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Thicken A Stew, Roux
George asks: Recently I made a stew which was delicious until I thickened it with 1/4 cup of flour mixed with 1/4 cup of water. Then the flour taste overpowered the original taste. In fact, the whole thing actually seemed to have lost flavor. Should I have used cornstarch or something else? Tom sez: Cornstarch blended with a little water would have been more neutral, but given the sauce the sheen of a Chinese gravy--which might not have been desirable, either. The problem with the flour was that it was uncooked. The solution can be found in the bedrock of Creole cooking: roux. Use the same quarter-cup of flour and an equal amount (or less) of oil, and cook it, stirring constantly over a medium fire, until the roux is about the same color as the stew's gravy--making sure not to let it burn. Then take it off the heat and stir in some of the sauce from the stewpot until completely blended. Add that back to the stewpot. There'll be no flour taste, the sauce would be thicker, and the flavor will be even better than when you started. Revised 3/10/08 Copyright © 2008 Tom Fitzmorris. All rights reserved. |
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