Food & Cooking Recipes Healthy Recipes Vegetarian Recipes Béchamel Sauce for Lasagna 4.9 (7) Making this classic sauce is a cinch when you follow our easy recipe. Prep Time: 5 mins Cook Time: 20 mins Total Time: 25 mins Yield: 3 cups Jump to recipe One of the mother sauces of French cuisine, béchamel sauce is a true classic. Made with three key ingredients—milk, butter, and flour—it's the basis of other sauces and is used in many recipes, from gratins to macaroni and cheese and even lasagna Bolognese. The creamy sauce holds the layers of pasta together and provides a rich counterpoint to the acidity of the tomatoes. While béchamel sauce is simple to make, it's not always straightforward. Any cook who has made a lumpy béchamel knows the pain of seeing the sauce turn clumpy. The secret to success is to cook the roux long enough to avoid a floury taste, using medium-low heat, and being careful not to let it brown. Another tip: whisking constantly while adding flour, then milk, prevents lumps from forming. Follow our recipe for a silky, lump-free sauce every time. 30 Cooking Skills to Master Before You Turn 30 Credit: Kelsey Hansen What Is Béchamel Sauce? A classic French sauce, a béchamel is made with flour, butter, and milk. It is used in many dishes from lasagna to vegetable gratins and casseroles to moussaka. The butter and flour are cooked together in a heavy-bottomed saucepan to form a thick paste (the roux) before milk is added. A béchamel uses a white roux, one that has been cooked very quickly to maintain its light color and subtle, nutty flavors. Milk is slowly whisked into the roux and cooked until it takes on a creamy consistency, thickening to the texture required. (Some recipes call for a thick sauce, whereas for use in lasagna, the béchamel needs to have a pourable consistency.) The sauce is then seasoned with salt, pepper, and nutmeg. What Is a Roux? A roux is a combination of flour and fat that is cooked together and used as a base to thicken and flavor sauces. The method for making a roux uses roughly equal parts oil or butter or another fat to flour. The roux is whisked constantly as it cooks until it reaches an optimal shade of color. Depending on the recipe, that color can range from white to dark brown. The finished base can be used to thicken sauces, gravies, soup, gumbo, and other dishes. Nutmeg in Béchamel It’s worth mentioning the use of nutmeg in béchamel sauce because you might not notice it. This spice—that you might be familiar with from eggnog or holiday cookies—is a subtle but necessary addition. It brings warmth, spice, and complexity to the blank canvas that is white sauce. How to Avoid Lumps in a Béchamel Sauce A lumpy sauce is the last thing you want; follow these simple steps to prevent the sauce from clumping: Use warm, not cold, milk (that’s why our recipe calls for heating the milk).Add the milk to your roux in increments; this gives the roux a chance to accept the liquid evenly. If you add the milk all at once, the roux will seize and create lumps that are difficult to remove. Directions Credit: Kelsey Hansen Melt butter: Melt butter in a heavy-bottomed, medium saucepan over medium-low heat. Credit: Kelsey Hansen Add flour and cook roux: Add flour, whisking constantly. Cook, whisking occasionally, 2 to 3 minutes; do not let roux brown. Credit: Kelsey Hansen Whisk in small amount of hot milk: Whisking constantly, add about 2 tablespoons hot milk to saucepan. Credit: Kelsey Hansen Add more milk, whisking constantly: Pour half of the remaining hot milk into the saucepan in small increments, whisking the mixture constantly, until a smooth paste forms. Credit: Kelsey Hansen Whisk in remaining milk, nutmeg, and salt: Whisk remaining milk into pan; add nutmeg and salt. Credit: Kelsey Hansen Credit: Kelsey Hansen Cook, stirring: Cook, stirring with a wooden spoon, making sure to scrape bottom and sides, until sauce is thick and creamy, about 15 minutes; if any lumps form, stir sauce rapidly with a whisk. Credit: Kelsey Hansen Season and let stand to cool: Season with pepper; remove from heat. Let sauce stand until lukewarm, about 30 minutes, before assembling lasagna. Credit: Kelsey Hansen Making Béchamel Sauce Ahead This béchamel sauce is best used fresh, but it can be made one day ahead and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Reheat gently in a heatproof bowl over a pan of simmering water before using. Frequently Asked Questions Why is béchamel used in lasagna? Bechamel is used in some lasagna recipes to add a creamy richness to the finished dish. Lasagna that does not include béchamel generally has a layer of ricotta mixed with eggs. Using ricotta is easier than making a béchamel sauce, but like legions of other cooks, we think béchamel produces a more delicious lasagna. The rich, creamy sauce balances the acidity from the tomatoes and is better at keeping the layers of pasta together than ricotta. Does traditional lasagna have béchamel or ricotta? Traditional lasagna can have béchamel or ricotta—it depends on who you ask (and where they are from). It appears that béchamel sauce was used in northern Italy, and ricotta in the South. In the U.S., versions that use ricotta are preeminent, and lasagna with béchamel sauce is less well known. Should you use hot or cold milk for béchamel? Hot milk should be used for making béchamel sauce. Adding cold milk to the roux is likely to result in a lumpy sauce. It is much easier to warm milk in a separate pan than it is to get rid of lumps in the sauce after you used cold milk. Can béchamel sauce be made vegan? Yes, béchamel sauce can be made vegan. Thanks to the excellent plant-based butter and milk alternatives in grocery stores these days, making a vegan béchamel sauce for lasagna is easier than ever. Seek out a good quality butter alternative and unsweetened non-dairy milk (preferably full-fat soy, almond, or oat milk). What are the mother sauces in French cooking? The mother sauces in French cooking are a group of five sauces that are integral to classic French cuisine. In addition to béchamel, the other sauces are Hollandaise, velouté, tomato, and Espagnol (a rich sauce made with beef or veal stock, brown roux, tomato paste, and caramelized vegetables). Not only are these sauces used frequently in French cooking, they also form the basis for countless other sauces like mornay—béchamel with cheese—and Béarnaise sauce (a tangy, tarragon-spiked Hollandaise). 5 More Recipes With Béchamel Baked Ziti With Sausage and Bechamel Buvette's Croque Monsieur Eggs Goldenrod Test Kitchen's Favorite Macaroni and Cheese Spinach Lasagna Updated by Victoria Spencer Victoria Spencer Victoria Spencer is an experienced food editor, writer, and recipe developer. She manages the decorvow recipe archive and is always curious about new ingredients and the best techniques. She has been working in food media for over 20 years.