Roux
Even after fifty years in Canada,
I am completely satisfied with a bowl of fresh vegetable stew. But this was a
problem in 1967. I knew that főzelék or vegetable stew required rántás [roux] or habarás [slurry] to thicken so I wrote home for help. The turn around for mail those days
could be three to four weeks, and in the meantime I kept on making "wallpaper
paste". My roux sometimes was so thick the spoon stood up in the pot. Lumpy too.
Roughly a month passed before I began to receive instructions how to make roux.
It would begin with “put some lard in the pot, add some flour...” It never
entered their minds to write down the steps for me. I soon realized I could not rely
on my family for cooking. The struggle with roux continued and I was making less and
less főzelék as the years went by. You might say I was roux challenged. No
matter what I did, my roux was always lumpy, either too thick or it simply failed
to thicken the vegetable stew. Often times I had the painstaking task of forcing
it through a sieve, then it would lump up again in the hot broth. If you share my
bewilderment with roux... this one is for you.
There is more than one way to
thicken a vegetable stew. You can use nut meal, coconut milk, heavy cream,
mashed potatoes, potato flakes or a small amount of puree made from the
vegetables. Some methods are more satisfying than others. But the most common
thickening agents for Hungarian vegetable stew remains to be roux or slurry.
Chop the vegetables uniform and
put them in a pot. Add hot water barely covering the vegetables. Bring it to
a slow simmer. Cover the pot and continue to simmer until the vegetables are
tender. Remove the pot from heat and set it aside. Next make the roux. The components
of roux is fat and flour, roughly half and half in volume. Always start with
the fat. Heat it up on medium low heat before you add the flour. If the fat is
butter, melt the butter just, don't heat it up too high, butter on its own burns easily. Add the flour gradually, maybe you will need
less maybe more. This will depend on the type of fat and flour you use. Stir
the flour into the fat and cook it for 2-3 minutes. Remove it from heat
before you add the seasoning. Seasoning burns in roux and you end up with a bitter taste. Now
add cold liquid, always cold and never hot. Stir to combine to a smooth paste. The next step is what every
roux instruction leaves out. Diluting the roux with cold liquid is the most
crucial part of thickening with roux. When you stir in the cold liquid you get
a lukewarm slurry, this lukewarm slurry is what you add to the
pot. Stir and slowly bring it back to a simmer. Continue to simmer
until your stew has the desired consistency.
THICKENING VEGETABLE STEWS
Roux:
2 Tbsp oil or lard or butter
2 Tbsp flour
- Begin by heating 2 tablespoons oil or fat in a saucepan over medium heat until a pinch of flour sprinkled in the oil begins to bubble.
- Stir in 2 tablespoons of flour to form a paste.
- Continue stirring as the roux gently bubbles for 2 to 3 minutes. Do not cook longer.
- Remove from heat and stir in the seasoning such as paprika or chopped up herbs if desired. Do not cook the roux with the seasoning or it will turn bitter.
- Add 1/2 of a cup of cold liquid: water, stock, or the cooled down broth from the stew.
- Stir smooth. You now have roux.
- Add the roux to the slowly simmering stew and continue to slow simmer until the desired consistency. Do not cook it longer than 2-3 minutes, because continued cooking will eventually break down the flour and the liquid will be thin again.
- This amount is sufficient to thicken 2 cups of liquid.
You can make roux ahead of
time, freeze it in small blocks and use it as needed. Works rather well, but
this method requires planning ahead. Check out the following video.
Slurry:
2 Tbsp flour or cornstarch
1 cup cold liquid
1 cup cold liquid
- Add the flour or cornstarch to a small bowl and gradually stir in the cold liquid.
- Stir until a smooth. This is the slurry.
To Thicken With Slurry:
- Whisk the cold slurry into the hot, simmering liquid you want to thicken.
- Bring it back to simmer and continue in a slow simmer for 2-3 minutes or
until the starchy taste is cooked away. Don't cook longer or the starch
will break down and the liquid will be thin again. This will thicken 2 cups of hot broth.
Slurry
Note: When thickening stews with
slurry, a small piece of butter or a few
tablespoons of full fat sour cream helps with the flavour. Cooking low fat sour cream into the stew tends to break apart
into floating white bits. So if you insist on using low fat sour cream, add it at the table.
