béchamel sauce
- noun
- /ˈbeɪʃəˌmɛl sɔs/
- To make a perfect lasagna, you need to layer the pasta with a thick béchamel sauce.
- Spread the remaining béchamel sauce
Examples
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I'd planned a magnificent meal: veal in a shiitake béchamel sauce and my special thrice-whipped potato clouds.
Fiction book (1991) -
The chef explained that a good béchamel sauce is essential for creamy dishes like macaroni and cheese.
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I think the top layer of the pastichio is a béchamel sauce.
Blog text (6) -
The top layer of the pastisio you had is a béchamel sauce, which is what makes it so delicious.
Blog text (6) -
Or you might try making a vegetable lasagna with a light béchamel sauce.
Blog text (9) -
Hi Kath, I think the first layer of that pastichio is like a béchamel sauce.
Blog text (6) -
It is traditionally topped with a creamy béchamel sauce that, when cooked, has a custard-like consistency.
Blog text (6) -
She added the béchamel sauce to the pasta before baking it in the oven.
Synonyms
6
1.7
A sauce made from milk thickened with butter and flour
1
7.3
A smooth white sauce made from milk thickened with butter and flour
How Thick
Surface Forms
Morphology
béchamel + sauce
The construction follows a transparent pattern (modifier + 'sauce') so it clearly denotes a type of sauce; a learner who knows 'béchamel' as the label will therefore understand it refers to a particular sauce. However, 'béchamel' itself is a borrowed culinary name whose internal composition and full recipe-specific meaning (white sauce made with a roux) are not derivable from the constituents, so the expression is only partially predictable.
Etymology
Béchamel sauce may come from a French man at the king's court, Louis de Béchamel, who helped make a smooth white sauce famous. That's why the name now means the simple white sauce used as a 'base' in many dishes.