Dishintermediatedraft
Hollandaise sauce
Also searched as: hollandaise, béarnaise
In short: Hollandaise is a warm with egg yolk, balancing between two mistakes: too cold and it splits, too hot and the egg curdles.
Picture it
Like a tightrope walk between scrambled egg and a puddle of butter.
The decisive moments
- 1Whisk egg yolk with a little water and acid over a water bath
The yolk thickens gently and traps air.
Proteins set (coagulation) - 2Keep lifting it off the water bath
Above about 70 °C the yolk turns grainy.
Cooking over a water bath - 3Slowly whisk in warm, melted butter
The yolk cream emulsifies the butter into fine droplets.
Emulsion - 4Serve warm, not hot
Too hot and it curdles; too cold and the butter sets.
Hollandaise curdles
Sources · 2
- Harold McGee: On Food and Cooking (2004)
- Rouxbe: Food safety of hollandaise