White Sauce Pasta Recipe | Béchamel Sauce Pasta
White Sauce Pasta is an incredibly delicious, creamy pasta recipe that can be made in less than 30 minutes. Serve it with garlic bread, dinner rolls, or brown bread for a comforting meal.
Servings: 3 people
Calories: 407kcal
Equipment
Ingredients
- 150 g Pasta of your choice 5 oz or 1 ½ cups
- 1 tablespoon Olive oil or Butter
- ½ Onion finely chopped
- 3 to 4 Garlic cloves finely chopped
- 4 oz Mushroom chopped
- ½ Bell pepper or capsicum any color chopped
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ½ teaspoon Red chile flakes optional
- Salt to taste
For the white sauce
- 2 tablespoon Butter or Olive oil
- 2 tablespoon All purpose flour
- 1 ¼ to 1 ½ cups Whole Milk
- Nutmeg a small pinch
- Black pepper powder to taste
- Salt to taste
- 2 tablespoon Cheese grated or 1 cheese slice (optional)
Other ingredients
- 2 tablespoon Sun-dried tomatoes chopped
- 1 tablespoon Olives chopped
- 1 tablespoon Parmesan
- Parsley or Basil or Cilantro for garnish
Instructions
Cook the pasta
- Boil the pasta according to the package instructions and drain. Keep this aside.150 g Pasta of your choice
- I used simple penne for this recipe. Never overcook the pasta; we want it al dente.
- Also, note that you don't have to use all the cooked pasta. Depending on how much saucy you like the pasta, toss it.
Preparation
- Heat oil in a pan. Add the chopped onion, garlic cloves, and pinch of salt and saute till the onion becomes translucent.1 tablespoon Olive oil, ½ Onion, 3 to 4 Garlic cloves, Salt
- Add the mushroom and saute till it develops some color.4 oz Mushroom
- Add the capsicum, Italian seasoning, and chili flakes and saute for another 2 minutes.½ Bell pepper, 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning, ½ teaspoon Red chile flakes
- Transfer this to a plate. Keep this aside.
How to make Béchamel Sauce or White Pasta sauce
- Add butter and all-purpose flour and saute on medium-low heat for 2 minutes until the paste cooks and becomes smooth and light golden in color. Do not allow it to brown. This is called a roux.2 tablespoon Butter or Olive oil, 2 tablespoon All purpose flour
- Add the milk slowly and whisk continuously until the mixture bubbles and the sauce thickens.1 ¼ to 1 ½ cups Whole Milk
- Add nutmeg, black pepper powder, salt, and cheese and cook, stirring for another 2 to 3 minutes.Nutmeg, Black pepper powder, Salt, 2 tablespoon Cheese
- The white sauce is ready.
White sauce pasta
- Add the sauteed ingredients, cooked pasta, olives, and sun-dried tomatoes to the sauce and mix until combined.2 tablespoon Sun-dried tomatoes, 1 tablespoon Olives
- Garnish with some more olives, sun-dried tomatoes, parmesan, and fresh herbs if desired.1 tablespoon Parmesan, Parsley
- Serve hot with bread, and enjoy.
Notes
- I started with 1 ¼ cups of milk and added an additional ¼ cup for the desired consistency. You can add more milk depending on the desired consistency.
- If you like it cheesy, increase the amount of cheese in the recipe. Any cheese like mozzarella, cheddar, swiss, fontina will work.
- If you like it spicy, add a pinch of cayenne powder and even a slit of jalapeno or green chile.
- Vary the ingredient amount as per your taste.
- Feel free to add veggies like zucchini, green peas, sweet corn, broccoli etc. Great way to add veggies for kids or even picky eaters.
- You can add ¼ cup of heavy cream along with milk if desired. Cheese and cream are optional while making bechamel sauce or white sauce. Adding it will make your pasta creamy and cheesy.
- You make the sauce, cook the pasta, and do all the preparation ahead of time. But combine everything just before you are ready to serve, as it tastes best when served immediately.
- Any leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator. Reheat in a pan with a splash of water or in the microwave until heated through.
- Instead of Italian seasoning, you can even use any combination of dried oregano, dried basil, and parsley.
- Stir the warm milk into the flour-fat mixture (roux) to avoid splutters.
Nutrition
Calories: 407kcal | Carbohydrates: 56g | Protein: 17g | Fat: 13g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 25mg | Sodium: 208mg | Potassium: 675mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 12g | Vitamin A: 1075IU | Vitamin C: 30mg | Calcium: 303mg | Iron: 2mg