An ambitious and enthusiastic cook, Jacquelyn D. Kirkland has been learning about ingredients and cooking styles since she was young. Weekly shopping trips with her family taught her the importance of fresh ingredients as well as how to enhance the flavor of not-so-fresh food. While she is eager to learn all styles of cooking, Jacquelyn D. Kirkland is particularly partial to Cajun cooking, which often relies on roux to thicken gumbos and other sauces.
Roux is a mixture of equal parts of flour and fat that is used to both thicken sauces and impart a special flavor to them. Despite this seeming straightforwardness, there are many different ways to make a roux. For example, some cooks use animal fat or lard, some use clarified butter, and some use vegetable oil, while still others rely on various combinations. By the same token, some cooks season the flour with various spices. There is agreement, though, that roux is best prepared in a skillet over low to medium heat. Most cooks first heat the fat in the skillet and then add the flour. The longer the roux cooks, the darker and more flavorful it will become; however, the darker the roux becomes, the less thickening ability it has. How long a roux should be cooked depends on the recipe in which it will be used, but it absolutely must be cooked long enough to remove the bitter taste of raw flour. When making roux, cooks cannot leave it to simmer, but must monitor and stir the mixture constantly, scraping the bottom of the skillet. If roux is not stirred adequately, the flour will char and impart a very unpleasant flavor to the food. Roux should not be added to a liquid to thicken it; instead, a liquid or other ingredient at room temperature should be slowly added to the roux and mixed thoroughly. At the beginning of this process, the mixture may become very thick and hard to work with, but as more liquid is added, the more workable it will become. |
AuthorJacquelyn D Kirkland Archives
December 2016
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