How to thicken a sauce with cream?

[pocofan]

I made crawfish Monica several times. The flavor is delicious. I sauté green onions and minced garlic. Add the crawfish. Add heavy cream. Bring the heat up. Sauce will bubble but does not thicken. Anybody got a solution ? Thanks

 

[caseydog]

I made crawfish Monica several times. The flavor is delicious. I sauté green onions and minced garlic. Add the crawfish. Add heavy cream. Bring the heat up. Sauce will bubble but does not thicken. Anybody got a solution ? Thanks

How about making a roux -- perhaps a blonde roux. You can add heavy cream to that if you want that creaminess. If you sauté your other stuff in butter, you can also just add some flour, and stir it around for a while, then add your cream and bring it up to a boil. I think either one of those options would be worth a try.

CD

 

[karadekoolaid]

Well here´s a new one for me. Never heard of Crawfish Monica!
You can make the sauce first, without adding the crawfish, and the cream will reduce if you cook it down gently. When it´s the required texture, add your crawfish.
Otherwise, Follow caseydog´s suggestion above.

 

[Morning Glory]

Well here´s a new one for me. Never heard of Crawfish Monica!
You can make the sauce first, without adding the crawfish, and the cream will reduce if you cook it down gently. When it´s the required texture, add your crawfish.
Otherwise, Follow caseydog´s suggestion above.

I would say the same. And I'd not heard of Crawfish Monica either although I think I've made something similar.

 

[The Velvet Curtain]

A small amount of cornflour at the very end of cooking works for me.

 

[garlichead]

A small amount of cornflour at the very end of cooking works for me.

Yep, that always works well and it's controllable. But where's the white wine

 

[caseydog]

BTW, the cornflour TVC and garlic head refer to is called cornstarch in the US. I mix it with a small amount of water to make a slurry, then add it to my sauce.

CD

 

[rascal]

How about making a roux -- perhaps a blonde roux. You can add heavy cream to that if you want that creaminess. If you sauté your other stuff in butter, you can also just add some flour, and stir it around for a while, then add your cream and bring it up to a boil. I think either one of those options would be worth a try.

CD

X2 it's my method as well. Butter is always the answer.

Russ

 

[ElizabethB]

You need a thickener - either flour or a cornstarch slurry. Sauté the veggies in butter, Sift APF over the veggies and cook until you have a very light roux - no flour taste. Add the cream and crawfish. The crawfish only need to be warmed. Crawfish tails are mostly cooked. By the time they heat up they are fully cooked and ready to eat.

 

[karadekoolaid]

No, I disagree - you don´t need a thickener. Cook the cream down slowly, and it will thicken. The same as the Spanish do when they make their wonderful croquetas. 1/2 litre of milk in the bechamel, cooked down gently and patiently.
The thickener will thicken, of course - but it won´t give you the depth of flavour acquired by cooking down SLOWLY.

 

[caseydog]

No, I disagree - you don´t need a thickener. Cook the cream down slowly, and it will thicken. The same as the Spanish do when they make their wonderful croquetas. 1/2 litre of milk in the bechamel, cooked down gently and patiently.
The thickener will thicken, of course - but it won´t give you the depth of flavour acquired by cooking down SLOWLY.

Béchamel starts with a roux, which is a thickener.

CD

 

[karadekoolaid]

Béchamel starts with a roux, which is a thickener.

You´re absolutely right and I should start remembering to think before I write. Many recipes I´ve seen for croquetas use huge amounts of milk, which is reduced gently when added to the roux. I was thinking of how the milk gets reduced.