What Is A Mother In Cooking?
In cooking, a mother refers to a fundamental sauce or stock that forms the base of many other sauces or dishes. It is usually made by slowly simmering aromatic vegetables, meat or fish bones, and herbs in water for a prolonged period to extract all the flavors and nutrients. The resulting liquid is then strained and used as a base for making gravies, sauces, soups, and stews. Some examples of mother sauces are Bechamel, Veloute, Tomato sauce, Hollandaise, and Espagnole.