To make espagnole, cook butter and flour into a deep brown roux, then simmer it with brown stock, sautéed mirepoix, and a spoon of tomato for an hour until dark and glossy. It is the brown mother sauce of French cooking.
What is espagnole?
Espagnole is the dark, savory anchor of the five mother sauces. Where béchamel and velouté are pale, espagnole is built for depth: a roux cooked past blond to a true brown, then simmered slowly with brown stock, aromatic vegetables, and tomato until it reduces into something with real backbone.
On its own espagnole is rarely the final sauce. Its job is to be reduced and refined. Cook it down with more stock and it becomes demi-glace, the glossy reduction that finishes a steak. From there come bordelaise, Robert, and the rest of the brown-sauce family. It is the most patient of the mothers and the most rewarding.
What goes in espagnole?
- ·1 oz butter (2 tbsp)
- ·1 oz all-purpose flour (about 1/4 cup)
- ·2 cups brown stock (beef or veal), warmed
- ·1/2 cup mirepoix (diced onion, carrot, celery)
- ·1 tbsp tomato paste
- ·1 bay leaf and a sprig of thyme
- ·Salt to taste
The roux ratio holds at equal parts butter and flour, but the liquid runs higher, around two cups of stock to the ounce, because espagnole is built to be simmered and reduced. The mirepoix and tomato are not optional; they are what give the sauce its character.
How do you make espagnole?
- Melt the butter and sauté the mirepoix until softened and lightly browned, then stir in the tomato paste and cook one minute.
- Sprinkle in the flour and cook, stirring, until the roux turns a deep nut brown. Watch it closely so it does not scorch.
- Whisk in the warm brown stock in a steady stream, then add the bay leaf and thyme.
- Bring to a low simmer and cook forty-five minutes to an hour, skimming the surface, until it reduces and coats a spoon.
- Strain out the solids and season with salt. The finished sauce should be glossy and deep brown.
What should you know before making espagnole?
- Brown the roux with patience. The color is the flavor, but a burnt roux is bitter and unsalvageable.
- Warm your stock first. Cold stock into a hot roux invites lumps and stalls the cook.
- Skim, do not stir away, the foam. Lifting it off keeps the finished sauce clear and glossy.
- Make extra and freeze it. Espagnole and demi-glace freeze well in small portions and save an hour next time.
Where did espagnole come from?
Espagnole was codified as one of the five French mother sauces by Auguste Escoffier in 1903, building on the brown-sauce traditions of the nineteenth-century French kitchen. Its name points to a Spanish influence on the early French court table, though the sauce as we know it is thoroughly French.
Drawn from the public-domain text of Auguste Escoffier, Le Guide Culinaire (1903).
What can you make from espagnole?
Common questions.
What is espagnole sauce?
It is the brown mother sauce of French cooking: a dark roux simmered with brown stock, mirepoix, and tomato until deep and glossy. It is the base of demi-glace and the brown sauces.
What is the difference between espagnole and demi-glace?
Espagnole is the base sauce. Demi-glace is espagnole reduced with more brown stock until it halves and turns syrupy. Demi-glace is richer and used to finish meats.
Why is my espagnole bitter?
The roux was burnt rather than browned. A brown roux should smell nutty, not acrid. If it scorches, start over; there is no rescuing a burnt roux.
What is espagnole used for?
It is almost always reduced or finished rather than served plain. It becomes demi-glace, bordelaise, and other brown sauces for steak, roasts, and braised meats.
How long does espagnole keep?
Four to five days in the fridge, or several months frozen in small portions. It reheats and reduces beautifully, so making a batch ahead is worth it.