Preparing A Vegan White Sauce

The vegan white sauce is straightforward to make and will give the non-vegan versions a run for their money. This sauce is also highly versatile because it forms an exceptional base for other types. 

Most white sauces are described as bechamél or velouté sauces where they have replaced the dairy ingredients with suitable alternatives. The classic omnivore version of a white sauce can be found elsewhere. 

The basic vegan white sauce uses plant proteins throughout. The most common being soy as well as oat milk, pea and to a small extent some nut milks. Butter is normally used with flour to create the roux before milk is added. Here, the butter is replaced with olive oil but sunflower oil can be used and produces a slightly different texture.

Vegan white sauces can also be turned into other types with a few ingredient additions including cheese sauces, lasagne sauces. Vegan butter adds some flavour but its use needs to be carefully checked to avoid overpowering the sauce. The presence of too much coconut oil in this type of butter for example is polarising.  The second recipe below has the amounts in the right proportions. If you want to add a slight spicy note, just add freshly grated nutmeg and this too is a matter of taste.

The following recipes were first developed by soy milk suppliers back in the early 2000’s as a way of testing the formation of acceptable non-dairy based roux. Our first example is probably about as simple as it is possible to get which is the soy milk version and olive oil as the fat. The next recipe [2] uses vegan butter rather than olive oil as well as soy milk just for comparison.

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Equipment:

• a 3-pt heavy bottomed and enamelled saucepan, stainless steel pans or copper-lined saucepans.
• small saucepan
• wooden spatula or spoon
• wire whisk

[1] The Soy Milk And Olive Oil Vegan White Sauce  

Preparation time: 5 – 8 minutes; Cooking time: 15 minutes; Total time: 20 – 23 minutes. The amount is roughly  just under 500ml (approx. 2 cups).

Ingredients:

• 2½ – 3 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp plain white flour or all purpose flour
• 500ml soy milk
• salt and black pepper to taste
• nutmeg to taste – a pinch (optional)

Preparation:

1. To a heavy bottomed saucepan, add oil.
2. Heat oil on a medium setting so  that it is suitably hot for the flour to be added.
3. Add flour in small portions and vigorously stir with a wooden spoon or whisk to form the roux. Do not allow to brown! Takes a couple of minutes.
4. Add all the soy milk and continue to  stir vigorously. A whisk will also help. The sauce should begin to thicken. The whole process takes around 2 or 3 minutes.
5. Allow the sauce to reach a gentle boil but then reduce to simmering heat and keep at this for a couple of minutes.
6. Add more flour if there is a sense that it has not changed in consistency and if it is too thick, add a small amount of soy milk.
7. Take off the heat and add any salt and pepper, and nutmeg – taste to check.
8. The sauce will thicken with cooling
9. Use immediately or as a base for other dishes.

[2] The Vegan Butter And Soy Milk White Sauce

Ingredients:

• 2½ – 3 tbsp vegan butter
• 2 tbsp plain white flour or all purpose flour
• 500ml soy milk
• salt and black pepper to taste
• nutmeg to taste – a pinch (optional)

Preparation:

1. To a heavy bottomed saucepan, melt the butter over a medium heat.
2. Add flour in small portions and vigorously stir with a wooden spoon or whisk until it thickens.
3. Add all the soy milk and continue to  stir vigorously. A whisk will also help. The sauce should begin to thicken but do so without browning. It takes between 2 and 3 minutes.
4. Allow the sauce to reach a gentle boil but then reduce to simmering heat almost immediately to allow it to thicken.
5. Add more flour if there is a sense that it has not changed in consistency and if it is too thick, add a small amount of soy milk.
6. Take off the heat and add any salt and pepper – taste to check. Add nutmeg too if required.
7. The sauce will thicken with cooling.
8. Use immediately or as a base for other dishes.