Demi Glace デミグラスソース | Easy Japanese Recipes at JustOneCookbook.com

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Demi-glace is a rich brown sauce in French cuisine that can be used as a sauce itself or as a base for other sauces. In Japan, we use demi-glace sauce for many western-style dishes, and we can find it sold in a can or a premade jar. Since it’s not easy to find premade demi-glace sauce in the U.S., I have decided to make it at home.

Making a demi-glace sauce from scratch can be a daunting process, but I’ve used store-bought beef stock to speed things up in this shortcut recipe.

Demi Glace デミグラスソース | Easy Japanese Recipes at JustOneCookbook.com

What is Demi-Glace?

Demi-glace is a rich brown sauce in French cuisine, traditionally made by combining one part brown stock and one part Espagnole sauce (or sometimes called brown sauce) and slowly reducing by half. It is used as a sauce itself or as a base for other sauces. In Japan, we use demi-glace (デミグラスソース) to make popular yoshoku, western-style Japanese dishes, including Hayashi Rice, Beef Stew, and Omurice.

How Japanese-Style Demi-Glace Sauce is Made

A basic brown stock is made by roasting a lot of veal and beef bones, which can take hours and hours to simmer and reduce. To make demi-glace, you need to make a lot of brown stock so that you can keep some as it is and then use the remaining stock to make Espagnole sauce. Espagnole sauce is a classic brown sauce, typically made from the brown stock, mirepoix (onion, celery, and carrot) and tomato paste, and thickened with roux. Finally, when you combine brown stock and Espagnole sauce, you get demi-glace! Sounds complicated? Check out my so-called “Shortcut” Demi-Glace recipe below.

Demi Glace 15

4 Easy Steps to Make Shortcut Demi-Glace Sauce

Step 1: Use Store-Bought Stock

Organic Beef Broth

This shortcut demi-glace sauce uses store-bought beef stock (not sponsored) which cut down on the cooking time immediately. If you have some quality bones on hands and don’t mind spending the time, you can, of course, make your veal or beef stock for a richer and flavorful result. Otherwise, store-bought stock would do the trick.

Step 2: Make Shortcut Espagnole Sauce

Espagnole sauce

To add more flavor to the sauce, I like roasting mirepoix (onion, celery, and carrot) in the oven after lightly sauteing them on the stovetop. Then, combine the vegetable mixtures with tomato paste, wine, beef stock, and a bouquet garni (read below) to simmer and reduce. Be patient and cook for 1 to 1.5 hours to reduce the sauce. It’s an inactive period, so you can spend the time on other food preparation.

Step 3: Make Broun Roux

Demi Glace 15

Making brown roux is an important step for the demi-glace sauce. Pay close attention so you won’t burn the roux. Be patient and continue to stir until the roux is brown, almost like a chocolate color. At this stage, the flour needs to be cooked through so the demi-glace sauce won’t taste “floury.”

Once you master making the roux, you can make Japanese curry roux or bechamel sauce (white sauce) to make Cream Stew from scratch.

Step 4: Combine Espagnole Sauce and Brown Roux, and You’ll have Demi-Glace Sauce!

Demi Glace Sauce

The last step is easy. Just combine the Espagnole sauce and brown roux together. Now your Shortcut Demi-Glace is done, and ready for many different uses. One of my favorites is to use the demi-glace sauce to make Hayashi Rice, or sometimes called Hashed Beef, which is a popular Western-style stew made with tender beef, onions, mushrooms.

Hayashi Rice (Hashed Beef) served over rice.

What is Bouquet Garni (ブーケガルニ)?

It’s a fancy French word for a bunch of herbs, typically encased in a cheesecloth bag or tied together with string. It’s used for flavoring a stew, soup, or stock. The choice of herbs is up to you. For this recipe, I used the following herbs, but you can choose your own.

  • bay leaf
  • parsley
  • peppercorn
  • thyme
Bouquet Garni

Fresh vs. Dried: Because dried herbs are generally more potent and concentrated than fresh herbs, you will need a lesser amount. The general rule is 3 to 1 or three parts fresh to one part dried (1 Tbsp = 3 tsp).

1 tablespoon fresh herbs = 1 teaspoon dried herbs

Hayashi Rice (Hashed Beef) served over rice.

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Demi-Glace Recipe

4.78 from 40 votes
by Namiko Hirasawa Chen
A red spatula stirs melted chocolate in a stainless steel pot, blending the smooth, glossy mixture along the sides of the pan, much like preparing a rich demi-glace recipe.
My shortcut Demi-Glace recipe skips bones and days of simmering, using store-bought beef stock to build a rich, glossy brown sauce in about 2½ hours. Use it in stews, braises, and classic Japanese yoshoku dishes. Make a batch and freeze the rest—it keeps for six months.
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Prep: 15 minutes
Cook: 2 hours 30 minutes
Total: 2 hours 45 minutes

Ingredients 
 

Servings: 3 cups

For the Espagnole Sauce

For the Bouquet Garni

  • 3 sprigs parsley
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 tsp dried thyme
  • 8 peppercorns

For the Brown Roux

  • 2 Tbsp unsalted butter
  • 4 Tbsp all-purpose flour (plain flour)

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 425ºF (220ºC) with a rack in the middle position. Gather all the ingredients.
    Nami's Tip: For a convection oven, reduce the temperature by 25ºF (15ºC).
    A wooden surface displays various ingredients: parsley, carrot, celery, onion, olive oil, salt, pepper grinder, red wine, beef broth cartons, paprika, butter, and flour in bowls, prepared for a demi-glace recipe.

To Make the Quick Espagnole Sauce

  • Cut ½ yellow onion, 1 rib celery, and 1 carrot into small chunks.
    Three close-up images show hands using a knife to chop an onion, slice celery, and cut carrots on a wooden cutting board—classic ingredients for building flavor in a rich demi-glace recipe.
  • Set an ovenproof Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat. When it‘s hot, add 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil and the chopped onion, celery, and carrot.
    Split image: Left side shows a hand holding a small bowl of olive oil over an empty pot. Right side shows sliced carrots, celery, and chopped onions in the pot—classic beginnings for a rich demi-glace recipe.
  • Season with ½ tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt (use half the amount or the same weight for table salt) and freshly ground black pepper. Sauté for 3 minutes. Place the pot in the preheated 425ºF (220ºC) oven and roast the vegetables for 20 minutes.
    Left: Chopped carrots, celery, onion, and potatoes are being sautéed in a white pot for a rich demi-glace recipe. Right: A hand with an oven mitt places the covered pot into an oven on a rack.
  • Meanwhile, prepare a disposable mesh tea bag or a cheesecloth to make the bouquet garni.
    Close-up of hands handling white cheesecloth—on the left, folding it over a bowl for a demi-glace recipe, on the right, cutting folded cheesecloth with scissors on a wooden surface.
  • Encase 1 bay leaf, 1 tsp dried thyme, 3 sprigs parsley, and 8 peppercorns in the cheesecloth or mesh bag. Tightly tie the corners.
    Three-panel image showing hands placing herbs on cheesecloth, gathering it around the herbs, and tying it into a bundle on a wooden surface—an essential step for preparing aromatics in a classic demi-glace recipe.
  • After 20 minutes, turn off the oven and transfer the pot to the stove set on medium heat. Add 1 Tbsp tomato paste and stir to distribute well.
    A white pot with sautéed carrots, celery, and onions sits on an oven rack—a classic start for any demi-glace recipe. In the second image, a hand holds a small bowl of tomato paste over the pot of vegetables.
  • Add 4 Tbsp red wine and 8 cups beef stock/broth. Stir to combine.
    A split image: on the left, a hand pours dark liquid—a key step in a demi-glace recipe—over sliced onions; on the right, broth from a measuring cup is added to the same pot on a stove.
  • Add the bouquet garni to the pot and bring the broth to a boil.
    Two images show a white pot on a stovetop. In the first, a wooden spoon holds a cheesecloth bag over simmering brown broth. In the second, a hand ladles rich brown stew from the pot—perfect steps for any demi-glace recipe.
  • Reduce the heat and simmer for 1½ hours—the broth should reduce to about 3 cups. While it simmers, skim off the scum and fat on the surface with a fine-mesh skimmer.
    After 1 hour into the reduction process, start making the Brown Roux (see next section).
    Nami's Tip: I rinse the skimmer as I go in a glass measuring cup filled with water. If you're using this demi-glace for my Hayashi Rice recipe, start cooking the rice and marinating the beef now.
    A collage of three images showing brown broth with vegetables in a pot, broth being strained through a mesh sieve, and the strained broth—perfect for a demi-glace recipe—collected in a glass measuring cup.

To Make the Brown Roux

  • Melt 2 Tbsp unsalted butter in a small saucepan over medium heat until fully melted and foaming. Add 4 Tbsp all-purpose flour (plain flour).
    Collage of a cooking process for a demi-glace recipe: butter melting in a pot, flour being added, and flour and butter being mixed with a spatula.
  • Stir with a silicone spatula to combine.
    Nami's Tip: The roux will look crumbly at first. That's normal. It will smooth out as it cooks.
    Two images show a saucepan on a stove with a red spatula stirring a light brown roux mixture—a key step in any demi-glace recipe. The left image shows the roux just starting, while the right image reveals it more blended and smooth.
  • Continue stirring as the roux turns foamy and loose. Cook for 12–15 minutes, until it deepens to a chocolate brown color. Remove from the heat.
    Two images showing a saucepan with a red spatula stirring a brown mixture—perfect for a demi-glace recipe. In the first, the pan is on the stove; in the second, it’s off the stove, resting on a cloth atop a wooden surface.

To Finish the Demi-Glace

  • After 1½ hours, strain the Espagnole sauce and measure 3 cups. Return the pot of brown roux to the stove over low heat. Gradually add 3 cups Espagnole sauce, a few tablespoons at a time, stirring with a silicone spatula or whisk between additions until smooth.
    Nami's Tip: Store any extra sauce in an airtight container and freeze for up to 6 months.
    A hand stirs a saucepan with a red spatula as a dark liquid for a demi-glace recipe is poured in; the next image shows the thickened mixture being stirred in the pot on a stovetop.
  • Keep adding more sauce and stirring until smooth. When all the sauce is incorporated, the demi-glace is ready.
    A hand pours a brown liquid from a measuring cup into a saucepan for a demi-glace recipe, then stirs the mixture with a red spatula as it thickens.

To Store

  • You can make Demi-Glace ahead of time. Store it in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 1 week or freeze for up to 6 months.

Notes

Variations
  • Use homemade stock. If you have quality veal or beef bones on hand, homemade stock delivers a richer, more complex result than store-bought.
  • Customize your bouquet garni. The herbs are flexible—rosemary, tarragon, or a strip of orange peel all work well in place of or alongside the standard mix.
  • Make it gluten-free. Substitute a gluten-free all-purpose flour blend for the roux. The sauce should thicken similarly. Always verify your beef stock is gluten-free as well.
  • Skip the wine. You can substitute an equal amount of additional beef stock. The sauce will have a slightly lighter flavor but still works well.

Nutrition

Serving: 1cup, Calories: 215kcal, Carbohydrates: 15g, Protein: 4g, Fat: 14g, Saturated Fat: 6g, Trans Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 27mg, Sodium: 422mg, Potassium: 276mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 2g, Vitamin A: 2827IU, Vitamin C: 4mg, Calcium: 29mg, Iron: 1mg

The nutrition facts shown are generated by an online calculator and are estimates only. Please consult a professional nutritionist for specific dietary needs.

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