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Home ยป Sauces

Veloute Sauce | How to make /Vuh-loo-tay/

Published: Sep 7, 2022 ยท Modified: Nov 30, 2022 by Madalaine ยท This post may contain affiliate links ยท

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Veloute Definition

What is Veloutรฉ sauce? Veloute is one of the 5 French mother sauces listed by Auguste Escoffier in the early 1900s along with bechamel, tomato, hollandaise, and espagnole. It is a savory sauce made with a blond roux (don't let the butter brown!) and white stock made from either veal, chicken, or fish.

veloute sauce in a glass pitcher

Generally speaking, in North America chicken stock is primarily used to make it. In other parts of the world, veal is the stock of choice. Naturally, fish stock is generally used when creating a fish dish.

How to make veloutรฉ sauce

Veloutรฉ Sauce Recipe

For the sake of simplicity, I'm going to use chicken stock as the basic liquid ingredient. If you'd like to make a veal or fish veloute, simply replace the chicken stock with equal amounts of veal or fish stock. This recipe makes 2 cups.

Ingredients

  • 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 1 small onion, diced
  • 1 celery stalk, diced
  • 1 small carrot, peeled and diced
  • 3 tablespoons flour
  • 2 ยผ cups chicken broth
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 stalk fresh thyme
  • 2 fresh parsley stalks
  • ยฝ teaspoon kosher salt
  • ยผ teaspoon white pepper

Instructions

  1. Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Then add the diced onion, celery, and carrot.
  2. Cook the vegetables until they start to sweat, but don't brown them.
  3. Sprinkle the flour over the vegetables to make a roux, lower the heat, and stir for 2 - 3 minutes.
  4. Increase the heat and slowly add the stock, whisking vigorously until it comes to a boil.
  5. Reduce the heat to a simmer and add the bay leaf, fresh thyme, and parsley.
  6. Let simmer for at least 10 to 15 minutes, or up to an hour.
  7. Strain through a mesh cloth or a fine sieve.
  8. Season with salt and pepper. Adjust seasoning if needed.
  9. Serve right away or dot with butter and refrigerate in an air-tight container for up to 1 week.

NOTES:

What is a roux? A roux is a combination of equal parts butter and flour that is used to thicken a sauce. A blond roux is when you don't allow the butter to brown.

What is the right nappe for the sauce? First of all, the nappe is the desired consistency of a sauce. The perfect nappe is when the sauce is just thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.

the perfect nappe

Why use white pepper instead of fresh ground black pepper? White pepper is used for aesthetics. Since we're making a white sauce, we use white pepper. Black pepper would still taste amazing but the sauce would be speckled.

Why strain the sauce? Straining out all the vegetable bits and pieces of herbs creates a velvety smooth rich sauce. It's a texture thing.

Why dot with butter when refrigerating? Dotting with soft butter or drizzling with dots of melted butter keeps a skin from forming on top of the sauce. This technique is referred to quite often in classical French recipes.

top down chicken piccata in a pan
Chicken breasts in piccata sauce made from chicken veloutรฉ, a splash of white wine, lemon juice, and capers.

How to pronounce Veloute

If you type this into google you'll get something like: / Vul-loo-tee / with the accent on the middle syllable. DON'T BE FOOLED. If you say it that way, count on getting some very strange looks.

I am in no way fluent in French, but I do take my cues from French native Julien Miquel's YouTube videos on how to pronounce French words. He is an accomplished winemaker with a voice like chocolate velvet. His pronunciation sounds more like this (slight accent on the last syllable):

Vuh - loo - tay

veloute sauce over chicken and rice with peas on a white plate

3 Leading Sauces made from Veloute

Allemande

According to French cuisine, allemande sauce should be made with a veal veloute. However, it is often made with chicken veloute in North America.

Allemande sauce is made by adding 1 egg yolk, 2 ounces (ยผ cup) heavy cream, and a squeeze of lemon juice to the basic veloute recipe.

Supreme

Make supreme sauce by stirring in 4 ounces (ยฝ cup) heavy cream, 1 tablespoon melted butter, and a squeeze of lemon into the basic veloute recipe.

White Wine Sauce

Start this sauce by reducing 4 ounces (ยฝ cup) white wine by half in a hot saucepan over medium-high heat. Then stirring frequently, add 2 cups of veloute sauce, 2 ounces (ยผ cup) heavy cream, 1 tablespoon butter, and a squeeze of lemon.

chicken with veloute sauce over rice with peas
veloute sauce over chicken and rice with peas on a white plate
5 from 3 votes
Print

Veloute Sauce

Veloute sauce is one of the 5 French mother sauces listed by Auguste Escoffier made with a blond roux and a white stock made from either chicken, veal, or fish.

Course Dinner, Sauce
Cuisine French
Keyword french sauce, low carb, mother sauce, veloute
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Servings 6 people
Calories 75 kcal
Author Madalaine

Ingredients

  • 3 tablespoons 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 1 small onion diced
  • 1 stalk celery diced
  • 1 small carrot peeled and diced
  • 3 tablespoons flour
  • 2 ยผ cups chicken broth
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 stalk thyme fresh
  • 2 stalks parsley fresh
  • ยฝ teaspoon kosher salt
  • ยผ teaspoon white pepper

Instructions

  1. Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat.

  2. Then add the diced onion, celery, and carrot. Cook the vegetables until they start to sweat, but don't brown them.

  3. Sprinkle the flour over the vegetables to make a roux, lower the heat, and stir for 2 - 3 minutes.

  4. Increase the heat and slowly add the stock, whisking vigorously until it comes to a boil.

  5. Reduce the heat to a simmer and add the bay leaf, fresh thyme, and parsley. Let simmer for at least 10 to 15 minutes, or up to an hour.

  6. Strain through a mesh cloth or a fine sieve. Season with salt and pepper. Adjust seasoning if needed.

  7. Serve right away or dot with butter and refrigerate in an air-tight container for up to 1 week.

Recipe Video

Nutrition Facts
Veloute Sauce
Amount Per Serving
Calories 75 Calories from Fat 54
% Daily Value*
Fat 6g9%
Saturated Fat 4g25%
Trans Fat 0.2g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.2g
Monounsaturated Fat 1g
Cholesterol 17mg6%
Sodium 528mg23%
Potassium 59mg2%
Carbohydrates 5g2%
Fiber 0.5g2%
Sugar 1g1%
Protein 1g2%
Vitamin A 276IU6%
Vitamin C 2mg2%
Calcium 13mg1%
Iron 0.3mg2%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Veloute sauce is one of the French 5 Mother Sauces. Simmer your chicken it in, add it to soups, use it as a base to create countless other sauces!

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Comments

  1. Amia says

    February 04, 2025 at 12:21 pm

    5 stars
    This veloutรฉ sauce looks like the perfect addition to so many dishes! I love how versatile it isโ€”whether you're pairing it with chicken, fish, or vegetables, it seems like a great way to elevate any meal. The step-by-step instructions make it feel approachable, even for someone new to sauce-making. I canโ€™t wait to try it and give my dishes that rich, creamy touch! Thanks for sharing this wonderful recipe!

    • Madalaine says

      February 23, 2025 at 9:17 pm

      Youโ€™re absolutely rightโ€”veloutรฉ is such a versatile sauce that can take so many dishes to the next level!

5 from 3 votes (2 ratings without comment)
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Welcome!

Hi Iโ€™m Madalaine and I love helping people have FUN in their kitchen. You'll find lots of easy-to-follow gluten-free recipes and tons of tips I learned in culinary school.ย  Most of my recipes are French-inspired butย allย of my recipes are family favorites.

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