The simple-looking Espagnole sauce, made by reducing the veal stock, brown roux, aromatics, and tomato paste, is full-bodied and rich, being the starting point for building a magnitude of other sauces.
Originally from Spain, it was later popularized in France by Auguste Escoffier, becoming one of the five French mother sauces.
Until today, it is considered a standard sauce among many others in the culinary universe.
The steak is the protagonist, but the sauce is the co-star that will make this pairing an acclaimed dish.
-Paulo DAumas – Writer and Food & wine Specialist
Jump to Section
- Espagnole Sauce: The Origin
- The Differences Between Demi-Glace And Sauce Espagnole
- 11 Essential Tips for Making Espagnole Sauce
- 9 Dishes To Serve With Espagnole Sauce And Its Derivatives
- Espagnole And Its Derivatives Sauces
- How To Make Espagnole Sauce
Espagnole Sauce: The Origin
There are some theories about the sauce’s name.
One of the French’s claims at the time was that the sauce’s brown color associated it with the stereotypical image of a Spaniard. However, there are controversies about this story.
Alan Davidson, a food writer, used to say, ” The name has nothing to do with Spain, any more than the counterpart term allemande has anything to do with Germany. It is generally believed that the terms were chosen because in French eyes, Germans are blond, and Spaniards are brown.”
In the early 17th century, during a banquet to celebrate the marriage between Anne of Austria and Louis XIII of France, her Spanish chefs used Spanish tomatoes to add flavor and richness to French sauces as they were usually tasteless.
Later, the sauce Espagnole has become a necessary substitute for poor-quality stocks. However, in the 19th century, its ingredients and preparation method changed so that its taste turned into a bland sauce.
Consequently, considering the misuse and uniformity of flavor so repugnant, the chefs of that time launched a reactionary movement to resume the sauce Espagnole in its rightful place and use.
Auguste Escoffier, a famous French chef, restaurateur, and culinary writer, popularized the Sauce Espagnole updating the traditional cooking methods and ingredients, making it one of the Five French Mother Sauces still used in most professional and home kitchens.
The Differences Between Demi-Glace And Sauce Espagnole
They are both rich brown sauces and can be perfectly spooned on top of steaks, short ribs, poultry, and game meats or stirred into stews and risotto. They also serve as a basis for other sauces.
Demi-Glace is a thick beef syrup commonly used in small amounts to add concentrated flavor and body to sauces. Traditionally, its preparation combines one part sauce Espagnole with one part brown beef stock and reduces that by half. It can also include wine, such as sherry port or Madeira.
Demi-Glace
On the Other hand, Sauce Espagnole is a brown beef stock with mirepoix, aromatics, roux, and tomato paste reduced by half.
Although Demi-Glace is a derivative of Espagnole, it serves as a starting point for other sauces, such as Madère, Bordelaise, and Poivrade, which are still derivatives of Espagnole.
11 Essential Tips for Making Espagnole Sauce
Mise en Place
Mise en place is a French culinary term that means “to put everything in place.” In practice, it is an essential step before preparing any recipe; you will organize the kitchen utensils and portion the ingredients in advance, avoiding mess and mistakes at the time of preparation. Therefore, get everything organized and portioned before preparing the Espagnole sauce.
Residues Free
Any presence of residues can reflect and ruin the flavor and appearance of the sauce. So keep pots and pans clean, or any presence of residues can reflect and ruin the quality of the sauce.
The right roux
The different degrees of roux color (white, blond, and brown) correspond directly to the sauce’s final color. Sauce Espagnole requires a brown roux.
Brown Stock
Espagnole is a dark brown sauce and requires dark veal or beef stocks, as the sauce base will lose its identity if you use a clear stock, such as chicken.
Mirepoix
Cut the vegetables – carrots, onions, celery – into large pieces, about 1-2 inches/3-5cm, so they don’t fall apart during the cooking process.
Écumer
Écumer is a French term that means to remove foam or impurities from the surface of the boiling liquid with the help of a ladle or spoon. Not doing that results in a heavy and indigestible sauce.
Flavor balance
Some herbs and spices, such as thyme and black pepper, can overpower the final sauce flavor if they are in excess. Even because the pan that prepares the sauce is not a waste container, herbs that have not been used in other recipes or are about to get old can’t go into the pan. Follow the recipe’s amount.
Sauce color
Dark sauces have a dark brown color, influenced by the amount of tomato puree, the mirepoix’s caramelization, and the roux’s color. So follow the steps recommended in the recipe.
Seasoning
Adding salt to the sauce at the beginning of the cooking process can make it salty as the sauce reduces. Prefer to adjust the seasoning at the end.
Nappé consistency
In French cuisine, nappé is the term used for a sauce’s creamy, velvety, and dense texture. To check if it has reached the right point, dip a spoon in the preparation, and when you run your finger along the back of the spoon, the “trail” formed by the finger has to remain, indicating that the Espagnole sauce is ready.
Solids free
Strain the sauce using a fine-mesh sieve, sometimes lined with cheesecloth, to obtain a smoother, more homogeneous consistency free of tiny solids.
9 Dishes To Serve With Espagnole Sauce and Its Derivatives
In French Cuisine, Sauce Espagnole is commonly served with red meat. However, Its versatility for making countless other rich sauces gives it more room to go along with many other dishes.
- Duck In Sauce Bigarade
- Baked Eggs With Madeira Sauce And Chicken Livers
- Mushroom Stuffed Omelet
- Braised Beef Short Ribs With Demi-Glace Sauce And Biro-Biro Rice
- Sautéed Turkey Breast In Chasseur Sauce
- Hot Foie Gras
- Sirloin Steak In Sauce Au Poivre With French Fries
- Pork Chops In Charcutière Sauce With Parsnip Mousseline
- Ossobuco With Demi-Glace Sauce And Mushroom Risotto
Espagnole And Its Derivatives Sauces
From the Espagnole sauce, it is possible to create 12 other sauces that will add flavor, aroma, texture, and color to your dishes.
How To Make Espagnole Sauce
Ideal for serving with red meat, pork, game, grilled, roasted, sautéed, or grilled vegetables, everything that refers to smoky, earthy, and empyreumatic aromas.
Learn now how to prepare French dark sauce.
Now, get to work! 😋
Espagnole Sauce
Equipment
- Heavy-bottom saucepan
- Sieve
- Spatula
- Mixing Bowls
- Whisk
Ingredients
- 3 liters Veal brown stock
- 100 g Onion
- 50 g Carrot
- 50 g Celery
- 2 pcs Garlic cloves
- 125 ml Dry red wine optional
- 25 g Tomato paste
- 20 g Flour
- 40 g Butter 20 g for roux and 20 g for sauté mirepoix
- 2 pcs Tomato whithout skin and seeds – concasse
- 1 pc Bouquet garni
Instructions
Mise en place
- Bouquet garni: Parsley stalks, 1 bay leaf, 1 celery stalk, wrapped in a green leek leaf, tied with culinary string.
- Brown roux: Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. When the butter begins to foam, add the flour and cook for 10-15mins. Set aside to cool.
- Mirepoix: Wash the carrots and celery. Dry. Trim the ends and roots. Peel the onion and carrot and cut in large pieces about 1-2 inches/3-5cm
Preparing sauce
- In a heavy-bottom saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat and sweat the mirepoix, occasionally stirring, until softened – 5 min.
- Add garlic clove, bouquet garni, tomato paste and cook until golden brown.
- Add tomatoes and cook until soft in low heat – 10 min.
- Add red wine and deglaze (optional).
- Add the hot veal stock.
- Temper the brown roux with a little of the veal stock and add to the rest in the pan, stirring to avoid lumps.
- Simmer uncovered, skimming any impurities from the surface of the liquid – écumer.
- Reduce the liquid by about one-third or until the sauce covers the back of a spoon.
- Pass the sauce through a sieve into a bowl discarding the solids.
- The Espagnole sauce is ready to use.
Notes
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