Recipes brought to you by Avanti Savoia
Visit us online at www.avantisavoia.com
Email this recipe to a friend 
Béarnaise Sauce (made with tarragon vinegar)
Be the first to review this recipe.
(Recipe ID: 262)
Serves 6
Source: Chef Joseph Lowery
The French chef that taught me to make Béarnaise insisted on using clarified butter for all emulsified sauces; however the New Orleans influenced chefs of the gulf coast preferred to use whole butter. I like the whole butter version better and it’s quicker to prepare. Do not use an aluminum pan when making this recipe.
Ingredients
Items indicated with an astrisk (*) available for purchase in the Avanti Savoia store. See below to add these items to your cart.
- 2 Tablespoons shallots, minced
- 1/2 cup tarragon vinegar
- 1/2 cup dry white wine
- 2 tablespoons dried chervil or parsley
- 3 egg yolks
- 1 cup unsalted butter, melted
- 1 pinch cayenne pepper
- 1 pinch ground nutmeg *
- 1 pinch ground white pepper *
- salt to taste
Instructions
- Combine minced shallots, tarragon vinegar, wine, tarragon and chervil or parsley.
- Bring to simmer in a small saucepan and reduce liquid to a little less than 1/3 cup.
- Remove saucepan from heat and allow to cool.
- Separate eggs and place yolks in a round stainless steel bowl. Reserve whites for another purpose.
- Strain cooked herb mixture from the saucepan, reserving herbs, and add reserved liquid to egg yolks and whisk well.
- Select a pan a little wider in diameter than the bowl with the egg yolks in it so that the bowl can spin freely. Fill pan with about an inch of water and bring the water to a gentle simmer. Do not bring to a boil.
- Place bowl of egg yolks and reduction liquid into the pan of simmering water, rotating bowl quickly and whipping yolks briskly with a wire whisk.
- Slowly at first, dribble in a few drops of the melted butter, whisking constantly. As the sauce emulsifies, continue to add the remaining butter, a little at a time, until all the sauce has thickened. The stainless steel bowl may have to be removed and then returned to the heat several times while the butter is being added to maintain the proper consistency.
- Add a heaping tablespoon of the reserved shallots/herb mixture and the pinches of cayenne, nutmeg and white pepper. Add salt to taste.
- If necessary, the sauce may be thinned by beating in a little warm water. Enjoy Béarnaise sauce with roast beef and just about anything off the grill. Serve warm but do not try to reheat as it will brake and curdle.
Buy Ingredients
The following ingredients are available in the Avanti Savoia online store. Click the product name for more information.