Intro: The "Dry Roux"

The traditional roux is an important element of many Cajun and Creole dishes. It is a mixture of half flour and half fat (oil or butter) cooked to progressive degrees of color from blond to brown depending on the richness and the "smokiness" of the flavor you are striving to achieve, the brown roux being the richest. This typical ingredient is a problem to low-fat low-calorie, low-cholesterol cookery because of its high oil content, but making a "roux" without the oil is simple.

Preparation: Use all-purpose white flour.

~Put the flour in a heavy skillet and place over moderate heat. Stir the flour around often with a wooden spoon as it cooks.

~Pay attention to the cooking because the flour will take a few minutes, 5 or 7, to begin coloring. At this point you have a blond "roux.'' For the next 5 or 7 minutes it will darken until it reaches a light wood color. Stir constantly to keep the flour in the bottom of the skillet moving so it will not burn, and so all the flour in the pan will color evenly. The whole process takes about 15 minutes of close attention to get a good rich " roux. "

~Whether or not you are familiar with cooking a roux with oil, you must pay attention to the color here because when the flour is cooked without oil it will not become as brown as we eventually want it to. That is, not until you mix it with an equal amount of liquid to add it to a dish. At that point the moisture will cause it to darken properly.

~The recipes call for "dry roux" in quantities of a tablespoon or so at a time. What you don't use immediately can be stored unrefrigerated in a tightly capped jar almost indefinitely.

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