Roux help, please...

1. 73

   DzyMsLizzyposted 6 years ago

   Last night, I made (for the first time ever) baked mac and cheese from scratch.   
   
   All went okay, until we started to eat, and I realized I had WAY too much flour in the roux.  It tasted very floury! 
   
   It had been so many, many years since I made a roux, that I forgot that it also thickens up after the liquid is added, and I had too much flour in with the butter.  Then, when I had added the milk, and it started to thicken more, I added a lot more milk, then thought I needed more flour, as it was too soupy at that point.
   
   Also, I had dredged the shredded cheese in flour, to keep if from glomming together in clumps instead of melting.  Sheesh!
   
   Soooo, I finally got a consistency I thought was good, poured it over the cooked pasta and stuck it in the oven.   Looked good, but... ... ...
   
   My question then, is how can I fix this?  The sauce is no longer a separate entity.  But it really wasn't very good because we tasted more flour than cheese!
   
   There's enough left for at least another meal, and I hate to throw it out and waste food.

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2. 81

   Bill Yovinoposted 6 years ago

   DzyMsLizzy - (Love the name btw). Equal parts flour and fat. You only need 3 tablespoons of each to thicken a quart of stock so you probably could cut that in half for your mac and cheese (1 1/2 tbsp of each). Cook the roux slowly until it gets a little color.  The liquid won't be fully thickened until it comes up to a full boil.

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   1. 73

      DzyMsLizzyposted 6 years agoin reply to this

      Thank you.  My current problem, however, is, having forgotten that in the first place, how do I 'fix' the already amalgamated mac & cheese so it doesn't taste like flour.
      Last night, I turned it into a dutch oven, broke it all up (it was glued together like a brick), added another cube of butter, and nearly a quart of milk, and another cup and a half of shredded cheese.
      It didn't really help. 
      I guess I'll be tossing the rest, much as I hate wasting food on my meager budget.

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3. 81

   Bill Yovinoposted 6 years ago

   Yes, it's hard to undo a mistake like that in cooking. Before tossing it I would try adding a cup or so of chicken stock and simmering it slowing for 30 minutes. That should take away the raw flour taste but might make the macaroni  too mushy. At least it should taste better. Worth a shot.

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