I'm so glad I found this. Every time I try to make cheese sauce, it always start out good, but then it starts clumping up after 5-10 minutes. I'm definitely going to try this method. I like to make Alfredo sauce with parmesan-reggiano and Le Gruyère cheese.
Same here and grainy..,whats up with that...why werent we ever told sodium citrate smooths out everything ....hey wait..to the bathtub pinky ill need my rubber ducky and my shower cap, dump this barrel of sodium citrate into my bathwater and dont wait up...
Sodium citrate is known as an emulsifying salt. Normally, oil molecules and water molecules won't mix together no matter how much you stir because chemically speaking, oil is hydrophobic and repels water so the molecules don't want to form a bond. Emulsifiers bridge the gap so to speak by having a hydrophilic (water-bonding) and a lipophilic (oil/fat bonding) and a bond is formed with agitation (or stirring) which results in the mixture staying smooth and uniform (homogenized) instead of separating.
BTW, you can make your own sodium citrate at home very easily. You combine equal volumes, 1 tbsp, each of citric acid powder and baking soda, that's it. You can either use this in powder form as is, or you can also dissolve in 1Tbsp of water and add it to your cheese mixture
@@P4T5H4RPify Not with the quantities they listed. To make 100 g of sodium citrate, you would need around 74.37 grams of citric acid, and 32.47 grams of sodium bicarbonate. In any case, this can't be performed on the powders, so they'd need to be dissolved in water. To do that, you need to know the solubility at certain temps, combine both solutions, then isolate through filtration yada yada yada. Just buy sodium citrate.
See I never had the need for the citrate I’m willing to go it a try but when I made my cheese sauce maybe cause I incorporated heavy cream and milk for my base ? Not sure but I didn’t have the clumping problem a lot of people mentioned I also think an emulsifier like soy lecithin might actually be a better replacement outside of the citrate
Thank you so much! I just used your method to make a test batch of my New Year's Eve Fondue. It worked really, really well! My recipe: 4 oz Domestic Swiss cheese (inexpensive) 1/2 cup Pinot grigio 1 garlic clove for the pot 1/2 tsp sodium citrate I simmered the wine with the crushed garlic clove, then added the sodium citrate and stirred to dissolve. I added the shredded Swiss cheese a bit a time and stirred to mix. At this point I hit a snag, because my mixture wasn't completely smooth and emulsified. It seemed like there was a slight layer of unincorporated wine. So I shredded an ounce or two of white cheddar that I had on hand and threw that into the pot and stirred it all around. It worked great! In seconds, I had a delicious, gooey fondue that tastes like I used fancier cheese. I even left it on low on the stove for about 20 minutes and it stayed dippable. Only reason I didn't leave it longer was I ate it all for lunch :) This is the easiest fondue method I've ever tried. Thanks a million!
Why on Earth didn't you include any ratios??? How much liquid to sodium citrate to cheese?? Most of your views are people watching this useless video over and over looking for an actual RECIPE.
Am I the only one who thinks this stuff is maybe not pointless , but , pretty close since my cheese sauce is just like this or better and I do not use the Sodium Citrate , I make a good roux , I turn this to a mother sauce , I slowly load in a good cheddar I like that melts well on low heat , and its that simple really .
Yep. A roux is a pretty good base for a cheese sauce. The only issue is that you've now added lots of flour and oil. Now your cheese sauce will be heavier than it should be and if you're not careful you'll still run the risk of splitting the cheese if you're not careful. Aside from that a roux based cheese sauce is ok (especially in very small quantities)
It's also called trisodium citrate. I don't think it's even made from citrus anymore. I think it's made from a fermentation process now because it's more economical and efficient.
Thank you so much. I just found out about sodium citrate after spending 15 years of making cheese dishes that had a globby natural cheese result, or settling for processed cheese because of the smoothness ability. I am waiting on my first sodium citrate order to arrive and wanted a step by step visual, which after several videos not really showing anything you have provided. Can't wait! I am excited for Thanksgiving, that's for sure.
Oh WOW> You are going to love it!!! It is such a cool ingredient and what's neat is that the results are predictable. As long as you stick to the 1 pound of cheese, 1 cup of liquid, 1 teaspoon of s. citrate you will get awesome creamy delicious almost buttery cheese sauce. As a side note, after it's all melted I like to add a little more liquid as the 1 cup of liquid isn't quite enough for me because as it cools it gets a little thicker than I like. I think I end up adding a 1/4 - 1/2 cup more of liquid to get it nice and smooth. I would love to hear about your experience once you get your in.... Thanks for the comment!
@@2guysandacooler Okay, here's my update. I made potatoes au' gratin with a sodium citrate facilitated cheese sauce tonight ahead of Thanksgiving day. I was inspired by your video when you mentioned it. I sliced large russet potatoes with the skin on over a "handolin" (just a simple mandolin) and then covered them with cream, melted butter, salt, cayenne and cracked pepper. I minced a half a spanish onion and six large garlic cloves and put that all in a crock pot with the potatoes. I lined my crockpot because this ain't my first rodeo. I put 3 cups of milk onto a sauce pot on the stove over medium high heat, salted and peppered it and added a cup of heavy cream and brought it up to scalding temp. Then I mixed the sodium citrate into a quarter cup of water and dissolved it, then added it to the milk mixture on the stove. I took a pound of fontina and a pound of sharp cheddar, slowly adding while whisking on the stove. It was like watching a miracle, it melted like velveeta and turned out lusciously smooth. I forced each member of my family to witness the magic, and they all agreed it was phenomenal. I then poured the cheese sauce over the potatoes in the crock pot and put it first on high for about an hour, then turned it to low for the last 4 hours. Even in the crock pot for hours, the sauce did not separate. But what would it taste like? Did it taste like chemicals or preservatives? I had to know. I scooped out a mouth sized serving about 20 minutes ago and slap my mama, it was delicious. Thank you for the idea, the how-to and Happy Thanksgiving! Sincerely, Bustamante Family
Yes. It freezes great. Just make sure you make it a little on the thinner side. So rather than add 1 cup of liquid to every pound of cheese I would add 1.25 cups. This will thicken as it cools. Once you heat it back up it will melt beautifully
so is sodium citrate a form of emulsifier? Because I won't be able to find that product.. could I substitute it with mustard? Also seems to have a high PH level.. could tartar be used as a substitute as well?
Hi Michael. Sodium Citrate is an emulsifier. I don't think you can use tartar as a substitute but I'm not sure. Here's an easy way to make sodium citrate as it's basically baking soda and citric acid.. mealhack.com/how-to-make-american-cheese?cid=9177 If you are feeling adventurous..
When I try this my cheese turns to a big glop gets really thick and the liquid, I use water, just stays on top of the cheese... it doesn’t get silky smooth and runny like yours... what am I doing wrong...? At first I used a mixture of cheeses- colby, cheddar, muenster- used 3 cups of water to three teaspoons of sodium citrate... then it was a disaster... then I used one cheese, probably a cheap cheddar that was extremely oily, that firmed up in the pan... I really don’t know what Im doing wrong...
I eye-balled it...started with 8 oz then kept on adding and the more I added the thicker it got. Ive since used your ratios and was successful in achieving the desirable consistency. My question is though what’s the max amount cheese and liquid can I use before I would need to add more. Sodium citrate. I start with 1/2 cup liquid and 8oz cheese and .5 tsp but can I add the citrate and cheese and liquid in that batch say if it gets really thick or do i just keep adding liquid...to reach the desired result.?
I have a question. Kan you use cheese that has been frozen? Same for milk , kan you use it if it's been froozen, To still achieve the creamy results? Or does it have to be fresh?
Do make sure that you don't take your time mixing in the cheese. The sodium citrate will help emulsify the components of cheese into your liquid as they're melting, but if they start to melt and separate before they get a chance to interact with the sodium citrate, things literally won't go as smoothly.
I was looking for a reason why my cheese sauce was gritty. People also use flour. But yours turned out so nice, and you only use cheese milk and the sodium stuff. Is the gritty coming from the quality of cheese?
Hello, The Problem with all fresh cheddar is the separation of the fats and the proteins when it's heated. The molecules separate when heated and are unable to come back together uniformly so you get tons of little greasy bits of protein that are just floating around.. Arguably if the heat was real low and the melting process was done real slow then possibly the fats wouldn't separate from the proteins and it would melt consistently. Many time you might find a recipe that calls for adding cheddar cheese at the very end once the dish is off the stove and that sometimes works but it's risky. This particular salt is awesome when it comes to reducing the chesses' acidity and making the proteins more soluble. In essence it's an emulsifier. Processed cheese general won't do this as it almost always has some sodium citrate in it. Think Velveeta, American, things like that.. I've tried it with feta, blue, swiss, mozzarella, guda, and all work the same way... It's crazy neat!!
@Zac Crow could be. Heat also plays a huge factor. Sometimes it splits other times I'd doesn't. Sodium citrate ensures that it works perfectly every single time. Quality of the cheese is also another factor...
Sometimes preshredded cheese will be gritty because it has fillers added to keep it from sticking together. If you use preshredded, try buying a block and shredding it yourself.
Yes of course. You'll also note that in the video I use 15 pounds of cheese. So the difference that you see is that I'm making a larger quantity in my video than in my written recipe😉
he's so good when he's hot and warm, but what's he like when he's cold? I got essentially melted cheese, but not sauce. Tell me, what could be the problem or should it be like this?
You must pay closer attention. It's the second line..... "You can read more about it and print the recipe here: twoguysandacooler.com/making-an-incredibly-simple-nacho-cheddar-sauce/"
Do you have a link to your mentioned potato gratin recipe? Just got my sodium citrate from Amazon and I have a big ol' bag of cheese from Costco that I'm fixin' to use.
That's awesome. Here is the video that talks about potatoes au gratin ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-hwJ4enxMtOU.html I have a second channel and on that channel that is solely about food. More specifically freezer meals but they can all be cooked fresh and eaten right away. On that channel there is also a video about Mac and cheese as well as Broccoli cheddar soup that all use sodium citrate.. Check out the vides. If you like my style be sure to sub.... Thanks for watching this video!!!
I used to buy sodium citrate from the modernist pantry. but it was so expensive so I learned how to make my own and its easy to do and is much cheaper.
I agree with xQuilly on this one. Who cares? With the many ways this word has been pronounced, I'd say that at this point they are all correct. That being said, I believe ha-la-PAIN-yo was the original way to say it in Spanish.
When I use cheddar, I get these little tiny hard grains that don't go away no matter how much I cook it for. The grains actually are felt even if u eat the cheddar on its own. How can I get rid of that? Am I using the wrong kind of cheddar?
Are u using sodium citrate in your recipe? What's happening is your fresh cheese is breaking and the fats and proteins are separating. This is why it gets gritty. Using sodium citrate fixes this issue 100% of the time. You can melt basically any cheese with no problem...
@@2guysandacooler thank you for replying. No I never heard of it until now. I don't live in the states. Where is it usually found? Supermarkets? Pharmacies? I have no clue where to look for it.
@@layalwatfeh there's a way to make it at home. It's baking soda and citric acid. You'll have to Google the recipe. I bought mine off of Amazon. Where do you live?
@@2guysandacooler I live in Dubai. I will look up the recipe. I really hope this works. Been really craving a good cheese sauce but homemade.... Also, do you have any tips on making it taste, a little fake? Haha I knows! Weird request, but I actually like that fake cheesy taste. And home made versions can be too real cheddary
2 tsp Sodium citrate, 2 cups milk, 2 pounds of cheese. Dissolve the citrate in the milk then on a low heat add the cheese and stir gently. If the cheese doesn't turn into a sauce (within 5 minutes or so) add a little more citrate.
Thank you so much for your video, I'm doing the keto diet and want to make broccoli and cheese soup. But my cheese was working and was just awful. But I think I will try your this to see how it works.
You are very welcome. I use this in my broccoli cheddar soups and in comes out amazing. I have a second channel that posts nothing but Freezer Friendly Recipes that are easy to modify. This week I'm making Keto Tomato Basil Soup, If you want to check it out that channel here is the link... studio.ru-vid.com/show-UCdouibA_pnEMuTY8BY_Ur5Q I will be doing more Keto Friendly meals as I've been getting lots of requests. Hope to see you around.
I used it for the first time and I it was amazing. Can you add Xanthan gum to it? It's not thinking like regular broccoli and cheese soup. But it was still so amazing, I couldn't stop say "Are you serious, are you for real, this is awesome!!!!
Absolutely Xantham Gum is a great thickener but you have to use it very sparingly.. It "Gels" food rather quickly so if you use it you only need 1/8 tsp per cup of liquid that you want to thicken. Often people will mix it in a blender as it gels almost instantly and can cause clumps. Alternatively you could mix your xanthan with a little oil to disperse it better. With Xantham Gum remember that "less is more". Almond flour is a good thickener also that is much less finicky
I just got my sodium citrate from Amazon and am going to make my first cheese sauce with it. I've been checking various recipes. I like the simplicity of 1lb cheese/1 cup water/1 teaspoon sodium citrate you suggest. My research shows much larger ratios of sodium citrate, however. For example, Cooks Illustrated says one TABLESPOON to 10.5 oz of cheese. Modernist Cuisine has a ratio of closer to 4 teaspoons sodium citrate to a lb. of cheese. I suppose more sodium citrate wouldn't hurt unless it starts to affect the taste. Your video appears to use much more than a teaspoon also. Are you sure of your recipe of 1 tsp or did you intend to say 1 Tbsp?
In my video I'm making 20 pounds of sauce LOL. The more sodium citrate you add the "thicker" your cheese will become. Start with 1 tsp of s. citrate/1 cup of liquid/1 pound of cheese. You'll have to trust me on this one. If you like the cheese to be a little thinner you'll want to add another 1/4 cup of liquid till you get to the consistency that you like.
@@2guysandacooler 20 lbs??! Wow! Oh, I completely trust you. You definitely seem to know what you're doing. I really appreciate the quick response and will follow your ratios. Interesting about more sodium citrate makes it thicker. I'll keep this fact in mind as well as whether to add more water or not. Dinner's gonna be awesome tonight!
@@2guysandacooler Would water be okay for the liquid as far as taste when making a nacho cheese sauce or dip? Trying to keep the carbs down. Thank you!
@@2guysandacooler i tried this, and it became so thick and lost the runny consistency . what should i do if i want to retain the sauce-like consistency.
@@khayarandia122 Once it's made if it stays warm it will stay runny. Once it cools it will firm up. You could add more milk or liquid to soften it up a bit..
@@2guysandacooler hello « 1 lb extra sharp cheddar cheese or any cheese you want 1 cup of water or beer, ck stock, milk it doesn't matter what liquid you use. If you use beer it will change the flavor a little bit which could be a good thing 1 tsp sodium citrate » How many centilitres correspond to "1 cup of milk"? Thank you in advance
Do you have ratios of how much cheese to milk? Also why are you not converting your citrus into a liquid form first? Also does evaporated milk do anything different?
hi i'm your new subscriber i'm from switzerland i have a question after done do i have to keep it in the fridge?? sorry the question is that i don't understand english i use the translator i would really appreciate if you answer me❤
Hello Sandra, yes. This needs to be refrigerated after it's made. It will firm back up in the cold, so if you want it to be a sauce again you will need to add a little liquid and heat it up before serving.
You should see the other recipes where I use xanthan gum, sodium nitrates, and all sorts of other fun chemicals. This recipe is mild by comparison :). Thanks for commenting
You can always mix baking soda and citric acid to mimic the same effect. Citric acid is usually found in either your grocery store or sometimes your hardware store near all of the canning supplies. 2 tsp of citric acid with 2.5 tsp of baking soda. I mix them into 1/2 cup of water or beer or whatever before adding it to the milk to prevent curdling.
