Béarnaise Sauce
4.9
(28)
Active Time
20 minutes
Total Time
20 minutes
A descendant of hollandaise, béarnaise is a traditional French sauce with a thick, creamy texture and rich flavor. Built on a basic emulsion of egg yolks, butter, and acid, béarnaise differs from its Mother Sauce in two major ways: first is the source of acid. Classic hollandaise sauce is made with lemon juice, then seasoned simply with salt, and sometimes white pepper and cayenne. Béarnaise instead relies on punchy white wine vinegar, sometimes in concert with fresh lemon. The second major difference is that béarnaise sauce is flavored with sautéed shallots, black pepper, and licorice-like tarragon, occasionally among other fresh herbs.
Some béarnaise recipes call for clarified butter, but sticks of unsalted butter work just as well here (for the richest béarnaise, seek out butter with at least 82% butterfat). Instead of whisking by hand to emulsify the sauce, this recipe streamlines the process with a blender—preferably a high-power model like a Vitamix, but an immersion blender will work too. The process is the same as making a blender hollandaise: Stream in the melted butter slowly—very slowly—to emulsify the egg mixture. Pour the butter in too fast and the sauce will split.
Béarnaise sauce is commonly paired with grilled fish or steak, but it’s just as delicious on roasted vegetables or eggs Benedict. Spoon this silky, herby sauce over roasted asparagus, steamed broccoli, or grilled mushrooms for a sophisticated dinner party side.
Ingredients
Makes about 1 cup
Preparation
Step 1
Melt 1 Tbsp. unsalted butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add 3 medium shallots, finely chopped, and stir to coat; season with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Stir in 2 Tbsp. Champagne vinegar or white wine vinegar, reduce heat to medium-low, and cook, stirring occasionally, until vinegar is evaporated, about 3 minutes. Reduce heat to low and continue to cook, stirring often, until shallots are softened and translucent, about 5 minutes longer. Scrape shallot reduction into a small bowl and let cool.
Step 2
Meanwhile, fill a blender with hot water to warm it. Melt remaining 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into ½" pieces, in a clean small saucepan over medium heat. Once butter starts to foam, pour into a measuring glass.
Step 3
Pour off water from blender; dry well. Add 2 large egg yolks*, 1 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice, and 1 Tbsp. water and blend until mixture is smooth. With motor running, very gradually stream in melted butter, leaving milk solids at bottom of measuring glass behind. Blend until a smooth, creamy sauce forms.
Step 4
Pour sauce into a medium bowl. Stir in shallot reduction and 1 Tbsp. finely chopped tarragon. Taste and season with more salt, pepper, and/or lemon juice if needed.
Do Ahead: Sauce be made 1 hour ahead. Cover and let sit at room temperature.
*Raw egg is not recommended for infants, the elderly, people who are pregnant or have weakened immune systems...or folks who don’t like raw eggs.
Editor’s note: This recipe was originally published in March 2012. Head this way for some French desserts to serve for the final course →
Leave a Review
Reviews (28)
Back to TopThis is a great recipe Béarnaise Sauce , had fun making it over the weekend. Recreated the meal that I get from <a href="https://www.flexpromeals.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer ugc">https://www.flexpromeals.com/</a> delivered. Good quality and fresh.
Vadim
9/30/2023
Wow. I love this Bearnaise. I am not always a big fan but it is my husband 's favorite sauce. Here is a Lovely light Bearnaise that we both adore. I made it exactly according the recipe with fresh tarragon from the garden. It came out perfect. Served it with grilled rib eyes. Excellent.
KC Anderson
Alsace, France
7/11/2023
Do not understand how it has such a low review. It is better than most restaurants if you do it correctly. I grew up in Europe with Bearnaise sauce all the time and finally found a recipe that tasts like it does in Europe. LOVE THIS!!! Definitely try it!
Gina
7/2/2022
As a retired Chef I've made this sauce for over 30 years, a great sauce for steaks, pork chops, fish, especially Trout, easy to make, warning you need to like tart tast!!! Excellent sauce would recommend for any cooks to try!@
Amador Salinas Jr
Cal. But traveled extensively for my first 20 years as a chef, dinner houses, country clubs, and small American restaurants
11/28/2021
The texture is great, however, the vinegar is so overpowering I couldn't eat more than a bite. If I were to make it again I would probably use a dry wine in place of the vinegar. If you are going to use this recipe and don't want to switch out the vinegar, then use much less otherwise, you're going to be overwhelmed with the bite of vinegar.
rwilcox
Florida
3/15/2021
A few points... The main difference between this sauce and Hollandaise is the use of vinegar. Using strictly lemon juice would result in a Hollandaise but the vinegar differs just enough to produce a subtle change in flavor. I've made both using various methods and prefer my food processor. Second point.... the addition of herbs. I've use dill, tarragon, and even basil. The Bernaise sauce should complement the protein you're using and the sides. Third point... don't stress it even Geoffrey Zakarain uses lemon juice and vinegar. This is a simple and easy sauce with a lot of customization
debbiekaycook316
Bronx, NY
9/13/2020
Turned out just the way I remembered. Ty.
Vlandersonn44
8/25/2018
While the addition of lemon juice is a departure from classic bernaise, I enjoyed the brightness that a squeeze added to the final sauce... lighter and brighter. Delicious!
segyyz
Toronto
2/27/2017
Since when does a Bearnaise include lemon juice? And since when are the shallots sweated in butter? This isn't really a shortcut because there simply is no quick and easy way to a Bearnaise sauce. Thanks, but I'll stick to the original. It's magnificent.
worldbeat
Oakland, CA
2/26/2017
LEMON?? Au contraire...Hollandaise, oui. Bearnaise, non! I guess I can't give it ZERO.
kyshel
2/26/2017
I LOVE béarnaise sauce & this is an excellent recipe for making it. I find it pretty easy--much better than a double boiler method. I just have to make sure I buy fresh tarragon at the farmer's market the week I want to make it. Think I added a bit more extra shallots. Instead of running water until it got hot enough, I boiled it to put in blender [we are in severe drought in LA & should not run cold water to wait for hot]. Also, other pro-tip is that I skipped warming butter in small saucepan & just nuked butter in the glass measuring cup until foamy. Make sure you cover the butter w/ plastic wrap in microwave so it does not explode & poke 3 holes in it. yum!
hollandc
los angeles
10/25/2016
This recipe is technical, so not really easy in that sense, but it is a simple and delicious sauce to make once you have done it a few times. It tastes great on garlic baked country pork ribs, London broil and asparagus.
silenteagle999
Ozark, Missouri
8/14/2016
This is a GREAT recipe and easy-ish. I'll be making it again. So delicious!
mimiwan
Arlington, MA
8/7/2016
Super easy and very tasty. Add an extra teaspoon or two of lemon juice.
jessica_granatowski
Austin, TX
2/1/2016
This is amazingly easy and quite good. It dresses up steak, vegetables, and leaves plenty left over for the next morning's Eggs Benedict.
HurricaneCook
Hurricane, WV
6/21/2015
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