Sauce espagnole is one of the five classic mother sauces in French cuisine, as defined by the legendary Auguste Escoffier. Here, Brian Mark shows you how to prepare a clean, elegant sauce espagnole – with a modern twist.
Ingredients
- 25 g bone marrow
- 15 g shallots
- 50 g carrots
- 50 g mushrooms
- 50 g flour
- 15 g tomato paste
- 1 tsp paprika
- 10 black peppercorns
- 1 tbsp sherry vinegar (approx.)
- 1 l brown veal stock (see Sauce Brian Mark)
Bouquet garni
- 5 sprigs of thyme
- 5 bay leaves
- A piece of leek
- A few parsley stalks
Instructions
Cut the shallots, carrots and mushrooms into small cubes.
Melt the bone marrow in a heavy-based pot and sauté the vegetables until they are golden and caramelised.
Add the flour and brown it together with the vegetables. Add the peppercorns.
Stir in the tomato paste and roast it briefly to deepen its sweetness.
Pour in the sherry vinegar, followed by the veal stock.
Add the paprika and let the sauce simmer for about 10 minutes.
Add the bouquet garni and reduce the sauce to your desired consistency. Season with salt and pepper.
Strain the sauce through a fine sieve.
Just before serving, let it infuse with long pepper, parsley stalks and thyme.
