredo Sauce
Home / Recipes
15 minutes
4.6 from 15 votes
6 Comments

Bechamel Sauce

Jump to RecipePrint Recipe
  • 34
  • 207
by: Joanna Cismaru
09.28.20
Updated: 09.28.20

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.

Creamy Bechamel Sauce made easy with just a handful of kitchen staple ingredients. Whip this staple sauce up in under 10 minutes and add it to a variety of dishes!

bechamel sauce in a white bowl with a hand taking a spoonful of it

Bechamel Sauce is one of my favorites. Extremely simple, it takes a mere 10 minutes to make and can be used in a variety of dishes! Creamy, dreamy, buttery and nutty – this is a staple sauce you need in your repertoire.

I was making a savory Greek cheese pie and I needed bechamel sauce for it; in my opinion, it’s absolutely necessary for the dish, and I figured I would share the recipe because it’s too good to be kept secret! Made with just a handful of kitchen staple ingredients, you’ll find yourself repeatedly reaching for this recipe!

The mother of French sauces

Now, we all have our favorite sauces, but there are a few that have been given the name of “the five mother French sauces” – béchamel, velouté, espagnole, hollandaise, and tomato are those five and they are staples in most French cuisine.

Classical French cuisine has been extraordinarily influential in the culinary world and countless sauces have derived from these originals. Bechamel or “white sauce,” is a simple milk-based sauce made from butter, flour, and milk. It adds a creamy, richness, and complexity to almost any dish and can be used as a base for many other sauces!

overhead shot of all the ingredients needed to make bechamel sauce

Ingredients

Keep scrolling down to the printable recipe card for FULL ingredient amounts and instructions or click the “Jump to Recipe” button at the top of the page!

  • Flour – all purpose
  • Butter – unsalted
  • Milk – Use your preference, dairy or non dairy.
  • Seasoning – one thing that bechamel sauce cannot go without – nutmeg and salt.
detailed process shots showing how to make bechamel sauce

How to make bechamel sauce

  1. Whisk ingredients: In a saucepan melt the butter and add the flour. With a whisk, whisk in the flour. Keep whisking for about 2 to 3 minutes.
  2. Add the rest of ingredients: Add the milk, nutmeg and salt and whisk everything together. Cook for another 5 minutes and whisk as necessary.

Tips & Tricks

  1. The key is to whisk, whisk, whisk! This will ensure a smooth and creamy sauce
  2. If your bechamel sauce is turning lumpy, add a little bit of ice-cold water instead of the next splash of milk and whisk like crazy! It’ll magically sort out any lumps!
  3. Bechamel is very forgiving. Sauce too thick? Whisk in more milk until you get your desired consistency; if it’s too thin, continue to simmer it down, allowing evaporation to thicken the sauce up.
overhead shot of freshly made bechamel sauce in a saucepan with a wooden spoon inside

How to use bechamel

This is an amazing sauce that can be used in so many recipes! For me, it’s a mandatory ingredient every time I make Greek cheese pie, but it can also be used in dishes including pasta, casserole, sauces and pies! Try some of these options:

  • Use your bechamel in a homemade Mac and Cheese
  • Make a Mornay Sauce – Shred some strong Cheddar or any mix of hard and medium cheeses into your bechamel, maybe a bit of onion, and you’ve got a mornay!
  • Add it to a casserole or creamy carbonara Souffle
  • Layer it in a lasagna or add it to a pasta dish!
  • Use it as a base to a variety of different sauces, like this homemade Alfredo! Get creative!
bechamel sauce in a small white bowl with a mini wooden spoon inside

Storing your sauce

You can store your bechamel sauce in an airtight container or jar for 4-5 days in the refrigerator.

Cool the leftovers and place a piece of plastic saran wrap directly in contact with the surface of the sauce prior to refrigerating it! This will ensure that your bechamel won’t form a skin and will also help slow down oxidation!

Freezing

Freeze sauce in an airtight container or freezer safe bag for up to 3 months. Keep in mind, freezing cream based soups and sauces won’t can change the texture and can affect the flavour when reheated.

Reheating

Thaw frozen sauce overnight in the fridge and reheat back on the stove top until heated through.

overhead shot of 2 white bowls with white sauce in them

Did you like this homemade sauce recipe? Try these!

  • BBQ
  • Buffalo
  • Cranberry
  • Cheese
  • Enchilada
  • Sweet and Sour
  • Homemade Tzatziki
  • Ranch
  • Marinara
  • Teriyaki
  • Chimichurri
  • Homemade Mayonnaise

Looking for more recipes? Follow on… My Newsletter Pinterest Facebook Instagram

bechamel sauce in a white bowl with a hand taking a spoonful of it

Bechamel Sauce

4.6 from 15 votes
Prep: 5 mins
Cook: 10 mins
Total: 15 mins
Author: Joanna Cismaru
Serves: 12
Print Pin Rate
Creamy Bechamel Sauce made easy with just a handful of kitchen staple ingredients. Whip this staple sauce up in under 10 minutes and add it to a variety of dishes!

Ingredients

  • 3 tbsp butter unsalted
  • 3 tbsp all-purpose flour all purpose
  • 2 cups milk
  • 1/8 tsp nutmeg
  • 1/4 tsp salt or to taste
US Customary – Metric

Instructions

  • Whisk ingredients: In a saucepan melt the butter and add the flour. With a whisk, whisk in the flour. Keep whisking for about 2 to 3 minutes.
  • Add the rest of ingredients: Add the milk, nutmeg and salt and whisk everything together. Cook for another 5 minutes and whisk as necessary.

Recipe Notes

  1. You can store your bechamel sauce in an airtight container or jar for 4-5 days in the refrigerator.
  2. Cool the leftovers and place a piece of plastic saran wrap directly in contact with the surface of the sauce prior to refrigerating it! This will ensure that your bechamel won’t form a skin and will also help slow down oxidation!

Nutrition Information:

Calories: 57kcal (3%)Carbohydrates: 3g (1%)Protein: 1g (2%)Fat: 4g (6%)Saturated Fat: 2g (13%)Cholesterol: 11mg (4%)Sodium: 66mg (3%)Potassium: 53mg (2%)Sugar: 2g (2%)Vitamin A: 155IU (3%)Calcium: 47mg (5%)Iron: 0.1mg (1%)
Course:Sauce
Cuisine:French
Keyword:bechamel sauce, white sauce
Tried this recipe? Rate it belowtag @jocooks on instagram and hashtag it #jocooks!

Originally shared March 2011, updated with pics and better information.

Meet Joanna Cismaru

I’m Joanna (Jo for short) and this is my blog where I share with you my culinary adventures. Here you will find a variety of recipes using simple everyday ingredients and creating wonderful, delicious and comforting meals, including some decadent desserts.

30 recipes from around the world cover.

Never miss a recipe!

Subscribe and get a FREE dinner recipes ebook!

a hand dunking a piece of toast in a ramekin with creamy baked eggs
Previous Post
Creamy Parmesan Baked Eggs
3 cup chicken in a white bowl next a plate of rice
Next Post
Three Cup Chicken

Primary Sidebar

Joanna Cismaru

Hey there!

I'm Joanna (Jo for short) and this is my blog where I share with you my culinary adventures. Here you will find a variety of recipes using simple everyday ingredients and creating wonderful, delicious and comforting meals, including some decadent desserts.

Read More…

My Cookbook

Order Now: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Indie Bound | Books-A-Million

Never miss a recipe!

Subscribe and get a FREE dinner recipes ebook!

Sign me up

Dinner Recipes

a wooden spoon lifting a salisbury steak out of the skillet

Salisbury Steak

closeup of beef stew in a dutch oven with a ladle inside.

Beef Stew

overhead shot of zucchini lasagna in a baking dish

Zucchini Lasagna

a white bowl full with american goulash and a fork inside stacked on top of an empty bowl

American Goulash (Chop Suey)

two plate with sloppy joes and buns next to a greens salad

Sloppy Joes

beef barley soup in a white bowl with a spoon inside.

Beef Barley Soup

overhead shot of chicken broccoli and rice casserole in a pot

One Pot Cheesy Chicken Broccoli Rice Casserole

creamy chicken lazone in a skillet garnished with parsley.

Chicken Lazone

Popular Now

a hand dipping a chicken tender in ranch dressing

Air Fryer Chicken Tenders

a fork stabbing a garlic butter steak bite in a skillet full of them

Garlic Butter Steak Bites

a prime rib roast sliced on a plate

Prime Rib Roast

side view shot of a cinnamon bun with a bite taken out of it on a plate

Cinnabons Cinnamon Rolls

side view shot of a hand dipping a piece of naan bread into the bowl of chicken tikka masala

Instant Pot Chicken Tikka Masala

close up of the layers on the homemade croissant

Homemade Croissants

overhead shot of crusty bread loaf

No Knead Bread

side view shot of two halves of a chicken salad sandwich stacked on a plate exposing the centers

The Best Chicken Salad

Jo Cooks...

Flavors from around the world

No matter what household we have all grown up in, there is something that has brought us all together here and that is a love and appreciation of food. Food that is from cultures and cuisines across the world has always been a staple of the blog. I'm excited to bring you all a taste of each corner of the earth, every last bite seasoned to perfection and served up with love - from my kitchen to yours.
spring rolls cut in half in a black bowl with peanut sauce.

Asian

overhead shot of a fork with spaghetti twirled around it in a plate full of spaghetti.

Italian

freshly made pineapple salsa in a white bowl.

Mexican

sweet cheese buns stacked on top of each other with the top one broken in half.

Romanian

sideview shot of butter chicken on a plate over white rice garnished with parsley

Indian

red lentil hummus in a big black bowl garnished with a bit of smoked paprika.

Middle Eastern

Trending Now

overhead shot of oven baked chicken breasts in a baking dish

Baked Chicken Breast

overhead shot of oven baked chicken thighs in a pan

Oven Baked Chicken Thighs

a whole roast chicken surrounded by potatoes

Roast Chicken

a prime rib roast sliced on a plate

Prime Rib Roast

Browse All
  • Easy Dinners
  • Instant Pot
  • 30 Minute Meals
  • Chicken Recipes
  • Desserts
  • Recipe Index

Featured On

today logo.
huffpost logo.
the washington post logo.
jezebel logo.
countryliving logo.
good housekeeping logo.
lifehack logo.
buzzfeed logo.
mashable logo.
woman's day logo.
health logo.
better homes & gardens logo.
delish logo.
healthline logo.
nbc news logo.
blogloving logo.
university of washington logo.
shape logo.
Facebook Instagram Pinterest Twitter YouTube
  • Recipe Index
  • Cookbook
  • About Jo
  • Contact
  • visit my other site: Craving Home Cooked
  • Privacy Policy
  • Accessibility Statement
© 2021 · All Rights Reserved · Back to Top
Opens in a new window Opens an external site Opens an external site in a new window

Subscribe and get a free dinner recipes ebook!

654shares
  • 34
  • 207