one pan · low flame · 25 minutes
no maida
white sauce pasta
TODO — photo: the pan of white sauce pasta
the one thing to know
You do not need maida for this. Atta does the exact same job, and it is already in your kitchen. All purpose flour was propaganda.
For how to boil the pasta itself, that is in the easiest protein pasta.
what you need
Seven things, and two of them are already open in your fridge.
pasta
whatever shape you own
atta
gehu ka atta. yes, the roti one. this is the whole point
butter
salted, or garlic butter if you have it
milk and pasta water
one glass of milk, and save the water you boiled the pasta in
masaladani
namak, pepper, chilli flakes, whatever else is in there
cheese
not a suggestion
vegetables
aukat anusaar. mushroom, broccoli, corn if you are asking me
method
- 01
melt butter in a pan
A good amount, about a tablespoon. Low flame from here to the end. Melt it, do not brown it.
- 02
add two to two and a half big spoons of atta
Yes, atta. The exact same one your mother makes rotis with. Nothing goes wrong. Trust me.
- 03
work it into the butter with a spatula
Keep moving it until the atta and butter come together into a paste. Still low flame.
- 04
wait for it to smell roasted
Bhuna. That smell is the signal, and it is the difference between a sauce and a bowl of raw flour. Do not rush this bit.
- 05
pour the milk in slowly, whisking
One glass, a little at a time, whisking with your other hand the whole way. Slow pour and constant whisk is the entire anti-lump strategy.
- 06
loosen it with pasta water
All milk makes a heavy sauce. I use some of the starchy pasta water too, so it stays glossy without sitting in your stomach like a brick.
- 07
keep whisking until it thickens
When it starts holding onto the whisk, the sauce is ready.
- 08
now the masala
Salt, pepper, chilli flakes. Maggi masala, peri peri masala, whatever you are feeling. A little ketchup if plain creamy is not your thing.
- 09
add the boiled pasta and mix
Al dente, boiled the same way as the other one.
- 10
cheese, mix again, done
You can add cheese. You should add cheese.
the vegetables
Optional, and a second pan. Oil, then whatever you like. With white sauce I only want mushroom, broccoli and corn, and I will not be taking questions. Butter and garlic in there too if you feel like it. Blanch the broccoli first.
once you are good at this
You stop needing the second pan. Cook the vegetables, push them up one side, drop butter into the cleared middle and roast the atta right there. Bring everything together into that paste, then start adding the milk. It works, but do it once you already know what the sauce is meant to feel like.
Measurements approximate. Tested on me, repeatedly.