Meryl wrote:

> I made my first own broccoli with cream sauce using flour, butter and
> milk to make a white sauce but it came out ... too starchy tasting.
>
> I tried to understand what happened (thanks to the many good posts here
> about this) but I have a question. Many posts on RFC say to cook the
> flour and butter for a short time "to remove the starch taste" but some
> others say cook the white sauce for a long time ... "to remove the
> starch taste".
>
> So I was cureous, what is it that gets rid of the starch taste, cooking
> the flour or the white sauce? I was cureous too, how does the starch
> manage to provide thickness but no starch flavor once its cooked
> properly?
>

It's a combination of the two. I usually put the butter in first, over low
heat, and once it is melted I add an equal amount of flour, blend it in and
stir it around for a while until it starts to darken just a bit. Then
remove from heat and add liquid, stirring constantly, then put the pot on
medium heat and continue to stir. It should not take more than a few
minutes.