White sauce is a very basic sauce made by roasting plain flour in butter and is cooked with full-fat milk. The mixture is simmered and cooked till it thickens. It is seasoned with salt and pepper powder. Other herbs and spices are added to it as per the requirement of the dish.
It is a very versatile sauce and is used in making dishes such as pasta, lasagne, salad and baked dishes. It can be used as a dip with some toasted bread and veggie sticks.
But it is heavy and is generally high in calories. The healthier version of white sauce is made by replacing the basic ingredients with whole wheat flour, low-fat milk, and olive oil. The sauce gets a creamy texture with bottle gourd. The texture and taste of the sauce are same as the regular white sauce. You can add different seasoning to the sauce as per your choice.
Bottle gourd can be replaced with a cauliflower. Cauliflower gives a prominent smell to the sauce. I prefer using 1/2 cup of cauliflower. The smell can be balanced by adding spices like oregano, mixed herbs, garlic powder or nutmeg.
To make it gluten free you can use oats flour in place of wheat flour or plain flour.
Now enjoy any dish guilt-free with this healthy white sauce!
Healthy White Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 cup bottle gourd doodhi or lauki. You can also use 1/2 cup cauliflower in place of doodhi.
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp whole wheat flour
- 1 cup low fat milk
- 1/2 tsp oregano optional or mixed herbs
- 1/2 tsp black pepper powder
- salt to taste
Instructions
- Wash and chop bottle gourd (doodhi/lauki) into pieces. Pressure cook it for 3-4 whistles with a half cup of water. (If you do not have bottle gourd you can also use cauliflower).
- Cool and drain the cooked bottle gourd. Make a smooth paste of it in the mixer. (the drained water can be used to knead flour, or making dal and soup).
- Heat olive oil in a pan.
- Add the whole wheat flour.
- Saute till the wheat flour become golden and releases the aroma.
- Add gradually milk stirring continuously so that no lumps are formed.
- Add the pureed bottle gourd and mix well. If possible use a hand whisk to mix as it prevents forming lumps.
- Mix well and simmer on medium heat till sauce thickens.
- Add oregano, black pepper powder, and salt and mix well. (you can keep it plain or add spices like mixed herbs, red chili flakes, nutmeg, garlic powder.)
- Simmer for two more minutes. The white sauce is ready to use.
- Healthy white sauce is ready to use.
Thanks for sharing the healthy recipe for making white sauce. It is less in fat too.
Thank you
Can you tell what does lauki or cauliflower do with thos recipe. I mean why its imp to add?
Hi
Thank you for going through the recipe. White sauce is made using butter, full fat milk and maida. Some people prefer to add cheese to make it cheesy. In the healthy version of the recipe there is not butter or cheese or full fat milk. Hence addition of lauki or cauliflower puree gives creamy and buttery texture to the sauce. Plus kids will enjoy the benefits of the hidden veggies. I had started making this sauce since my son was a toddler and I still make my white sauce this way. Happy healthy cooking!!
I’snt cheese and butter considered good fat for kids? So why avoid it?
I’m going to have a go. It sounds smart and tasty. How long does it keep? Thank you.
Thank you so much!! It is a healthy sauce and it can be refrigerated for couple of days in an airtight container.