French Mother Sauces
There are four base french mother sauces that are used to create all other sauces. They were set forth by Antonin Careme in the 19th century and are called Tomato, Bechamel, Veloute, and Espagnole!
If you know how to make these four french mother sauces, you are well on your way to being an incredible chef able to make hundreds of different sauces! But unfortunately, it can take a lot of time and skill to learn how to make these sauces just right.
Now in Powder Form
Luckily, Chef Todd (THRIVE Life’s professional chef) spent a year developing these four sauces in a “just add water” formula! And they are amazing!
I was a bit skeptical at first thinking that they just couldn’t be as good as a made from scratch sauce, but man alive! They are actually really good and easy to use. My favorite is the Bechamel – I use it multipe times a week. I also use the Veloute and Espagnole pretty regularly, but I prefer the tomato powder to the tomato sauce.
The General Info:
These four just add water french mother sauces are all original blends developed in house by Chef Todd. They are GMO free, certified gluten free and all natural.
They have a 10-year shelf life and come in a convenient pantry can size (about 2 1/2 cups by volume).
They can be purchased individually or in a 4 pkg.
Bechamel Sauce:
This is my very favorite sauce and I use it often. I keep a stock of 20+ of these in my food storage.
Bechamel sauce in it’s simplest form is a creamy white sauce. But it can be used as a base to make many other sauces such as:
- Cream Sauce
- Mornay
- Cheddar Cheese Sauce
- Mustard Sauce
- Nantua
- Alfredo Sauce
I also use it to thicken many soups.
Here are a few recipes you might consider trying:
Alfredo Sauce
Cheese Sauce
Breakfast Gravy
Espagnole Sauce:
Espagnole sauce in it’s simplest form is a savory beef gravy. But it can be used as a base to make many other sauces such as:
- Demi-Glace
- Bordelaise
- Rober Sauce
- Lyonnaise
- Madeira Sauce
- Bercy Sauce
- Chasseur Sauce
Here are a few recipes you might consider trying:
Beef Stew
Enchilada Sauce
Hunter Sauce
Tomato Sauce:
Tomato sauce in it’s simplest form is a marinara sauce. But it can be used as a base to make many other sauces such as:
- Creole
- Spaghetti Sauce
- Pizza Sauce
- Tomato Soup
- Bolognese sauce
Here are a few recipes you might consider trying:
Bolognese Sauce
Tomato Bisque
Marinara Sauce
Veloute Sauce:
Veloute sauce in it’s simplest form is a rich chicken gravy. But it can be used as a base to make many other sauces such as:
- White Wine Sauce
- Cream of Chicken Sou
- Sauce Supreme
- Sauce Allemande
- Sauce Poulette
- Sauce Bercy
- Sauce Normandy
Here are a few recipes you might consider trying:
White Wine and Tomato-Herb Sauce
Creamy Mushroom Sauce
Chicken and Rice
I hope this helps you add these sauces to both your food storage as well as your everyday use. They save a lot of time!
Have you used these sauces? What is your favorite way to use them?
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Becky is a wildlife enthusiast and pet and livestock care expert with a diploma in canine nutrition. With over a decade of experience in animal welfare, Becky lends her expertise to Simple Family Preparedness through insightful info about pets, livestock, bee keeping, and the practicalities of homesteading.
Hi, I ran across this while trying to find out how to make Alfredo from the Thrive Bechamel. I was tickled to see all the links to sauce types, but all of the links are broken. can you fix the links or point me in the right direction? Mike Morgan
I love your site!!! You make prepping manageable and I am grateful for all your work!
Yay! I am so glad to hear that Debra! Thank you for taking the time to let me know!
I’m excited to try the new sauces! 😀
When reconstituted, how much sauce do the various types make? I assume bechamel makes less than the others since it’s so much thicker?
Honestly, I’m not sure Tom. I know they make 24-48 servings per can, but I”m not sure what a serving size is. I will find out and get back to you!
Here are the servings, Tom:
Bechamel- 28 servings per can; serving size 2T which yields 1/4 C prepared
Espagnole- 74 servings per can; serving size 2tsp which yields 1/4 C prepared
Tomato- 60 servings per can; serving size 1T which yields 1/4 C prepared
Veloute- 56 servings per can; serving size 1T which yields 1/4 C prepared
Thanks for the reply. So we’re talking about $10 – $12 for a quarter cup of sauce? Something doesn’t seem right here. I know you pay a premium for packaged products, but this seems a bit excessive. I mean it cost less than $1 worth of ingredients to make 2 cups of a basic bechamel sauce.
Are you sure those reconstituted amounts are correct?
I’m sorry for the slow response. We moved and I”ve been without internet for a bit. Catching up!
And sorry for all the confusion. The serving Size is 1/4. I didn’t do the math at all. (-: For example, there are 28 2T dry or 1/4 cup mixed servings in the Bechamel can.
So, if I DID do the math, the Bechamel can would yield 7 cups sauce, the Espagnole can would yield 18.5 cups sauce, the tomato can would yield 15 cups sauce and the Veloute would yield 14 cups sauce.
They are actually very economical! (-:
I think I see the problem. Your math is off. For the bechamel, for instance, 28 times 2 Tablespoons=56 Tablespoons=4.5 cups. That makes more sense if this is correct.
Whoops, that should be 3.5 cups (16T = 1 cup).