Easy Vegan Bechamel Sauce Recipe

Vegan bechamel sauce recipe : In Europe, white sauce, also known as béchamel, is the mother sauce of French and Italian cuisine.

It’s traditionally made with butter, milk, and flour and used in pasta bakes, lasagne, and a variety of other dishes. We use olive oil and plant milk to make a vegan white sauce that is as delicious and versatile as traditional béchamel.

Estimated reading time: 3 minutes

Vegan Bechamel Sauce Recipe

Bechamel is a creamy white sauce made traditionally with butter, flour, and milk that is frequently used as a base for other sauces. Its origins are unknown, but it appears to have been invented between the 16th and 17th centuries in either Italy or France.

This is a super simple recipe that only takes about 10 minutes to make from scratch.
Our favorite applications for our vegan béchamel sauce are pasta bakes and savory pancakes.
The end result is a silky, creamy, velvety sauce that will elevate your food to new heights.

White sauce ingredients

1 – For a light white sauce, use all-purpose flour. Whole-grain flour can be used to make a healthier version.

2 – Oil: Most vegetable oils will work for this recipe; however, keep in mind that the oil will impart flavor to the sauce, so choose one you enjoy. This vegan white sauce with extra virgin olive oil is one of our favorites. Refined sunflower oil has a milder flavor.

You can use vegan butter in the same amounts to make a richer white sauce.

3 – Most types of plant milk will work here. We prefer soy milk because it is more nutritious and richer than most other plant milks. The most important aspect is that your plant milk is unsweetened and flavorless.

4 – Nutmeg: not always required, but essential in the original Italian and French béchamel versions. If you don’t like nutmeg, simply leave it out.

5 – To add flavor, add a couple pinches of fine sea salt.

Making Vegan White Sauce

40 grams or 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil and 40 grams or 14 cup flour in a small saucepan over medium heat

Warm it up and stir until it begins to bubble, then add 500 g or 2 cups unsweetened soy milk, at room temperature is fine, a pinch of salt, and grated nutmeg.

Continue to stir over medium heat until the white sauce thickens, about 5 minutes.

Remember that the white sauce will thicken as it cools, so don’t make it too thick.

Set aside, remembering to stir occasionally to avoid lumps. Use as you see fit.

Errors I made

Cooling: This is the most difficult part of making white sauce because cooling it creates a patina on top that makes the sauce lumpy.

You have two options to avoid this. Alternatively, place a piece of parchment paper on top of the béchamel.

Alternatively, transfer the sauce from the hot pot to a cold bowl and stir while it cools. Once chilled, the sauce will not lump.

To expedite the process, cool it bain-marie by immersing half of the pot in another larger pot full of ice-cold water while stirring the sauce.

Tips

When adding the flour, stir quickly. Also, when adding the plant-milk, stir quickly and thoroughly. This will aid in the reduction of lumps in the sauce. Stir evenly and around the edges of your pot as well.
Add the plant milk all at once; if you add it slowly, lumps will form. Add all of the milk at once and stir quickly.