This Hack Will Fix Annoying Lumps In Your Cream Pasta Sauce
Tired of lumps in your béchamel keeping you from fully enjoying your pasta-eating experience? Your creamy sauce should be a smooth, luxurious treat, not an unfortunate reminder that, when it comes to cooking, you're no expert. No need to worry though — with this one trick, you'll be able to keep your cream sauce totally lump-free.
If you want to nail that perfect, smooth consistency, you're going to want to whisk continuously. According to NDTV Food, you'll want to keep whisking as you gradually add ingredients such as flour and milk to the sauce. If you stop whisking for a little too long and lumps do start to form, you might still be okay. Just break them up as soon as you notice them — the closer to the lumps' formation you break them up, the better your béchamel's consistency is going to be.
More tips for the perfect sauce
If it's too late for whisking, there are more tricks you can try. For one thing, when you notice the sauce is lumpy, you can take it off the flame and let it cool. Put it in a blender, and blend until it's lump-free. Add the sauce back into the pan, and you're good to go. Is that cheating? Maybe, but it works. You can also try adding some ice-cold water to the sauce — the cold infusion will help you break up the lumps.
There are also some tips you can keep in mind at the start to make sure those lumps never form in the first place. According to Livestrong, if you're sure to dissolve the flour in the fat fully before mixing in the milk, the sauce should stay smooth. The Kitchn recommends adding a quarter of your milk at the start and whisking it vigorously to keep the roux loose and clump-free. Then you can (slowly!) add the rest of your milk. If you do, your béchamel should be as creamy and smooth as you dreamed it would be.