Béarnaise Sauce

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •1-quart stainless-steel saucier or small saucepan
• •Wider saucepan for the bain-marie
• •Small balloon whisk
• •Fine-mesh sieve
• •Heatproof bowl
• •Instant-read thermometer, optional

Instructions

1. 1

   Prepare gentle heat

   Put an inch of water into a saucepan wide enough to hold the small saucier without its base touching the water. Bring it to the barest simmer. Melt the butter separately over low heat until just liquid, without coloring it, then hold it at about 45 to 50°C (113 to 122°F). Hot butter can shock the yolks; cold butter tightens the emulsion before it has formed.

   The butter remains whole, milk solids and all, because that is what the source formula requires. Melt it gently, but don't clarify or brown it.
2. 2

   Make the reduction

   Combine the shallot, tarragon stalks, chervil, mignonette, salt, and vinegar in a 1-quart saucier or small stainless-steel saucepan. Bring the vinegar to a lively simmer over medium-low heat and reduce it by two-thirds. When the herbs are pressed aside, about 2 1/2 teaspoons of sharp, concentrated liquid should collect at the bottom. Don't let the shallot or herbs brown. The quantity of greenery will look alarming. It is exactly right, and nearly all of it will be strained away.

   Weigh the reduction herbs if possible. Their generous proportion comes directly from the source formula, and their job is to perfume the vinegar deeply before the sauce passes through the sieve.
3. 3

   Thicken the yolks

   Take the pan off the heat and let it cool for 2 to 3 minutes, until it feels warm rather than fiercely hot. Whisk the three yolks directly into the unstrained reduction. Set the pan over the bain-marie (gentle water bath) and whisk briskly, lifting it away from the water whenever the sides grow hot, until the yolks become pale and creamy and hold the trace of the whisk. The yolks alone create the liaison, the binding and thickening of the sauce, so give them gradual heat rather than a boil.

4. 4

   Whisk in butter

   Begin adding the warm melted butter a few drops at a time, whisking each addition fully into the yolks. Once roughly one-third of the butter is incorporated and the sauce looks glossy, pour the rest in a very thin stream while whisking without pause. Move the pan on and off the bain-marie to control the heat. The finished emulsion should fall from the whisk in a thick ribbon, not sit like paste. If it becomes oily or curdled, stop adding butter and remove it from the heat. Ça se rattrape: whisk in 1 teaspoon of cool water. If it remains broken, whisk the optional fresh yolk with another teaspoon of water in a clean, warm bowl, then incorporate the broken sauce one teaspoon at a time until it is whole again.

   If the sauce grows too thick before all the butter is incorporated, loosen it with a few drops of warm water. Thickness is adjusted with water, never with higher heat.
5. 5

   Sieve and finish

   Immediately press the sauce through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean, warm bowl. This is the home equivalent of rubbing it through a tammy, and it removes the fibrous stalks while leaving their flavor behind. Stir in the finely chopped chervil and tarragon leaves, then add the suspicion of cayenne. Taste and correct the salt. If the sauce no longer flows softly from a spoon, whisk in warm water a few drops at a time.

6. 6

   Serve it tepid

   Serve the Béarnaise at once, or hold its bowl over warm water for no more than 30 minutes, whisking occasionally. It should remain tepid, around 45 to 50°C (113 to 122°F), because direct reheating or very hot water will turn it. Spoon it generously over grilled beef, lamb, or poultry. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Buy several generous bunches of tarragon and chervil. Use the tarragon stalks and most of the chervil in the reduction, then reserve a few perfect leaves of each for the finish. Dried herbs can't build the same fresh, anise-scented backbone.
• •Real butter, gently melted. We don't apologize for butter, and margarine or a reduced-fat spread cannot form this emulsion because its water and fat behave differently.
• •Béarnaise waits badly. Arrange the meat, plates, and guests before the yolks meet the reduction, then make the sauce last. Cooking well is not cooking fancy, but timing matters.
• •Use pasteurized shell eggs when serving pregnant guests, very young children, older adults, or anyone with reduced immunity. The sauce is cooked gently and served tepid, never subjected to the hard heat of a fully cooked egg dish.
• •With grilled beef, pour a firm Bordeaux or a Cabernet Franc from the Loire. The wine should have enough freshness to meet the vinegar and enough structure to stand beside the butter.

Advance Preparation

• •The shallot, tarragon, chervil, pepper, salt, and vinegar reduction can be made up to 2 days ahead. Cool it promptly, cover it, and refrigerate it in the saucier; warm it gently before adding the yolks.
• •The herbs can be washed, dried thoroughly, and chopped several hours ahead. Keep the reduction herbs and finishing leaves in separate covered containers in the refrigerator.
• •Make the finished sauce close to serving. It may be held tepid for about 30 minutes, but it should not be chilled and reheated. Discard any sauce left unrefrigerated for more than 2 hours.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 40g)