Norfolk Sauce is a traditional British recipe, based on Eliza Acton's recipe of 1845, for a classic Victorian rich sauce of butter melted with a little water. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic British version of: Norfolk Sauce.
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This is a traditional British recipe redacted from Eliza Acton's 1845 volume Modern Cookery, the first classic Victorian cookbook.
Original Recipe
NORFOLK SAUCE, OR RICH MELTED BUTTER WITHOUT FLOUR.
Put three tablespoonful of water into a small saucepan, and when it boils add four ounces of fresh butter; as soon as this is quite dissolved, take the saucepan from the fire, and shake it round until the sauce looks thick and smooth. It must not be allowed to boil after the butter is added.
Water, 3 tablespoonful; butter, 4 oz.
Modern Redaction
The melted butter sauce, typically simply known as 'melted butter' was the commonest Victorian sauce of all and which was served with every kind of fish, meat and vegetable dishes. The base sauce could be flavoured with lemon juice and lemon zest or with parsley, though the plain sauce (in one of its many incarnations) was by far the commonest. This is the sauce called for in any Victorian recipe calling for 'melted butter'. This is a classic twist on the traditional recipe and comes from Norfolk, where no flour is used as a thickener and stabilizer. The principle here is the same as that used today to make veloute-style sauces, where butter is whisked into stock to enrich and thicken it to be served as a sauce. Except that in this recipe, only water and butter are used.
Ingredients:
3 tbsp water
120g butter, finely diced
Method:
Pour the water into a very small saucepan and bring to a boil. Immediately add the butter.
As soon as all the butter has melted take off the heat and shake the pan about until the sauce has thickened and looks smooth and glossy. Serve immediately (do not return to the heat once the pan has been taken off it).
