simple suspensions, molecular dispersions, emulsions, or foams They’re usually a combination of two or more Purees usually contain both suspended particles and dispersed molecules, starch-thickened sauces contain both dispersed molecules and remnants of the granules, emulsified sauces include proteins and particles from milk or eggs or spices Cooks often thicken and enrich sauces of all kinds at the last minute by melting a piece of butter into it or stirring in a spoonful of cream, thus making them in part a milkfat emulsion Such complexity of the dispersed phase may well make sauce texture more subtle and intriguing The Influence of Consistency on Flavor Thickeners Reduce Flavor Intensity In general, the components of a sauce that create its consistency have little or no flavor of their own They therefore only dilute whatever flavors the sauce has Thickening agents also actively reduce the effectiveness of the flavor molecules in the sauce They bind some of those molecules so that our palate never senses them, and they slow their movement from the sauce into our taste buds or nasal passages Because aroma molecules tend to be more fat soluble than water soluble, fat in a sauce hangs onto aroma molecules and decreases aromatic intensity Amylose starch molecules trap aroma molecules (the aroma molecules in turn make the starch molecules more likely to bond to each other into lightscattering, milky aggregates) And wheat flour binds more sodium than pure starches, so flour-thickened preparations require more added salt than starch-thickened sauces As a general rule, then, a thin sauce will have a more intense and immediate flavor than the same sauce with thickeners added But the thickened sauce will release its flavor more gradually and persistently Each effect ...flavors the sauce has Thickening agents also actively reduce the effectiveness of the flavor molecules in the sauce They bind some of those molecules so that our palate never senses them, and they slow their movement... molecules trap aroma molecules (the aroma molecules in turn make the starch molecules more likely to bond to each other into lightscattering, milky aggregates) And wheat flour binds more sodium than pure starches, so... flour-thickened preparations require more added salt than starch-thickened sauces As a general rule, then, a thin sauce will have a more intense and immediate flavor than the same sauce with thickeners added But the thickened sauce will release its flavor