Alan Holbrook wrote:
>
>Every once in a while, when I get the feeling that my arteries are still
>too flexible and my heart isn't working hard enough pumping blood, I'll
>make a large skillet of sawmill gravy and pour it over biscuits for
>breakfast. The recipe I follow says, as do all the other recipes I've seen
>that involve making a white sauce, that once you have the roux the color
>you want,

If you're making a white sauce what's this about the color you want?

>you should take the pan off the heat to add the milk. I've often
>wondered why that is and what would happen if you added the milk directly
>to the pan containing the roux while it's still on the burner. Rather than
>risk seven years' bad luck or something similar trying it, I thought I'd
>ask. Can any of the RFC intelligentsia enlighten me?

I see no reason to take the pan off heat, but a white sauce (Béchamel)
is made in a heavy pan over low heat with the liquid added/dribbled a
little at a time incorporating each addition before adding more until
it's the consistancy you want... low heat is all important. I prefer
to stir with a wooden spoon rather than a whisk, a whisk misses the
corners of the pan causing lumps to form... I have wooden spoons that
have a flatened end that are worn to fit pan corners. A proper
Béchamel is not to be rushed.
I rarely use wire whisks for anything, they really only work well in
round bottomed bowls, I prefer wooden spoons or my portable electric
KA mixer. I love my KA portable, it has seven speeds, and needs very
little storage space... it's perfect for most any mixing other than
kneading doughs. I no longer have my 12 qt Hobart stand mixer, I no
longer bake large quantities of bread, in fact nowadays I much prefer
my ABM, it does a good job of kneading and half the time I form
loaves/rolls by hand to bake in a regular oven. Amazon still sells my
ABM, I didn't think they were available new anymore. I bought mine
nearly 30 years ago for less than $40:
https://www.amazon.com/Welbilt-Origi...+bread+machine