How to Deglaze a Pan for Making Restaurant Quality Pan Sauces
The Secret to Great Pan Sauces
Deglazing is a fancy and intimidating word that means to pour some cold liquid into a very hot pan to get up all the brown bits stuck to the bottom of the pan. Those brown bits are where all the flavors are, and it is called “fond.”
Fond is French for “bottom,” so let’s stick to calling it fond!
How To Deglaze a Pan
You probably deglaze all the time without even realizing it:
When you pour water into the roasting pan to make gravy
When you add some chicken stock to a pan of sautéed onions
When you pour some wine into the pan that you roasted the pork in
Now that you know what it is, let’s make sure you are doing all the steps correctly.
Make sure that there is nothing burnt onto the pan you are going to deglaze—you are looking for deep brown bits, not blackened bits
Pour off most of the fat in the pan.
Turn the heat up to high.
Add cold liquid to the hot pan—the liquid will come up to boiling very quickly, bringing up the brown bits on the bottom of the pan
Using a spoon or spatula, scrape up the fond as the liquid boils
Once the fond is dispersed throughout the liquid, turn down the heat
Important Tip:
It is important you remove the pan from the heat when adding any liquids with alcohol so you don't end up with singed eyebrows. You can now use this mixture to create a wonderful sauce to accompany your meal.
Deglazing Liquids
Almost any liquid can be used for deglazing, although you should stay away from dairy. There is a good chance that dairy products can curdle when boiling, so stick with clear liquids.
Here’s a good list to start:
Red or white wine
Beer
Stock—fish, chicken, beef, vegetable, etc.
Broth
Cooking liquid (water that you cooked beans in, for example)
Cognac/brandy
Fruit juice
Vinegar
Of course, you can also use water to deglaze, but why would you when there are so many other flavorful liquids that you can use instead?
Pan Sauces
The technique of deglazing is especially useful when it comes to making pan sauces after you saute a piece of meat, chicken or fish. You can read all about pan sauces and how to prepare them at home on my pan sauce page.
Marina Parmigiani
Very very interesting! Thanks for sharing!
Sowmya
Thanks for this lovely information.......highly appreciated:)))))
Mary
Beautifully simple explanation; thanks! (For all the cooking competitions I watch, I still wasn't clear on why deglazing should be done, or when.)
The Reluctant Gourmet
You are very welcome Mary. Thanks for your comments.
Michele
Thanks for a simple explanation that I can understand!
mary
O wow!I am a 62 year old great grandma fr the south and have been "deglazing" for 50 yrs!!!! Thanks for the simple explanation and giving it a "hoity toity" name :))
Brent
Fantastic! Much appreciated
Bippy
One of the reasons to deglaze a pan with wine/booze is that alcohol will molecularly bind with fats and oils, in ways that makes sure that the flavors of whatever you're trying to deglaze come out better, and it's easier.
That's why if you try to deglaze a pan with mushroom broth, it is so much freaking harder to get all the fond up and out than if you use white wine. The alcohol in the wine actually makes everything work just a little better- when I need to deglaze and don't want the wine flavor as much, I just deglaze with a small amount of that first, then mix in my stock. Works wonders.
The Reluctant Gourmet
Thanks Bippy for your comments and explanation.
Cam
I write my own blog and I'm preparing a quick post about deglazing. In my experience you can use heavy-cream to deglaze as it can handle higher heats than other dairy. Let me know if you agree!
Me
Heavy Cream definitely works well, but I usually would add it after deglazing with some kind of alcohol...sherry or Marsala in particular
Melanie
I googled "how to deglaze" and your site popped up. Thank you so much for your explanantion! After dinner I plan on perusing your site!
Jackie Boy
Thank you for giving us such an easy and understandable explanation of what "De glazing" means and the proper way to do it.
The little "nugget" you threw in about "Fond" was also something I never knew before.
Jackie Boy
jilly bean
so awesome! just tried it...yay successful. very cool. thanks so much.
Joe
I just did it using beer. Worked great & tasted great, and as a bonus, the pan was much easier to clean. Thanks!
Major_de_Coverly
Thanks for an explanation in plain English.
Valerie
Ok, so for lasagne, after I deglaze the pan after browning the ground beef, what do I do with what's left in the pan? Do I mix it back in with the beef, or add it to the sauce?
The Reluctant Gourmet
Valerie, I'm not sure what lasagne recipe you are referring too, but I would most likely add it to the sauce.
Scott
After sautéing onions, can I leave the onions while deglazing?
G. Stephen Jones
Hi Scott, I do all the time when making sauces.
Michael
Thanks for the tips.
But you might want to amend this ..
Once the fond is dispersed throughout the liquid, turn down the heat
Terry
No one I ever asked could clearly explain "deglazing". Thank you for getting me to the bottom of it. Fond regards, Terry
The Reluctant Gourmet
You are welcome. Thanks for contacting me.
Ariana
In some website I've read, the 'brown bits' are called 'sucs'(?). Is it really called 'sucs' or 'fond'? I'm confused. Thanks!
The Reluctant Gourmet
No worries Ariana, both terms in the United States are used interchangeably. According to Rouxbe Cooking School, the word sucs, which derives from “sucre” (French for sugar) was invented specifically to describe those caramelized bits that stick to the bottom of a pot or pan. Although the term "fond" has several meanings in cooking, one of them is described as "a classic French culinary term meaning the browned caramelized and concentrated bits or residue that remains in the pan after cooking meat." Use either.
Earl
Fat is a flavor transmitter -- it help to better translate the flavor to your tastebuds.
Terri
I am browning Italian sausage before I put it into tomato sauce finish cooking. I was wondering what I should use to deglaze the browning pan? I have red wine vinegar or balsamic vinegar to choose from. Which would be my best choice? Thank you in advance for your reply!I only wish I would get that reply before I was finished browning my sausages ! LOL
G. Stephen Jones
Hi Terri, I'm sure you are done cooking by now but it really depends on you personal tastes. The balsamic will give you a sweeter result than the red wine vinegar but both are perfectly acceptable.
Sheri
HI,
I am new to your website. I googled how to Deglaze. And yours showed up. You explained much easier then the other ones. Thank-you!!!!
My question is, What about the fruit flavor wines? can you use them? and with what? chicken or what?
G. Stephen Jones
You can use fruit flavored wines if you like and yes, chicken would be good as well as pork or fish if you are trying to make a sweet pan sauce. How about making a pan sauce with orange marmalade made with a sweet wine for chicken breasts?
Sheri
Hi Stephen,
Wow, Thank-you so much!! I will try it. I get that you deglaze the pan with wine, But how do I use the Orange marmalade with the chicken breast? I am a very new gourmet cook, and I want to try the degazing. Sounds so yummy!
Sheri
I don't think anyone saw my question. (above.)
Hi Stephen,
You mention "How about making a pan sauce with orange marmalade made with a sweet wine for chicken breasts?"
How would I incorporate the "orange marmalade" with the sweet wine? Do I deglaze first and then put the marmalade in?
Many thanks
G. Stephen Jones
Hi Sheri, yes, I would deglaze with the sweet wine, let it reduce in half and then add the orange marmalade. If you need some more cooking liquid to make the sauce, you could try chicken stock or even some orange juice.
Hazel
Hi, thank you for this great article. I have a question. If I'm roasting chicken in the oven, and cannot put the roasting pan on the stove after the meat is cooked (to make gravy), can I transfer the juices and good gunky stuff onto a pan and deglaze? I can't deglaze in the oven I assume. Or does it just happen very quickly, while the roasting pan is still piping hot? Thanks!
G. Stephen Jones
Hi Hazel, sure you can. I think it's a great idea anyway. It's much easier to reduce the sauce, add ingredients and whisk in a sauce pan than in the roasting pan. Some people might say you don't get all the "good gunky stuff" but I think there will be plenty for making a gravy. Only downside is another pan to clean but I think it's worth it.