The hollandaise sauce is a basic preparation in French cuisine that is very delicate and creamy, perfect for accompanying dishes with fish, meat, eggs, and vegetables. This sauce, made with egg yolks, is most likely related to mayonnaise because of the main ingredient they have in common, but it differs in both preparation and the use of butter. Unlike mayonnaise, which is made away from the stove, hollandaise sauce is prepared using a water bath. Moreover, while we normally add seed oil to mayonnaise, another fundamental ingredient of hollandaise sauce is preferably clarified butter. The result is a buttery and creamy sauce with a slightly tangy flavor due to the addition of lemon juice, perfect for enriching and enhancing many main courses!
The preparation is very simple: pour the egg yolks into a small saucepan over a water bath and, while stirring with a whisk, add the lemon juice, pepper, and clarified butter slowly. Continue stirring for about 5 minutes until you obtain a light, frothy, and thick sauce.
How to use hollandaise sauce? It is undoubtedly ideal for accompanying main courses of meat or fish, it is also excellent for filling buns and sandwiches, and it is perfect for accompanying eggs and grilled or boiled vegetables, particularly asparagus which always pairs perfectly with eggs and is perfect with this sauce. You just have to try hollandaise sauce!
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- Difficulty: Very Easy
- Cost: Very Affordable
- Preparation time: 5 Minutes
- Portions: 4
- Cooking methods: Water Bath
- Cuisine: French
- Seasonality: All Seasons
Ingredients for Preparing Hollandaise Sauce
- 7 tbsp butter
- 2 egg yolks (or 3 if the eggs are medium-sized)
- 1.5 tbsp lemon juice
- white pepper (or black pepper)
- salt
Tools for Preparing Hollandaise Sauce
- 2 Pots
- 1 Whisk
- 1 Stovetop
Steps for Preparing Hollandaise Sauce
Start preparing the hollandaise sauce by putting the butter in a small saucepan and letting it melt. During cooking, remove the foam on the surface. Set it aside to cool slightly, then strain it.
Then place a larger pot with water on the stove and position a smaller pot above it for the water bath. Be careful that the water does not touch the bottom of the smaller pot and does not come to a boil, otherwise the sauce could curdle.
Pour the yolks into the small pot and start stirring with a whisk.
Continue stirring with a whisk, adding the lemon juice, pepper, and finally the clarified butter slowly. Gradually, the sauce will become lighter and creamier but slightly thicker.
It will take about 5-6 minutes of cooking to achieve a great hollandaise sauce.
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It is preferable to consume it immediately, or at most, store it in the fridge for a day and then reheat it by cooking it again in a water bath.
In different versions of this sauce, shallots are added, or alternatively, chives.
If the sauce has become too thick, you can add a few drops of hot water to reach the right consistency.
FAQ (Questions and Answers)
Why is it called Hollandaise Sauce?
Even though the name might suggest that its origin is attributable to Dutch cuisine, in reality, hollandaise sauce is one of the mother sauces along with béchamel, velouté sauce, Spanish sauce, and tomato sauce in French cuisine. Apparently, it owes its name to being prepared for the first time for a lunch on the occasion of the official visit of the Dutch sovereign to France.
