Sauces are appetizing dressings for food, usually in liquid form. Fruit sauces have been considered in the previous pages and pudding sauces will follow the puddings. Meat and fish sauces are given here because they are essential in preparing many of the made dishes suitable for luncheon.

A "sauce" is possible when there is no gravy, for it may be made of any extraneous substances which will improve the flavor of the meat.

Gravy, pure and simple, is the juice and fat of the meat extracted in the process of cooking and carving.

The ingredients required for most sauces are fat, liquid, thickening, and seasoning.

The fat may be that belonging to the meat, or butter, or oil, or cream.

The liquid is stock from meat, fish, or fowl, or water, or milk, or fruit, or vegetable juices.

The thickening may be flour, arrowroot, cornstarch, or bread-crumbs, or eggs, or vegetable pulps.

The seasoning may include salt, the standard condiments, and many meat, fish, and vegetable flavors. Instead of mingling too many, it is better to use to-day a pinch of sweet herbs, to-morrow some chopped onion, and next time a little parsley or strained tomato.

There are two foundation sauces, the white and the brown, or as the French say, blanc and roux.

It is a saving of labor to keep a jar of butter and flour cooked together to use in white sauce, and a smaller one of browned butter and flour for brown sauces.

Sometimes the butter and flour are rubbed together uncooked, stirred into the hot milk in a double boiler, and cooked for at least fifteen minutes.

When it is desirable to use less fat, the flour should be mixed with a little cold milk, and blended with the remainder, which should be scalding hot, and the whole thoroughly cooked.

A general formula which will cover most sauces calls for two tablespoons of fat, two tablespoons of flour, and one cup of liquid.

Vary according to circumstances; for example, if the liquid is cream use less fat; if it is tomato or onion pulp less flour will be required.

Process Of Mixing.

Melt the fat in a suitable agate saucepan, put in the flour, stir till the mixture bubbles all over, cool slightly, then gradually add the hot or cold liquid, beating in each addition before putting in more.

Brown sauces are made by first browning the fat, then adding the flour and letting that brown, and when the right shade of color is gained adding the liquid. Butter browns sooner than other fats. A few drops of caramel will intensify the color if the liquid has been put in too soon. The proportion of flour should be slightly increased for the brown sauce. Constant beating renders the sauce smooth and glossy as nothing else can make it.

If it should not be of the right thickness - if too thin, cook slowly for a few moments; if thick, add more liquid. Bread flour thickens more than pastry flour, and corn-starch more than either.

Any sauce or gravy thickens while cooling - even the short time between cooking and serving makes a noticeable difference. Allowance must also be made for the evaporation, which takes place if a saucepan of gravy is allowed to stand for a few moments uncovered, or even for making the sauce in a broad shallow pan, instead of a smaller deep one.

Next, season it to suit the taste. Powdered seasonings, like salt, pepper, and mustard, may be mixed with the dry flour before it is put in the fat. Chopped onions may be fried in the fat before the flour is added. In general, it is better to season mildly than too highty. Such seasonings, as mushrooms, lobster, celery, shrimps, capers, etc., are previously prepared and put into the sauce not long before serving.

French cooks often leave a sauce in a double boiler for an hour or more until much of the fat rises to the top and may be removed.