Amazing Butter-Free Bechamel Sauce Mimics the Original Perfectly!

When you’re making a gratin, béchamel sauce is usually a must. This classic white sauce made from flour, butter, and milk is essential. Without it, the gratin would be dry and lose its appeal! However, traditional béchamel isn’t exactly diet-friendly. Since a tasty gratin requires a generous amount of sauce, here’s some great news: we’ve discovered a lighter alternative for your gratins—a creamy béchamel without any fat. A nutritionist gave us this recipe tip!

“Let me introduce you to my light béchamel or white sauce, for the purists,” states dietitian-nutritionist Landry Courbet in his YouTube video. To make it, he begins by measuring the ingredients: 200 ml of milk and 20 g of flour (or cornstarch for a gluten-free version). You can adjust the quantities easily, just remember the following ratio: 10 g of flour for every 100 ml of milk, the nutritionist advises. Then, he pours cold milk into a saucepan and adds the flour directly. He seasons it with a pinch of salt, a few twists of black pepper, a bit of grated nutmeg, and mixes well with a whisk. He then places the saucepan on high heat and continues to whisk vigorously until the first bubbles appear. After that, he lowers the heat and keeps stirring until the sauce thickens. Once he achieves the desired consistency (thicker or thinner, depending on preference), he removes the béchamel from the heat and pours it into a bowl to stop the cooking process. And that’s it!

For an extra touch of indulgence while still keeping it healthy, you can flavor your béchamel with cancoillotte, the least caloric cheese available. It contains only 8% fat and has just 120 kcal per 100 g (compared to about 420 kcal for the same amount of comté, for example). With this sauce, you can enjoy your meal without any guilt!