Trying to get to the bottom of a cheese sauce mishap
December 28, 2024 7:17 PM   Subscribe

My last question reminded me that this cheese sauce existed, so I decided to make it. I did things slightly differently, and it didn't work out well. Help me figure out why?

Previously, I've made this sauce successfully using canned evaporated milk and a variety of different cheeses. I can't remember what the cheeses were now, though.

This time, I made my own evaporated milk with non homogenized whole milk. I simmered it on the stove until it was reduced by half. This milk has previously worked fine for me in a tres leches cake.

I used this cheddar. It's possible that previously I'd only used cheese like this, although I can't remember. I do know those types of cheese bars always worked for me.

Both the cheese and the milk had previously been frozen. The sauce was thinner and grainier than usual - it didn't fully come together and thicken.

What do you think was responsible for this? Was the milk and/or cheese too unprocessed? Was it the freezing? Should I have waited longer for it to emulsify? Something else I'm not thinking of?
posted by wheatlets to Food & Drink (3 answers total) 1 user marked this as a favorite
 
Best answer: The recipe explainer you linked lays it out in detail — commercially available evaporated milk contains emulsifiers that help the sauce stay thick, smooth, and stable.
posted by ourobouros at 7:41 PM on December 28, 2024 [3 favorites]


Response by poster: Thanks for reading it for me! I just skipped to the recipe.
posted by wheatlets at 8:05 PM on December 28, 2024 [2 favorites]


What happened to you is a "broken sauce". You can either whip it really hard to physically force an emulsion, or add a thickener like flour or other starch. BlueApron explains this.
posted by kschang at 8:49 PM on December 28, 2024 [2 favorites]


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