One-Minute Hollandaise Sauce

One-Minute Hollandaise Sauce 

Recipe by: SUNKIST2

 "It's and  true: fast, easy, and yummy! You can make eggs Benedict, chicken or steak Neptune at home in no time. For a more savory dish, substitute red wine vinegar for the lemon juice and sprinkle in dried tarragon."

1/2 cup butter

2 egg yolks

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 tablespoon milk

salt and ground black pepper to taste

To Make

Heat butter in a microwave-safe measuring cup in the microwave until melted, about 30 seconds.

Whisk egg yolks, lemon juice, milk, salt, and black pepper together in a microwave-safe bowl. Whisk melted butter, a bit at a time, into egg yolk mixture until sauce is smooth.

Cook sauce in the microwave on medium, whisking at 15-second intervals, until sauce is hot and thick, about 1 minute.

Hollandaise Sauce

5. Hollandaise 

This is the one mother sauce not thickened by a roux. Instead, it's thickened by an emulsion of egg yolk and melted butter, which means it's a stable mixture of two things that usually normally can't blend together. This is a very delicate sauce because the emulsion can easily break, and rich hollandaise is usually used as a dipping sauce for asparagus or a finishing sauce for dishes like eggs Benedict.D

 Delicate and refined, Hollandaise sauce is a must in gourmet cooking. The ingredients should be fresh and of high quality. This sauce is ideally served the moment it is ready but  you can keep it in a double bowl boiler (bain marie) for up to 20 minutes after preparation. Separating eggs is essential here as well. 

Ingredients. 

Two Egg Yolk Hollandaise sauce

2 egg yolks

1 tablespoon water

1 to 2 teaspoons lemon juice

100g/ 4 oz unsalted butter

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Three Egg Yolk Hollandaise Sauce

200g / 7oz butter, very cold

3 egg yolks, extra fresh

1 tablespoon ice cold water

Salt and white pepper to taste

1 tablespoon lemon juice, freshly squeezed, pulp removed

Five Egg Yolk Hollandaise Sauce

5 tbsp. water

Pinch salt and ground pepper

500g/8 oz/2 1/4 cups butter

5 egg yolks

1 tablespoon lemon juice

Piquant Blender Hollandaise Sauce

3 egg yolks

1 tablespoon lemon juice 

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

10 tablespoons unsalted butter (if it's salted, don't add salt as well

To Make

Method One of Four:

Three Egg Yolk Hollandaise Sauce

Cut the butter into small chunks with a sharp knife.

Whisk the egg yolks with the tablespoon of water in a heavy-based saucepan.

Put the saucepan over a double boiler base that is simmering over low heat.

Add the chunks of butter gradually, without ceasing to stir, until the sauce is well mixed. 

Add salt and pepper to taste.i

Pour in the lemon juice whilst still adding the remaining butter chunks.

Remove the sauce from the heat once the sauce has a smooth and creamy consistency.

Serve. 

Hollandaise sauce goes well with poached fish, eggs and steamed vegetables.

Method Two of Four:

Five Egg Yolk Hollandaise 

Pour 4 tablespoons of water in the saucepan. Add the salt and freshly ground pepper.

Put the saucepan base into the bain marie (double boiler). The bain marie should already contain hot water but not boiling at any time.

Melt the butter in a separate saucepan. Do not let it get hot, just melt gently.

Crack the eggs and separate the yolks into a bowl. You can use the whites for something else. Beat the egg yolks to combine, then add 1 tablespoon of water. Transfer the egg yolks to the saucepan with warmed water and seasonings.

Whisk the ingredients as they sit in the saucepan within the bain marie. Continue to whisk until the egg yolks take on the consistency of thickened cream.

Pour the melted butter in slowly, whisking constantly. Add 2 tablespoons of water gradually in drops, once the butter has been completely added.

Taste. Adjust the seasoning as needed. Once happy with the flavor, add the lemon juice and stir through quickly

Transfer to a serving container, as desired. If needed, the sauce can be strained. Serve warm.

Method Three of Four:

Two Egg Yolk Hollandaise sauce

Set up the double boiler or bain marie. Add water and gently simmer.

Add the egg yolks to the top portion of the double boiler. Also add the water and 1 teaspoon only of the lemon juice.

Whisk the egg yolks and other ingredients together. Whisk until they begin to slightly thicken.

Pour in the remaining lemon juice. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Transfer to a serving container, as described sired. Serve warm.

 Method Four of Four:

Piquant Blender Hollandaise Sauce

  Place the butter into a small heavy-based saucepan. Melt over gentle heat but do not overheat or boil.

Pour the egg yolks, lemon juice, salt and cayenne into the blender.

Blend together at a medium to medium-high speed. When it lightens in color, it's done (about 20 to 30 seconds).

Switch to the lowest setting on the blender

Gradually tip in the butter, leaving the blender turning at its lowest speed. Allow it to blend a little longer after all the butter has been added.

Turn off the blender. Do a taste test. You can adjust the lemon or salt flavors as needed. If it's too thick, add a little water but not too much. If you add anything, do a very quick blend to combine the additional ingredients.

Transfer to a serving container or keep warm until needed. Serve warm.

Sauce Tomate

4. Sauce Tomate

This is made by cooking tomatoes down into a thick sauce but used to also be thickened with roux. Unlike more modern-day tomato sauces, the classic French tomato sauce is flavored with pork and aromatic vegetables

This oven tomato sauce (sauce tomate) is one of the five mother sauces of French cuisine. Simmering it in the oven creates a rich and savory sauce that can be used as a base for so many dishes!

INGREDIENTS

1-ounce salt pork, chopped

1 white or yellow onion, diced

1 garlic clove, chopped

1/2 cup carrots. diced

1/2 cup celery, diced

1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes (i used San Marzano)

1/2 quart chicken stock

1 teaspoon dried thyme

3-4 sprigs fresh parsley

1 bay leaf

5 crushed black peppercorns (see note)

Salt

To Make

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

In a stockpot over medium heat cook the salt pork until the fat is rendered.

Add the onion, garlic, carrots. and celery to the pot and cook until the veggies start to soften. about 10 minutes.

Add the crushed tomatoes (plus juices), chicken stock, and herbs. Bring the sauce to a boil and then transfer the pot to the oven. Cover and let it simmer in the oven for at least two hours.

After the two hours, remove the pot from the oven and fish out the herbs (see note). Puree the sauce using an immersion blender or in batches with a stand blender.

This recipe makes approximately 4 cups of sauce.

NOTES

I wrapped the herbs and spices in cheesecloth, which makes it easy to remove before pureeing the sauce. If you don’t have cheesecloth you can just toss the herbs in the sauce, but be sure to fish out the bay leaf before pureeing. Also, I recommend eliminating the whole peppercorns and seasoning the sauce at the end with fresh ground pepper. You would not want to bite into a whole peppercorn! Use the sauce as a base for many other recipes that call for tomato sauce. You can also make a big batch and freeze it for later use.

Espagnole

The Five Mother Sauces of Classical French Cuisine.

3. Espagnole

Sauce espagnole is a basic brown sauce. It's made of brown beef or veal stock, tomato puree, and browned mirepoix, all thickened with a very dark brown roux. This sauce is sometimes used at the foundation for boeuf bourguinon and demi-glacé.

What You'll Need

1/2 cup onions, diced

1/4 cup carrots, diced

1/4 cup celery, diced

1 oz clarified butter

1 oz all-purpose flour

3 cups brown stock (i.e. beef stock)

2 tbsp. tomato purée

1 bay leaf

1/2 tsp. dried thyme

3–4 fresh parsley stems

7–8 whole black peppercorns

To Make

Fold the bay leaf, thyme, parley stems and peppercorns in a square of cheese cloth, and tie the corners with a piece of kitchen twine. Leave the string long enough so that you can tie it to the handle of your pot to make it easier to retrieve it.

In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, melt the butter over a medium heat until it becomes frothy.

Add the mirepoix and sauté for a few minutes until it's lightly browned. Don't let it burn, though.

With a wooden spoon, stir the flour into the mirepoix a little bit at a time, until it is fully incorporated and forms a thick paste (this is your roux). Lower the heat and cook the roux for another five minutes or so, until it just starts to take on a very light brown color. Don't let it burn, though! 

Using a wire whisk, slowly add the stock and tomato purée to the roux, whisking vigorously to make sure it's free of lumps.

Bring to a boil, lower heat, add the sachet and simmer for about 50 minutes or until the total volume has reduced by about one-third, stirring frequently to make sure the sauce doesn't scorch at it and the bottom of the pan. Use a ladle to skim off any impurities that rise to the surface.

Remove the sauce from the heat and retrieve the sachet. For an extra smooth consistency, carefully pour the sauce through a wire mesh strainer lined with a piece of cheesecloth.

Serve hot. If you won't be serving the sauce right away, keep it covered and warm until you're ready to use it.

NOTE: You can use store-bought beef stock for making your espagnole, but as always, make sure to use a low-sodium or, if at all possible unsalted, stock. Anytime you're reducing a liquid with salt in it, you'll be concentrating the saltiness, which you might not want to do, especially if you plan to use the resulting sauce to make yet another sauce, which itself might be reduced. Better to season at the very end of cooking

Béchamel Sauce

1. Béchamel

2 tablespoons butter

4 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

3 cups milk

1 teaspoon salt

1 pinch nutmeg

To Make

Measure the ingredients. The ratio of milk to flour to butter is very important in Bechamel sauce, since the texture and flavor of the sauce relies on only these three ingredients. Be sure to use exact measurements: 2 tablespoons butter, 4 1/2 tablespoons flour, and 3 cups milk.

If you prefer a thicker sauce, scale back the flour by 1/2 cup. For a more liquid sauce, add 1/2 cup milk.

Using full fat milk will result in a thicker sauce than using low fat or skim milk.

Warm the milk. Pour the milk into a small saucepan. Set it on a burner and turn the heat to medium low. Warm the milk thoroughly, but do not let it boil. Remove the milk from heat when it is warm and cover. 

If you prefer, you can heat the milk in the microwave. Use a low setting and heat the milk for 1 minute. Check to see if it is heated; if not, place it back in the microwave and heat it for another minute.

If the milk comes to a boil, it's best to start over with new milk, since this can affect the flavor.

Velouté Sauce

2. Velouté

 Velouté sauce is one of the most common sauces found in French cuisine and is often used on poultry or seafood dishes. If you want to make your own velouté sauce, all you need is some butter, flour, stock, and salt and pepper to taste.

2 tsp butter

2 tsp flour

1.5 cups stock. This may be beef, chicken, veal, fish and vegetable, but preferably freshly made. (See tips).

Salt and pepper to taste.

To Make

Melt the butter in a saucepan over low heat and add the flour. Stir well until it has lightened in color to be a blonde roux.

You can make it a dark roux for a more brown color by continuing to cook it until it reaches a desired brown color. Stir continuously to prevent it from burning.

Add the stock to the roux in batches and whisk or stir each batch until smooth.

Cook gently for approximately 5 minutes while stirring regularly to prevent sticking.

Taste to ensure the sauce is smooth and not floury in taste. Velouté should be velvety smooth. Season to taste.

The 5 French Mother Sauces

1. Béchamel

This is roux whisked with milk or other dairy to make a white sauce. Ever made macaroni and cheese or chicken pot pie? The base of both these dishes is béchamel. By itself, béchamel is quite bland, which is why it is usually cooked with other ingredients and not used as a finishing sauce.

2. Velouté

A velouté I’d a light roux whisked with chicken, turkey, fish or any other clear stock. The resulting sauce takes on the flavor of the stock, and the name is derived from the Frenchie.  word for velvet, which aptly describes this smooth but light and delicate sauce. It is usually served over fish or poultry that has been delicately cooked, like by poaching or steaming.

3. Espagnole

Sauce espagnole is a basic brown sauce. It's made of brown beef or veal stock, tomato puree, and browned mirepoix, all thickened with a very dark brown roux. This sauce is sometimes used at the foundation for boeuf bourguinon and demi-glacé.

4. Sauce Tomate

This is made by cooking tomatoes down into a thick sauce but used to also be thickened with roux. Unlike more modern-day tomato sauces, the classic French tomato sauce is flavored with pork and aromatic vegetables

5. Hollandaise 

This is the one mother sauce not thickened by a roux. Instead, it's thickened by an emulsion of egg yolk and melted butter, which means it's a stable mixture of two things that usually normally can't blend together. This is a very delicate sauce because the emulsion can easily break, and rich hollandaise is usually used as a dipping sauce for asparagus or a finishing sauce for dishes like eggs Benedict.

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