Definition

1. Noun:
   • A rich brown sauce: "espagnole" is a fundamental brown sauce in classic French cuisine, made from a brown stock (such as beef or veal), a brown roux, and tomatoes, often enriched with a mirepoix (a mixture of sautéed diced carrots, onions, and celery) and seasoned with herbs and sometimes wine like Madeira.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • The chef prepared the espagnole sauce as the base for the demi-glace.
  • A traditional beef bourguignon often uses espagnole as part of its sauce.

Advanced Usage

• "Mother Sauce": In classical French cooking, espagnole is considered one of the five "mother sauces" from which many other sauces are derived.
  • Espagnole, along with béchamel and velouté, forms the foundation of sauce-making.

Variants and Related Words

• Sauce espagnole (n): The full French term for the sauce.
  • The recipe specifically calls for sauce espagnole.
• Demi-glace (n): A rich brown sauce made by combining and reducing espagnole sauce and brown stock.
  • The demi-glace, reduced from espagnole, coated the steak perfectly.

Synonyms

• Brown sauce: A general term for sauces based on brown stock and roux.

Related Phrases

• "To mount with butter" (monter au beurre): A finishing technique often used with espagnole and its derivatives.
  • After reducing, the chef mounted the espagnole with butter for a glossy finish.

Noun

1. brown sauce with tomatoes and a caramelized mixture of minced carrots and onions and celery seasoned with Madeira