Bearnaise Sauce Recipe (With Video)

Yield:

Makes about 1 1/2 cups

Béarnaise sauce is a classic French dish, and one of Martha's favorite sauces. She recommends you try it alongside a pan-seared or grilled steak, or with grilled fish or vegetables. Béarnaise is a relative of Hollandaise sauce; it’s an emulsified butter sauce flavored with wine, shallots, and tarragon. It has a rich texture and tastes "like heaven," according to Martha.

Her béarnaise sauce recipe is a classic preparation, starting with a wine and vinegar reduction, then using a bain marie to gently cook egg yolks and add in butter. That's the only tricky part of making this elegant sauce; keeping the heat low, going slowly, and whisking a lot are key to success.

Directions

Cook wine, vinegar, shallots, tarragon and peppercorns:

Place the white wine, white-wine vinegar, shallots, 2 tablespoons tarragon, and the peppercorns in a small saucepan set over medium-high heat. Bring mixture to a boil, and cook until it is reduced to about 2 tablespoons.
Melt butter:

Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Keep warm until ready to use.
Heat and whisk egg yolks:

Place egg yolks in a copper or stainless-steel bowl that fits snugly in the top of a medium saucepan. Fill the saucepan with 2 inches of water, and bring to a boil. Whisk the yolks, off the heat, until they become pale.
Add wine mixture:

Add wine mixture and salt, and whisk until well combined. Gradually add 1/4 cup boiling water, whisking constantly.
Place bowl over pan of boiling water and cook:

Place bowl over the medium saucepan of boiling water; reduce heat to lowest setting. Whisking constantly, cook until whisk leaves a trail in the mixture and sauce begins to hold its shape. Remove from heat.
Add melted butter to yolk mixture:

Pour the warm, melted butter into a glass measuring cup. Add to yolk mixture, one drop at a time, whisking constantly. After you have added about a tablespoon of the melted butter, you can begin to add it slightly faster, still whisking constantly.

Be careful: If the butter is added too quickly, the emulsion will be too thin or will "break" (separate).
Adjust seasoning, add remaining tarragon:

Once all of the butter has been added, adjust the seasoning with the lemon juice, and stir in the remaining tarragon.

If the bearnaise becomes too thick, you may thin it with a little additional lemon juice or water.
Serving:

If not serving sauce immediately, place pan with sauce over a pot of simmering water that has been removed from heat, or in a warm spot on the stove for up to 1 hour. Alternatively, you may store for up to 3 hours in a clean thermos that has been warmed with hot but not boiling water.

Serving

If not serving the sauce immediately, place pan with sauce over a pot of simmering water that has been removed from heat, or in a warm spot on the stove for up to 1 hour. Alternatively, you may store for up to 3 hours in a clean thermos that has been warmed with hot but not boiling water.