Norfolk Sauce, or Rich Melted Butter Without Flour
Ingredients
Directions
Put three tablespoons of water into a small saucepan and bring to a boil.
When it boils, add four ounces of fresh butter.
As soon as the butter is dissolved, remove the saucepan from the heat.
Shake the saucepan until the sauce looks thick and smooth.
Do not allow the sauce to boil after the butter is added.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures. See the original page.
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- Butter
- Provides richness and fat, and when shaken off the heat it emulsifies into a thick, smooth sauce.
The step that matters
Do not let the sauce boil after the butter is added. Boiling a butter sauce can break the emulsion, separating the butterfat from the water and leaving a greasy, grainy sauce instead of a smooth one.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
You might also like
The free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.
Wine Sauce (for stewed fruit)186 recipes
Caper Sauce180 recipes
Brown Sauce141 recipes
Dutch Sauce74 recipes