Albufera Sauce or Red Pepper Sauce
Albufera Sauce, often called Red Pepper Sauce in modern kitchens, brings elegance and rich flavor to any dish it graces. Traditionally rooted in French cuisine, this velvety sauce evolved from the classic velouté, enriched with cream and a deeply savory reduction.
My version celebrates the original while adding a sweet, smoky twist with roasted red peppers. It’s the kind of sauce that turns a simple chicken breast or a grilled vegetable platter into something extraordinary.
In this post, I’ll walk you through each step of making this luxurious sauce. We’ll start with a basic velouté, build richness with stock and cream, then blend in fire-roasted red peppers for a pop of color and a layer of bold, balanced flavor. Whether you’re aiming to impress dinner guests or just want to elevate a weeknight meal, this sauce delivers on both style and substance.
You don’t need a culinary degree or a fancy setup—just a saucepan, a blender, and a few pantry staples. Once you taste it, you’ll find plenty of reasons to make it again.
From poultry and fish to pasta and grains, this Red Pepper Albufera Sauce offers incredible versatility and a touch of French finesse with every spoonful.
It is named after the Albufera Natural Park, which is located near the city of Valencia on the east coast of Spain. The sauce has a long and interesting history, dating back to the 18th century.
History of Albufera Sauce
The origins of Albufera sauce can be traced back to the 18th century when Valencia was a major center for rice cultivation. Rice was a staple food in the region, and it was often served with a rich, flavorful sauce made from chicken broth, saffron, and butter. This sauce was known as “fumet,” and it was used to enhance the flavor of the rice.
Over time, the sauce evolved and became known as Albufera sauce. It was named after the Albufera Natural Park, located near Valencia and home to a large lake and wetlands. The sauce is still made using the same basic ingredients as the original “fumet” sauce but has a richer, more velvety texture.
Today, Albufera sauce is a popular accompaniment to many dishes in Spanish cuisine. It is commonly used to add flavor to rice dishes, such as paella, and it is also used to enhance the flavor of chicken, fish, and other meats. The sauce is typically made by simmering chicken broth, saffron, and butter together until it reaches the desired consistency.
A Fresh Water Lagoon
The Albufera is a freshwater lagoon and estuary on eastern Spain’s Gulf of Valencia coast. Some say this sauce was named after one of Napoleon’s generals, Louis Gabriel Suchet, the “duc d’Albufera”.
This sauce is made with glace de viande, which is nothing more than basic brown beef or veal stock reduced to a syrupy consistency. Glace de viande is highly concentrated and, thus, intensely flavored.
Albufera sauce is a derivative of Sauce Supreme and requires you to prepare the Sauce Supreme first. You will find many of the classic sauces are derivatives of each other. They build on each other depending on the outcome you are trying to achieve.
A little goes a long way. Make a large batch and freeze it in ice cube trays. Add a cube or two to the sauce for a burst of flavor. You can also find some restaurant-quality commercial product suggestions below.
A Quick Glace de Viande
For the glace de viande, add brown stock to a saucepan over medium heat and reduce until a syrupy consistency is achieved. Depending on your stove, the heat level, and the cooking vessel employed, a quart of brown stock will yield 4-8 oz. of glace de viande.
Best Served With poached chicken, duck, or paella.
Red Pepper Sauce – Albufera Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 cup Supreme sauce
- 2 tablespoons glace de viande - check out the commercial product s above for a source of commercially prepared Glace de Viande.
- 1 tablespoon red-pepper butter see below
- Salt and pepper to taste
- For the Red Pepper Butter
- 8 tablespoons 1 stick unsalted butter, softened
- 1/2 cup diced roasted red pepper (can used jarred roasted red pepper
- 1 tablespoon minced shallots
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- salt & freshly ground pepper to taste
Instructions
- Prepare the Red Pepper Butter
- Combine all of the ingredients in a large bowl and mash with a fork until fully incorporated. Place the bowl into the fridge to fully chill the butter before adding it to the red pepper sauce.
- Prepare the Red Pepper Sauce
- Bring the Sauce Supreme to a simmer. Whisk in the glace de viande until fully incorporated. Add the red-pepper butter, mix and reduce to desired thickness.
- Taste for additional seasoning and add if necessary.
- Reserve the remaining Red Pepper Butter for another meal.
