You might think that Bechamel sauce is something complicated, but it is far from it. It is actually called a simple white sauce because you need only 3 main ingredients: flour, butter, and milk. Making a vegan version, not to mention a gluten-free one is super easy. Go see for yourself!
Why do you need to make Bechamel sauce? Because it makes a damn delicious Vegan Moussaka and Super Easy Vegan Lasagna. Depending on our mood, we often substitute our Cashew Alfredo Sauce for white sauce. Like we did in this Vegan Cabbage Lasagna recipe, where we even added some wilted spinach to the mix.
⇒ Get our FREE 7-DAY VEGAN MEAL PLAN now! or check out all vegan meal plan recipes here! ⇐
What is actually a Bechamel sauce?
Also known as white sauce. It is a basic French sauce recipe, where they use wheat flour, dairy butter, and dairy milk. This is considered to be the base of all sauces. Well, not quite. I can list a couple of delicious sauce recipes which has nothing to do with a white sauce. However, this sauce is still very important as it can turn any vegetable sauce creamier and thicker.
How do they do it? They melt some butter and add an equal amount of all-purpose flour to it. They cook it a bit down to make a roux before adding the milk. At last, they are stirring until they get a thick and creamy sauce. See how creamy Bechamel can make this Moussaka below.
Ingredients of our vegan white sauce
You need any plant-based fat, any plant-based milk, and my favorite combination of gluten-free flours.
- Plant-based fat: any type of oil (coconut oil, olive oil, sunflower oil…) or vegan butter. The more neutral-tasting one you choose the tastier will your sauce be.
- Plant-based milk: definitely choose unflavored, unsweetened milk. I hear a lot of complaints about sauces that turn out too sweet. It is almost always due to the choice of milk. Even if the store-bought milk calls itself unsweetened, it can still be quite sweet compared to any homemade version. We recommend using homemade oat milk, almond milk, or cashew milk.
- Flour: I use the combination of rice flour and corn starch. If you only use starch, then the sauce will end up more like a pudding than a sauce. If you use only flour, then the sauce may not be thick enough and you end up adding way too many flours. Alternatively, you can use a GF flour blend but check whether it was both flour and starch in it.
How to make the sauce?
First, heat your frying pan on medium heat and melt the vegan butter (photo #1). Turn down the heat to low and add rice flour. Stir and cook for 2-3 minutes until the “batter” is boiling up (photo #2). In a small bowl combined ½ cup of milk and corn starch. Add it to the pan and stir until combined (photo #3). Add the next ½ cup of milk and stir until combined. You need to go in small batches to make sure you get a smooth sauce. Go until you run out of milk. When the sauce has thickened (you need it thick so that it firmly stands on top of your moussaka), add the salt, nutmeg, and white pepper (photo #4). Stir to combine.
Secrets to a perfect vegan Bechamel
They are not really secrets per se, but our top 4 tips to make this white sauce successfully and fuss-free.
- Cook it on low heat -> Never ever on high heat. You can start on medium until the butter is melted, but then turn the heat to low. If I am making a larger batch, I even take it off the heat for the beginning. If I have a runny batter without any lumps, I put it back to the stove.
- Add milk in batches -> It is the safest way especially if it is your first time making a Bechamel sauce. I usually go with ½ cup at a time.
- Use a whisk -> I always use a whisk, as I found it to be a fool-proof way to make the white sauce lump-free. If you use a spatula or a wooden spoon, definitely take the pan off the heat (even off low heat) and stir thoroughly until you get a smooth sauce.
- Add seasoning at the end ->You will see below under “Troubleshooting tips” that if the sauce is not thick enough or too thick you need to adjust the flour and the milk amounts. If you add salt, pepper, nutmeg only at the end when the sauce reached the right consistency, you can be sure that the sauce will not turn out to be too salty or too peppery.
Troubleshooting tips
If you run in some problems, here is a quick checklist or guide that will help you troubleshoot. There is no batter that cannot be saved don’t worry. Only maybe if you burn it. 🙂
- Not thick enough? -> Add more flour but make sure you first dissolve it in a bit of milk. Like 1 Tbsp flour or starch – 2 Tbsp milk. Alternatively, you can take it off the heat, wait for it to cool a bit and add flour or starch directly in the sauce and stir vigorously with a whisk to avoid any lumps. Note: The sauce will thicken a bit more when it is cooling down.
- Too thick? -> Add more milk, like ¼ cup at a time.
- Help, I got lumps! -> Strain the sauce through a fine-mesh sieve before continuing to add more milk. Push everything through with a spatula or spoon.
Substitutions
Can you use any other flour or starch?
Yes, you can make this vegan bechamel sauce with any type of flour or starch, but the thickening power of each and every one of them is different. The measurements I gave in the recipe card may not be the same if you use wheat flour, or almond flour or tapioca starch, etc.
Why flour AND starch?
If you only use starch, then the sauce will end up more like a pudding than a sauce. If you use only one type of flour, like rice or oat or almond, the sauce will not thicken properly. I also have this experience with rice flour, that you thicken a soup or something with it, but after reheating the dish the next day, all the thickening has gone. That is why I recommend combining flour and starch or use a store-bought gluten-free flour blend which contains usually both.
This Vegan Bechamel recipe is meat-free, dairy-free, and egg-free, not to mention gluten-free. This recipe is not WFPB-friendly as you need some kind of plant-based fat (oil or butter).
⇒ Get our FREE 7-DAY VEGAN MEAL PLAN now! or check out all vegan meal plan recipes here! ⇐
More sauce recipes
You can browse through our Vegan Sauce Recipes or our Quick Vegan Meals collection or check out
Vegan Béchamel (Gluten-free)
Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp Vegan butter
- 2 Tbsp Rice flour
- 2 Tbsp Corn starch
- 2 cup Dairy-free milk
- ⅛ tsp Nutmeg
- ½ tsp Salt
- ⅛ tsp Pepper
Instructions
Making vegan Bechamel
- Heat frying pan on medium/low heat, and melt vegan butter.
- Take the heat to low and add rice flour. Stir and cook for 2-3 minutes until the "batter" is boiling up.
- In a small bowl combined ½ cup of milk and corn starch. Add it to the pan and stir until combined.
- Add the next ½ cup of milk and stir until combined. You need to go in small batches to make sure you get a smooth sauce. Go until you run out of milk. (Troubleshooting tips in the Notes section below.)
- When the sauce has thickened, add the salt, nutmeg, and pepper. Stir to combine.
Notes
- Cook it on low heat -> You can start on medium until the butter is melted, but then turn the heat to low. If I am making a larger batch, I even take it off the heat for the beginning.
- Add milk in batches -> I usually go with ½ cup at a time.
- Use a whisk -> I always use a whisk, as I found it to be a fool-proof way to make the white sauce lump-free.
- Add seasoning at the end ->If the sauce is not thick enough or too thick you need to adjust the flour and the milk amounts (see notes below). If you add salt, pepper, nutmeg only at the end when the sauce reached the right consistency, you can be sure that the sauce will not turn out to be too salty or too peppery.
- Not thick enough? -> Add more flour but make sure you first dissolve it in a bit of milk. Like 1 Tbsp flour or starch - 2 Tbsp milk. Alternatively, you can take it off the heat, wait for it to cool a bit and add flour or starch directly in the sauce and stir vigorously with a whisk to avoid any lumps. Note: The sauce will thicken a bit more when it is cooling down.
- Too thick? -> Add more milk, like ¼ cup at a time.
- Help, I got lumps! -> Strain the sauce through a fine-mesh sieve before continuing to add more milk.
Jann
Can this be used in a pot pie?
My Pure Plants
Hi Jann, I am not sure you can. Cornstarch (similar to other starches) is activated when you make Bechamel sauce. If you add the Bechamel to cooked veggies and re-heat it (bring it to boil again) in the oven while baking the pot pie, corn starch deflates and you may end up with a runny sauce. If you want to use a gluten-free Bechamel sauce for a pot pie, we recommend substituting 3-4 Tbsp rice flour for 2 Tbsp corn starch.