Asparagus with Lemon and Tarragon Hollandaise (2024)

FAQs

What is a hollandaise sauce with tarragon called? ›

Béarnaise sauce is a piquant child of hollandaise, one of the so-called mother sauces of French cuisine. It is simply an emulsification — egg yolks and butter cut through with vinegar flavored with tarragon and shallots, with a bite of black pepper.

Lemon juice or vinegar helps keep the hollandaise from separating and also adds a touch of acidity for flavour. I much prefer white wine vinegar for its flavour. The eggs need to be cooked, so as you'll see, we'll be heating up the butter so it's bubbling (but not burnt).

What do I do if my hollandaise sauce is too lemony? You can either start again, or try adding another egg yolk and a bit more melted butter.

It's what happens next that sets them apart: Hollandaise gets its acidity from lemon juice (sometimes vinegar) and is usually seasoned with salt, white pepper, and cayenne pepper. Béarnaise, meanwhile, builds upon hollandaise with white wine vinegar, shallots, tarragon, and other fresh herbs.

French tarragon has a pungent, licorice-like taste due to the presence of estragole, an organic compound that gives fennel, anise and tarragon their distinct flavors. French tarragon is generally cultivated from cuttings or through division.

Hollandaise should be held between 120F to 145F (49 to 63C) so it does not split or curdle. If the sauce is heated above 150F, the eggs can overcook, become grainy and the sauce can potentially split.

How do you fix a runny hollandaise? Blenders tend to make runny hollandaise - it's usually because the butter was too cold and hasn't cooked the eggs enough to thicken them. To thicken a runny hollandaise, tip the mixture into a heatproof bowl set over simmering water and whisk over the heat until thickened.

Hollandaise Sauce should be served warm (it will be warm as soon as you finish making it) or at coolest, room temperature. Note that it thickens as it cools.

Tips & Techniques > Troubleshooting Hollandaise

If the heat is too high, the egg yolks will curdle and the sauce will become grainy. When a sauce splits, this means that the fat has separated from the egg foam (the sauce has lost its emulsion). The result will look thin, greasy, and lumpy.

Why Does Hollandaise Sauce Break? Over-heating or overcooking the egg yolks is one culprit. Next time, be sure to use a double boiler and heat the yolks gently to avoid overcooking them. The second cause is either adding too much butter or adding it too quickly.

Should hollandaise taste lemony? ›

If you've never experienced the magic of hollandaise sauce, let me attempt to describe it to you. It's a very simple savory sauce made with butter, egg yolk, lemon, and salt. It has a smooth, velvety texture with just the right amount of bright lemon flavor to keep it from being too heavy.

The difference is only in the flavoring: béarnaise uses shallot, black pepper, and tarragon, while hollandaise uses white pepper or a pinch of cayenne. The sauce's name derives from the province of Béarn, France.

Sauce au vin blanc (for fish) is hollandaise with a reduction of white wine and fish stock. Sauce Bavaroise is hollandaise with cream, horseradish, and thyme. Sauce crème fleurette is hollandaise with crème fraîche. Sauce Dijon, also known as sauce moutarde or sauce Girondine, is hollandaise with Dijon mustard.