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Blond roux is a roux that has passed the “white roux” stage, meaning the flour is cooked, and that is then allowed to turn a light brown as the flour and butter in it cook a bit more.
The next stage is a “brown roux“.
“Blond roux is made only with butter [Ed: meaning, as opposed to using other cooking fats.] The proportions of butter and flour are the same as for brown roux. [Ed: meaning, equal proportions.] It is cooked more rapidly and it is only made at the moment it is needed. Its colour should be a pale gold.” [1]New Larousse Gastronomique. Paris: Librarie Larousse. English edition 1977. Page 782.
Literature and Lore
Here are directions for a blond roux from the famous French chef, Marie-Antoine Carême:
“Blond roux for Spanish sauce: You make it as shown above [Ed: for the white roux]; only you let it cook two hours on the ashes of a soft heat, in order to color it gradually little by little a deep blond, and then you use it, or you put it in a small terrine that you cover with a round of buttered paper.” [2]Carême, Marie-Antoine. L’art de la cuisine française au dix-neuviême siêcle : traité élémentaire et pratique. Paris: Comptoir des Impimeurs-Unis. 1847. Vol 1. Page 55.