RVP – choose a sauce!

Before you do, a clarification – in “Bring on the pies” I mentioned a Velouté sauce and I should have given a full explanation.

A Velouté sauce is a savoury sauce using a roux and a light stock. It is known as one of the Mother Sauces – in other words a base sauce from which other “secondary” sauces are made – a Sauce Supreme is one of those, enriching a Velouté sauce, usually with chicken stock (you can use vegetable, as I would in this recipe) and double cream. It's a luxurious sauce, ideal served with chicken too. You won't be surprised to know that “velouté” translates to “velvet”!

Other examples of classical secondary sauces are “Saffron Sauce Supreme” or “Sauce Supreme with sherry and mushrooms”.

I'm sorry it wasn't clear in the original piece – now I've probably given you too much information!

Moving swiftly on, any of the sauces mentioned so far would be perfect with your veggies, it's personal taste. The curry sauce would be amazing and would definitely get my vote – for no other reason than it makes a change.

I'm repeating the Sauce Supreme recipe but this time making a larger quantity – there's a method to my madness – you'll use half the quantity to complete your veggie pie filling. The remainder is extra sauce to drizzle over the served pie – everyone loves gravy!

Sauce Supreme

500ml stock – vegetable or chicken

ideally cold

30g unsalted butter

30g plain flour

1 tsp Dijon mustard

400ml double cream

salt and black pepper

Melt the butter, take the pan off the heat, add the flour and whisk. Return to the heat and cook out the flour for 2-3 minutes, stirring continuously making a roux sauce – do not walk away.

Tip your cold stock straight into the roux and whisk until smooth, then cook on a low heat for 30 minutes. Season with salt and black pepper.

Add the mustard and the cream and simmer for 5 minutes then cool, cover and fridge.

You can make ahead and freeze the sauce if it's more convenient – it's every bit as good from the freezer.

An extra couple of “grown up” sauce ideas next … with fillings too