what you mean by roux?

Answer 1

Equal parts of flour and fat, cooked slowly over an extended period of time.

It's a thickener used primarily in French and Creole style soup and stews. A well-prepared roux is nutty in flavor, smooth, and range in color from blond to mahogany--with each color having it's own thickening power (the lighter it is, the more it thickens, but the less flavorful it is).

Answer 2

HERE IS SOME INFO FOR ROUX:

ROUX
[ROO] A mixture of flour and fat that, after being slowly cooked over low heat, is used to thicken mixtures such as soups and sauces. There are three classic roux-white, blond and brown. The color and flavor is determined by the length of time the mixture is cooked. Both white roux and blond roux are made with butter. The former is cooked just until it begins to turn beige and the latter until pale golden. Both are used to thicken cream and white sauces and light soups. The fuller-flavored brown roux can be made with butter, drippings or pork or beef fat. It's cooked to a deep golden brown and used for rich, dark soups and sauces. cajun and creole dishes use a lard-based roux, which is cooked (sometimes for almost an hour) until a beautiful mahogany brown. This dark nutty-flavored base is indispensable for specialties like gumbo.

AND HERE IS ON HOW TO MAKE ROUX:

Making a roux; many recipes from South Louisiana start with "first you make a roux". You've heard that before I'm sure. The experienced Cajun cook can make a roux without even thinking about it. The newcomer to Cajun cookery may not be so fortunate, so, I'll explain, to the best of my ability, how to do it. Keep in mind that this is "my" way, not necessarily the right or wrong way. Rouxs are cooked in several fashions and most work just fine. My way is the "old fashioned" way.

Before we get started you need to decide how much roux you need for a particular dish. This depends on a few things, one; do you like a thick or thin gravy, and two; how much are you cooking. I read somewhere a while back where a guy made a 4 cup of flour roux and was asking why the dish tasted so funny when he and girlfriend ate their meal. He cooked enough roux to make eight gallons of gumbo and most likely had a gallon of water in it. Hey, I've got to give it to him for trying!

For a gumbo I use about a 1/4 to 1/3 cup of flour per gallon of gumbo. That's just a general rule of thumb I use to get the consistency I like. Some people like thick gumbo and some like thin. If in doubt, cook more roux than you think you need and take some out before you start putting the other stuff together. You can then add more roux if you want a thicker consistency.

If you are a beginner at rouxs start out with a half flour, half oil mixture. The more oil you use the less likely it will burn too fast. As you get better at it you can use less oil. Add the oil and flour to the pot and set the fire on medium. My best rouxs were made in a cast iron pot or cast iron skillet. Using a spatula, stir the roux scraping the entire bottom of the pot every time. Using a spatula allows you to move all of the mixture around and you don't have to make more than a few passes to do it. Stir the mixture every 15 seconds or so. The roux will bubble at first then will get smooth as it cooks. WARNING... Don't be tempted to walk away and do something else, if the roux burns at any point during the process, it is no good. Once the roux has turned a medium brown lower the fire just a little. Keep stirring as you were before. You will notice with each stirring the roux gets a tiny bit more brown

HOPE THIS HELP!!

Answer 3

A ''Roux'' is a base for most gravy recipes...try this!

Simple Roux
Serving Size : 1 cup

1 cup Flour
1 cup Vegetable oil

In a black cast-iron skillet, heat the oil over medium high heat until it registers approximately 300 degrees on a deep-fat-fryer thermometer.

Using a wire whisk, slowly add the flour, stirring constantly until the roux is nutty colored. At this point, the roux is ideal for thickening a light seafood gumbo. Continue to cook this roux over medium heat and you will begin to see it change in color, getting darker and more aromatic.

Make sure you constantly stir it so it doesn't burn.

Answer 4

Most commonly used for gumbo..but the previous answere is correct...here's how...







3 cups vegetable oil
5 cups all-purpose flour

Place a heavy, iron Dutch oven, (or iron skillet with deep sides) over medium heat and heat the oil until just smoking. Whisk in flour, a little at a time and cook, whisking constantly, until roux becomes smooth and thick. Continue to cook, constantly stirring with a wooden spoon and reaching all over bottom of pan, until roux darkens to desired color. Be careful not to produce specs of black. The roux must remain an even color throughout process. If specs appear you must start over.

For a Light Brown Roux, cook the mixture, over medium heat for 1 1/2 hours, or until the color of peanut butter. Remove about 1 cup of the light colored roux, cool completely, and set aside for the Delmonico's Seafood Okra Gumbo.

For a Medium Brown Roux, cook the mixture, over medium heat for an additional 30 minutes, or until the color of a copper penny when ready. Remove about 13/4 cups of the medium colored roux, cool completely, and set aside for Emeril's Country File Gumbo.

For a Dark Brown Roux, cook the mixture an additional 35 to 45 minutes. The color should resemble dark chocolate when ready. Remove all of the remaining dark roux from the pan and cool completely. Set aside for the Chicken and Sausage Gumbo.


NOTE: The timings for various shades of roux will vary depending on the cooktop as well as the amount of roux made. (A smaller amount will cook in much less time.) If this is your first time making a roux, the slower you cook it, the less likely you will be to burn it. The important thing is to cook the roux to the desired color, as specified above.

Answer 5

Roux is a thickener that is made by melting butter, then stirring in an equal amount of flour and cooking for a few minutes. Add it to most any savory dish that you want to thicken. Really helps in cream gravies. mmmm

Answer 6

A roux is equal parts fat ( lard, butter, oil) and flour then cooked or browned. It is used to thicken soups and stews.

Answer 7

roux is cooked butter and flour used to thicken sauces, gravies, etc.

Answer 8

Flour, and usually either the fat/juices of meat you've been cooking, or even just butter. It absorbed the flour so when you make something like gravy you get the flavor of meat, versus the flavor of flour!

Answer 9

It's a mixture of flour and fat that's used as a base for many different kinds of sauces. Most chefs make some every once in a while and freeze it for later use.

Answer 10

It is a mixture of any of the following binders/thickening agents.., ie.
( flour.., corn starch..,arrowroot..,), blended into , and with , a flavorful fatty substance, ie.(pan drippings, butter,oil).., all with the intention of producing a .., (for loss of a better word), gravy.
The word is indigenous and associated with creole cooking.