Hollandaise sauce is a wonderfully silky and tasty emulsion of melted butter, egg yolks and lemon. Notorious for being difficult to make, it’s surprisingly quick and easy if you use a processor or blender – and it’s actually quite versatile, both in terms of different flavours (see below) and what you can serve it with.
Whizz three egg yolks, 1 tablespoon of lemon juice, salt and pepper in a blender until pale and smooth. Slowly pour in 180g melted butter with the motor running. Leave to rest for one minute before serving, or gently reheat in a bowl set over simmering water.
While a classic with the traditional eggs benedict, you can also serve over vegetables such as asparagus or brocolli, with steak as an alternative to béarnaise, or as a sauce on savoury French toast.
4 ways to get creative with hollandaise:
1. Coriander and lime hollandaise: Swap the lemon juice for lime juice and blend in a handful of chopped coriander, serve with seafood.
2. Pesto hollandaise: Make the base recipe, then whisk in a teaspoon of pesto (taste and add more if desired). Serve with asparagus, broccoli or eggs.
3. Smoked paprika hollandaise: Whisk ½ a teaspoon of smoked paprika into the finished sauce for a Tex-Mex take on eggs bene.
4. Turmeric hollandaise: Swap the lemon juice for orange and blend in up to ½ a teaspoon of ground turmeric. Add a little at a time so the subtle flavour and golden hue will enhance but not overpower the sauce.
