How to make Hollandaise sauce

First things first in the words of Hitch-hikers guide to the galaxy “DON’T PANIC”.  Now that sounds so easy to sat but it is in fact very easy to make and you can make it in a bowl or in a machine the choice is yours.  Also if you can master this you then can make variations on the theme such a béarnaise sauce or pink pepper corn. So don’t be scared give it a go.

Your will need for the basic sauce

3 tbsp white wine

3 tbsp white wine vinegar

3 or 4  peppercorns

1 dried bay leaf

2 eggs, yolks only

125g/4oz butter

Lemon juice, salt, and pepper to taste

Now to start with you need two pans and a bowl , a good whisk and a wet dish cloth. Now you place your bowl on the wet dishcloth and this stops the bowl from moving all around as you whisk what is in it while pouring the hot butter with the other hand.

Now in one pan put your butter and gently melt the butter slowly.  What you want is for the butter to separate and the pure fat to go in the sauce and the white water and butter solids not to go in the sauce. Now you can heat the butter fast and then skim of the solids as well but you do run the risk of burning the butter so I normally favour the slow melt.  Then once the butter has melted, put it in a jug ready to make the sauce, but do not let it get to cold.

While you are melting your butter add the wine, vinegar peppercorns and bay leaf in another saucepan and bring to the boil and reduce a little.  You need it to be at least reduced by half if not more.  Remove the peppercorns and the bay leaf and have it ready to make your sauce.

Now put your egg yolks in a bowl and give them a good whisk.  Keep whisking and add some of the butter, just a little at a time.  You will see that the fats will start to work together and be thickening.  As soon as this starts add a little of the vinegar white wine reduction , then some more butter, then more reduction , then butter and so on till you have used it all up. Then season with lemon juice salt and pepper.  And that is it at its most basic level of how to make Hollandaise sauce.

Now you can put the egg yolks in a food processor and turn it on so that you have given them a good working then do the same and drizzle in the butter and the vinegar reduction in the same way.

Now I have made it a hundred time in both ways and I can tell you that I have had it split on me , the sauce splits because it gets to cold or to hot. If it gets to cold the butter turns to a solid before it fully emulsify with the eggs and if it gets to hot the egg starts to cook and goes solid.  So never, start to work with any thing that is just from the stovetop.  Let it sit for a bit and just cool. Then if it does go wrong you can try the following.

• If it is going to thick, as it is to cold add some hot, not boiling, water.
• If it is going to thick, as it is to cold reheat the butter a little.
• If it is splitting as it is to hot add an ice cube and bring it back.

Trust me that it is not as difficult as you think and you can make it , just be confident and make a little.  Then some more and the next thing you know you will be making if for 150 covers to go over salmon as a glaze in a banquet , well that is what happened to me it might not happen to you.