Mother/Daughter Sauces: Hollandaise and Bernaise
Elevate those fresh vegetables, eggs and meats with easy homemade sauces
Ingredients
Hollandaise Sauce
- 20 oz Unsalted Butter 1lb 4oz total
- 1/8 tsp Peppercorns crushed
- 1/8 tsp Salt
- 3 oz White or white wine vinegar
- 2 oz Water cold
- 6 Egg yolks
- 1-2 tbsp Fresh lemon juice
- Salt to taste
- Cayenne to taste
Bernaise Sauce
- 20 oz Unsalted Butter 1lb 4oz total
- 1 oz Shallots chopped
- 4 oz White wine vinegar
- ½ tsp Peppercorns crushed
- 6 Egg yolks see Note
- Salt to taste
- Cayenne to taste
- 1-2 drops Lemon juice to taste
- 1 tbsp Chopped parsley
- 2 tbsp Fresh tarragon, chopped leaves to be removed from woody stems
Instructions
Hollandaise
- Clarify the butter. (Melt and strain off the butter solids.) You should have about 1 pint clarified butter. Keep the butter warm but not hot.
- Combine peppercorns, salt, and vinegar in a saucepan and reduce until nearly dry (au sec). Remove from heat and add the cold water. Pass the diluted reduction through a fine strainer into a stainless-steel bowl. Use a clean rubber spatula to make sure you transfer all flavoring material to bowl.
- Add the egg yolks to bowl and beat well. Hold the bowl over a hot-water bath and continue to beat the yolks until thickened and creamy.
- Remove the bowl from the heat. Using a ladle, slowly and gradually beat in warm clarified butter, drop by drop at first. If the sauce becomes too thick to beat before all the butter is added, beat in a little lemon juice.
- When all the butter is added, beat in lemon juice to taste and adjust seasoning with salt and cayenne. If necessary, thin the sauce with a few drops of warm water.
Bearnaise
- You are basically making a hollandaise with the addition of shallots at the beginning and adding tarragon and parsley at the end.
- Combine the shallots, vinegar, tarragon, and peppercorns in a saucepan and reduce by three-fourths. Remove from heat and cool slightly.
- To make it easier to beat with a wire whip, transfer the reduction to a stainless-steel bowl. Use a clean rubber spatula to make sure you get it all. Let the reduction cool a little.
- Add the egg yolks to the bowl and beat well.
- Hold the bowl over a hot-water bath and continue to beat the yolks until thickened and creamy.
- Remove the bowl from the heat. Using a ladle, slowly and gradually beat in the warm clarified butter, drop by drop at first. If the sauce becomes too thick to beat before all the butter is added, beat in a little lemon juice or warm water.
Stay Connected
Sign up for e-news to learn about special events and offerings.