My neighbor told me my 'signature' sauce was just a classic French base

I was bragging about my 'secret' red sauce to my neighbor, a retired line cook from a place in Philly. He just smiled and said, 'Kid, that's just a basic sauce espagnole, you just added extra thyme.' I've been making it for five years thinking I invented it. It made me realize I skipped learning the foundations. Has anyone else had a moment like that, where you thought you were being clever but were just redoing the basics?

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logan_ellis7mo ago

Ask him what the other classic mother sauces are. That moment he had is the best cooking lesson you can get, and it's free. Learning those five bases will save you a ton of time trying to invent things that already exist.

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rubysingh7mo ago

Wait, are the mother sauces the ones like bechamel and hollandaise? I saw @logan_ellis mention five bases and it finally clicked for me.

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lunaf677mo ago

Classic cooking moment, we've all been there.

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