Making hollandaise sauce at home is easier and faster than you might think. You only need 3 ingredients (and salt) and 4 steps to get a delicious and creamy sauce perfect for eggs, vegetables, root vegetables, or fish.
Recipe Information
- Preparation Time: 5minutes minutes
- Cooking Time: 5minutes minutes
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Serves: 2-4 people
Ingredients
- 3 eggs
- 2-4 tbsp lemon juice – have 2 to 3 lemons on hand. You can substitute or combine it with some white vinegar.
- 1 tsp of mustard – this is optional and/or you can add other seasonings such as spices, hot sauces or aromatic herbs for example.
- 175g unsalted butter . See notes .
- 1/2 tsp of salt
Instructions
- Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Meanwhile, separate the egg yolks from the whites (you can freeze the whites for later or use them to make omelets longer). Remove from the heat and set aside.
Method 1: (blender. This is the method I almost always use and for me the easiest, fastest and most infallible).
- In a blender, add the egg yolks, 2 tablespoons of lemon juice, and, if using, the mustard (if using other liquid condiments, such as hot sauce, add them at this point). Blend for a few seconds to thoroughly mix both ingredients (if using a larger quantity, blend until the eggs increase in volume and turn pale).
- With the mixer running, slowly drizzle in the butter in a thin stream. You’ll see that what falls through is the fat (the “light” part, hence the name clarified butter), while the milk solids remain at the bottom of the pan. Once you’ve added the liquid, the mixture will have emulsified, and you can stop mixing. It’s important that the butter is warm, but not boiling, to maintain the emulsion.
Method 2: (electric rods)
- In a bowl, add the egg yolks, 2 tablespoons of lemon juice, and, if using, the mustard (if using other liquid condiments, such as hot sauce, add them at this point). Whisk until the eggs increase in volume and turn pale (you can do this with an electric hand whisk or a stand mixer).
- While continuing to whisk, slowly drizzle in the butter in a thin stream. You’ll see that what falls through is the fat (the “white” part, hence the name clarified butter), while the milk solids remain at the bottom of the pan. Once you’ve added the liquid, the mixture will have emulsified, and you can stop whisking. It’s important that the butter is warm, but not boiling, to maintain the emulsion.
Method 3: (the traditional one)
- We’re going to make the sauce using a bain-marie. Heat water in a saucepan until it boils and place a bowl on top, making sure the bottom doesn’t touch the water.
- Add the egg yolks and 2 tablespoons of lemon juice to the bowl. Using a hand whisk, beat the mixture until the yolks turn pale and have increased in volume. When you lift the whisk, the mixture should fall in a ribbon-like stream. If you see that the mixture is getting too hot and the yolks haven’t yet whipped, remove the bowl from the heat and continue whisking off the heat. Keep lifting the bowl from the heat to prevent the yolks from curdling.
- While continuing to whisk, slowly drizzle in the butter to emulsify the sauce. If the mixture gets too hot and you haven’t added all the butter, remove the bowl from the heat and whisk in the remaining butter. Return it to the heat and repeat until all the butter is incorporated. You’ll see that what drips off is the fat (the “light” part, hence the name clarified butter), while the milk solids remain at the bottom of the pan. It’s important that the butter is hot, but not boiling, to maintain the emulsion.
To conclude
- Pour the sauce into a bowl and add the salt. If you’re using seasonings like spices or dried herbs, you can add them at this point (and if you’re using liquid seasonings and haven’t added them yet, you can add them now too), mixing very well. If the sauce is too thick, you can adjust the consistency by adding more lemon juice or warm water if you don’t want an overly strong lemon flavor.
- Use the sauce immediately as it’s not a very stable emulsion. If you need to keep it warm for a few minutes (but not too long), you can store it in a thermos or a bowl placed over a saucepan of hot water, making sure the bowl doesn’t touch the water directly (off the heat). Enjoy!
Grades
- Tablespoons (tbsp) and teaspoons (tsp) are standard measuring spoons (1 tbsp = 15 ml and 1 tsp = 5 ml).
- Butter: The butter for hollandaise sauce is traditionally and classically clarified butter, so you can use ghee if you have it. I start with butter because it’s what most people can easily find, and while it’s melting, I don’t worry about skimming off the milk solids (the white foam that rises to the top), because they eventually settle to the bottom, and if some falls into the emulsion, it’s not a problem.