Basic Recipe for Rahmsauce – German Cream Sauce (2024)

There are few sauces that are as versatile as this Rahmsauce (Rahmsoße). It goes well with
everything from turkey schnitzel, frikadellen (German meatballs), pasta, spätzle and rice. In Germany, this creamy sauce is one of the most popular and well-known sauces. It is also the base for the famous Jager sauce.

Nowadays people tend to use instant packet mixes such as the Knorr Rahm sauce. They don’t realise that the homemade recipe for rahmsauce is quick and easy to follow and consists of mainly pantry ingredients. Also, homemade sauces are free of preservatives and don’t have the carbon footprint that imported goods bring with them.

What is Rahmsauce?

Rahm Sauce (in German also referred to as Rahmsoße) is a cream-based sauce. It is one of the basic German sauces. Rahm sauce in English could be translated as “Cream Sauce”. Colloquially you can call it German brown gravy. Although the sauce may appear to be paler.
The technical term for this sauce in French is “Sauce à la crème”.

The name is put together by two words. "Rahm" is a word for cream in German. "Sauce" has the same meaning as in English. Another word for Sauce in German is "Soße". So another common name for this sauce is "Rahmsoße".

How to make Rahmsauce

Whats in Rahmsauce?- The Ingredients:

• 400 ml/ 13.5 fl oz beef broth/stock (you can also use vegetable stock (affiliate link) or chicken stock. But the beef stock helps the sauce gain this brown colour,
• 25 gr / 0.8 oz butter
• 25 gr/ 0.8 oz flour
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 100 ml/ 3,3 fl oz whipping cream (at least 30% fat)
• salt and pepper.

Recipe Steps

1. In a saucepan, melt the butter. Add the flour while continuing to stir until you achieve a thick paste. Slowly pour in the hot broth. Keep on mixing continually so no lumps form. Bring to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer.
2. Leave the sauce to simmer for about 9-10 minutes to reduce the floury taste.
3. Stir in the tomato paste and cream. At this point, the sauce should no longer be boiling.
   Add salt and pepper to taste.
4. Optional, you can sprinkle some fresh cut parsley to serve the sauce.

Recipe variations:

• You can adjust the flavour by adding spices to the sauce. Popular is to add some
  paprika powder.
• Add fresh herbs to the sauce such as thyme, basil or oregano.
• Adding fried onions to the sauce will create a sweet taste.
• For an Asian twist, you can also replace the cream with coconut milk. Add some curry
  paste to the sauce for flavouring.
• You can give the sauce a rich flavour by adding in some sherry or brandy.

How to make Vegan Rahmsauce

This sauce is easily adapted for a vegan diet.

1. Replace the butter with margarine
2. Use vegetable stock (affiliate link) instead of meat stock
3. Replace the cream with a vegan plant-based alternative. i.e. soya cream.

TIPS for the best Rahmsauce

Sometimes you can follow instructions to a tee but something still goes wrong. Here are some
suggestions on how to remedy your sauce.

• If your sauce is too liquidy – leave it to boil out the water a little longer.
• Your sauce is too thick – you can always add a little more water to achieve the right
  consistency.
• Do you have lumps in your sauce? This can happen when you did not mix well enough while
  pouring in the broth, or if you added the broth too quickly. Don’t worry you can just use a
  hand blender to create a smooth sauce again.

What goes with Rahmsauce

This sauce is very versatile. Here are some suggestions on what to have with it:

• Schnitzel. Schnitzel with rahmsauce is called rahmschnitzel. It is a popular alternative to Jager Sauce
• Frikadellen (German meatballs). Frikadellen in rahmsauce with mashed potatoes is one of my favourite combinations. This is the best sauce for frikadellen. (PS. Ikea meatballs are also served in a rahmsauce)
• Chicken in Rahmsauce. – Another one of our favourites. This sauce goes well with roast chicken, or with chicken breast
• Pork medallions in a creamy sauce. Look no further for the perfect sauce – this rahmsauce goes great with pork.
• You can also simply serve it with vegetables and pasta, spaetzle, schupfnudeln or rice.

Storage Instructions:

How long does Rahm sauce keep?

Store your Rahmsoße in the fridge and consume within 1-3 days.

Can I freeze this sauce?

I would advise against freezing rahmsauce, as the cream is likely to separate when thawing.

More German Sauces you might be interested in

• Homemade Jager Sauce – German Hunter Sauce (Jägersoße)
• Classic Frankfurter Green Sauce (Frankfurter Grüne Sauce)
• Zigeuner Sauce (Gypsy Sauce)
• Quark Dip with Herbs (Kräuterquark)
• Currywurst Sauce

Did you try this recipe?

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