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{{Short description|Mixture of flour and fat for thickening}}
{{Other uses}}
[[File:Roux!.jpg|thumb|A dark roux in development]]
[[File:Roux bianco.JPG|thumb|A white roux]]
[[File:Thickening.jpg|thumb|A roux-based sauce]]

'''Roux''' ({{IPAc-en|ɹ|uː}}) is a mixture of [[flour]] and [[fat]] cooked together and used to thicken [[sauce]]s.<ref>{{cite dictionary|url=http://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/roux|title =roux Definition|dictionary=Cambridge English Dictionary|language=en-US|access-date=2017-02-18}}</ref> Roux is typically made from equal parts of flour and fat by weight.<ref>{{cite book|title=The American Woman's Cook Book|last=Berolzheimer|first=Ruth|publisher=Garden City Publishing|year=1942|location=New York|page=307}}</ref> The flour is added to the melted fat or [[Cooking oil|oil]] on the stove top, blended until smooth, and cooked to the desired level of [[Food browning|brownness]]. A roux can be white, blond (darker), or brown. [[Butter]], [[bacon]] drippings, or [[lard]] are commonly used fats. Roux is used as a [[thickening agent]] for [[gravy]], sauces, [[soup]]s, and [[stew]]s. It provides the base for a dish, and other ingredients are added after the roux is complete.<ref>{{Cite web |date=12 January 2017 |title=What is...roux? |url=https://guide.michelin.com/mo/en/article/dining-in/what-is-roux |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200507193943/https://guide.michelin.com/mo/en/article/dining-in/what-is-roux |archive-date=7 May 2020 |access-date=15 November 2023 |website=Michelin GUIDE}}</ref>

== Ingredients ==
The fat is most often [[butter]] in [[French cuisine]], but may be [[lard]] or [[vegetable oil]] in other cuisines. Roux is used in three of the five [[mother sauce]]s of [[Cuisine classique|classic French cooking]]: [[béchamel sauce]], [[velouté sauce]], and [[espagnole sauce]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-09-01 |title=An Introduction to the 5 French Mother Sauces |url=https://www.escoffieronline.com/an-introduction-to-the-5-french-mother-sauces/ |access-date=2022-05-28 |website=Escoffier Online |language=en-US}}</ref> 

Roux may be made with any edible fat. For meat gravies, fat rendered from meat is often used. In regional [[Cuisine of the United States|American cuisine]], [[bacon]] is sometimes rendered to produce fat to use in the roux. If [[clarified butter]] is not available, vegetable oil is often used when producing dark roux, since it does not burn at high temperatures, as whole butter would.

Instead of butter, in [[Cajun cuisine]] roux is made with lard, oil, or drippings from meat, poultry, or bacon. It is often cooked to a medium or dark brown color, which lends considerable richness of flavor while making it thinner.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Wuerthner |first=Terri Pischoff |date=2006 |title=First You Make a Roux |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.1525/gfc.2006.6.4.64 |journal=Gastronomica |volume=6 |issue=4 |pages=64–68 |doi=10.1525/gfc.2006.6.4.64 |jstor=10.1525/gfc.2006.6.4.64 |issn=1529-3262|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

[[Central European cuisine]] often uses [[Rendering (food processing)|rendered]] lard or, more recently, vegetable oil instead of butter for the preparation of roux.{{Cn|date=May 2022}}

[[Japanese curry]] {{nihongo||カレー|karē}} is made from a roux made by frying [[yellow curry]] powder and flour together with butter or oil; this is called {{nihongo||カレールー|karērū|curry roux}}.{{Cn|date=May 2022}}

Roux (''meyane''<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tdk.gov.tr/index.php?option=com_gts&kelime=MEYANE |title=Türk Dil Kurumu |website=tdk.gov.tr |access-date=2019-05-10}}</ref>) has been used in [[Ottoman cuisine|Ottoman]] and [[Turkish cuisine|Turkish]] cuisine since at least the 15th century.<ref name="Şirvânî2005">{{cite book|author=Muhammed bin Mahmûd-ı Şirvânî|title=15. yüzyıl Osmanlı mutfağı|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hc7gAAAAMAAJ|year=2005|publisher=Gökkubbe|isbn=978-975-6223-84-0}}</ref>

== Methods ==
{{Unreferenced section|date=May 2022}}
The fat is heated in a pot or pan, melting it if necessary. Then the flour is added. The mixture is heated and stirred until the flour is incorporated, and then cooked until at least the point where a raw flour taste is no longer apparent and the desired colour has been reached. The final colour can range from nearly white to nearly black, depending on the length of time it is  heated and its intended use. The result is a thickening and flavoring agent.<ref>{{Cite web |title=How to Make Roux and Use It to Thicken Soups and Sauces |url=https://www.allrecipes.com/article/how-to-make-roux/ |access-date=2025-09-16 |website=Allrecipes |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Desmazery |first=Barney |title=How to make a roux {{!}} Good Food |url=https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/howto/guide/how-make-roux |access-date=2025-09-16 |website=www.bbcgoodfood.com |language=en}}</ref>

== Types ==
Light (or "white") roux provides little flavor other than a characteristic richness to a dish, and is used in French cooking and some [[gravy|gravies]] or [[pastry|pastries]] throughout the world.{{Cn|date=December 2024}}

Darker roux is made by browning the flour in oil for a longer time and adds a distinct nutty flavor to a dish. They may be called "blond," "peanut-butter," "brown," or "chocolate" roux depending on their color. The darker the color, the richer the flavor.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-02-09 |title=Types of Roux: Exploring the Differences Between Dark and Light Roux for Culinary Science Enthusiasts and Professionals |url=https://www.scienceoftaste.com/articles/types-of-roux-dark-light-differences/ |access-date=2025-09-16 |website=www.scienceoftaste.com |language=en}}</ref>

[[Swabia]]n (southwest German) cooking uses a darker roux for its "brown broth" ({{lang|de|braune Brühe}}), which, in its simplest form, consists of nothing more than lard, flour, and water, with a bay leaf and salt for seasoning.{{citation needed|reason=The dish is not linked as a page and therefore information on it should be cited.|date=April 2016}} Dark roux is often made with vegetable oils, which have a higher [[smoke point]] than butter, and are used in [[Cajun cuisine|Cajun]] and [[Creole cuisine]] for [[gumbo]]s and [[stew]]s. The darker the roux, the less thickening power it has; a chocolate roux has about one-fourth the thickening power, by weight, of a white roux. A very dark roux, just shy of burning and turning black, has a distinctly reddish color and is sometimes referred to as "brick" roux.<ref>{{cite episode|title=Gravy Confidential|series=Good Eats|series-link=Good Eats|airdate=1999-08-25|network=[[Food Network]]|season=1|number=108|credits=[[Alton Brown]]|transcript=(transcript)|transcript-url=http://www.goodeatsfanpage.com/Season1/Gravy/GravyTranscript.htm}}</ref>

In Hungary, roux ''([[rántás]])'' is almost always made with [[paprika]] and is the basis of several dishes, including [[főzelék]] (vegetable stew) and soups. It may also be prepared with onions and garlic.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=87IxAAAAMAAJ&q=r%C3%A1nt%C3%A1s|title=Arányok és mértékek a paraszti gazdálkodásban|publisher=Balassi Kiadó|year=1997|language=hu|author=Edit Fél, Tamás Hofer|pages=240|isbn=9789635061075}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://gasztroabc.hu/lexikon/eljarasok/37_rantas/|title=rántás|publisher=GasztroABC|access-date=2020-11-19}}</ref>

=== Cretan staka ===

[[File:Staka Souda Bay.jpg|thumb|A dish of ''staka'' served as part of a ''[[meze]]'', [[Souda]], [[Crete]]]]

'''''Staka''''' ({{lang|el|στάκα}}) is a type of roux particular to [[Cretan cuisine]]. It is prepared by cooking [[sheep milk|sheep's milk]] cream over a low flame with [[wheat flour]] or [[starch]]: the [[protein]]-rich part of the [[butterfat]] coagulates with the flour or starch and forms the ''staka'' proper, which is served hot. It is generally eaten by dipping bread in it, occasionally served over [[French fries]].{{Cn|date=December 2024}}

The fatty part separates to form ''stakovoutyro'', staka butter, which is kept for later use and has a faint cheesy flavor. Staka butter is used in Cretan [[pilaf]] (''piláfi''), commonly served at weddings.{{Cn|date=December 2024}}

== See also ==
{{Portal|Food}}
* [[Beurre manié]]
* [[Chowder]]
* [[Étouffée]]
* [[Rubaboo]]
* [[Water roux]]
* [[Béchamel sauce]]
* [[Velouté sauce]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== Further reading ==
* {{cite book|last1=Folse|first1=John D.|author-link1=John Folse|title=The Encyclopedia of Cajun & Creole Cuisine|date=2004| ol=3697641M | lccn=2003108987 | oclc = 57363882 |publisher=Chef John Folse & Company|location=Gonzales, LA|isbn=0-9704457-1-7}} Troubleshooting roux (p.&nbsp;130) Oil-based roux (pp.&nbsp;130–131), Butter roux: the classical and Creole roux (pp.&nbsp;132–133). Includes color illustrations and recipes.
* {{cite journal|last1=Wuerthner|first1=Terri Pischoff|title=First You Make a Roux|journal=Gastronomica|date=November 2006|volume=6|issue=4|pages=64–68|doi=10.1525/gfc.2006.6.4.64|jstor=10.1525/gfc.2006.6.4.64}} Distinguishes history of classical French, Creole, and Cajun varieties of roux, with color illustrations of blond, peanut butter, and chocolate roux and detailed oil-based recipe, variations of proportions, chemistry, and storage techniques. Definitive.

== External links ==
* {{cookbook-inline}}
* {{Wiktionary-inline}}

{{Cajun cuisine}}
{{French mother sauces}}

[[Category:Edible thickening agents]]
[[Category:Culinary terminology]]