How to make brown sauce

Espagnole (Brown) Sauce

Ingredients

• ¾ pint (420 ml) of brown meat stock
• 1 oz (30 g) of butter
• 1 oz (30 g) chopped streaky bacon
• 1 chopped carrot
• 1 chopped shallot
• 4 tbsp of chopped mushrooms
• 3 tbsp of flour
• 2 tbsp of tomato purée
• 1 bouquet garni
• salt and pepper

Method

1. Place the butter in a large saucepan and heat gently until it melts.
2. Add the chopped bacon and cook for 2 minutes.
3. Add the chopped vegetables and continue to gently fry all the ingredients until the vegetables have softened.
4. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the flour.
5. Return the pan to the heat and cook the flour mixture (roux) until it turns a dark brown colour. Do not allow it to burn.
6. Remove the pan from the heat and whisk in the meat stock a little at a time.
7. Continue to stir the sauce continuously until it thickens and then add the tomato purée, the bouquet garni and season with salt and pepper.
8. Reduce the heat and simmer very gently for about an hour.
9. Skim the top of the sauce from time to time.
10. When the sauce is ready, you should have a thick brown strong-tasting sauce. Strain the sauce into a new pan through a sieve so that only the liquid passes through.
11. Serve as you wish or freeze the sauce in individual batches for later use.