I think I’m a little dense… I don’t get it.
At any rate, I just wanted to pop back in to announce that I tried the packet mix, and yuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck!!! It certainly ended up looking like nuclear waste. I don’t know if it’s the brand I used, or that I didn’t heat it right, but it turned all lumpy and florescent yellow. But I’m stubborn, so I might give Knorr a try, rather than the cheaper brand that I bought.
I’ve always used McCormicks. I’ve never had lumpy hollandaise sauce from it, but I can be pretty obsessive about working things like that out when I’m cooking. I don’t use the microwave for it, I make it on the stove.
I don’t want all the hassle of cleaning a food processor or my full-sized blender. Anyone have a recipe that uses a stick blender?
Grapefruit: is joke, funny man made a ha-ha.
Sing this to yourself. "Oh, there’s noooo place like hoooome for the holidays … " Now look over the chrome-plated vessel post, and sing to the same tune.
Then, depending on your sense of humor, you may either giggle or barf.
“There’s no place like home for the holidays.”
As much as I don’t like it, your prepackaged hollandaise shouldn’t end up lumpy. It helps if you add the packaged sauce to the melted butter, and incorporate it well before adding the water. Still, your packet hollandaise is going to have a different texture and flavor than the blender/stovetop stuff. The packet version is basically a flavored gravy (starch-thickened), while the blender or stovetop version is an egg yolk emulsion with no starch whatsoever. I also find the packaged stuff has a “sharper” taste to it, as well as a yellower complexion.
I don’t see why a stick blender wouldn’t work with the blender method. The trick is adding the butter in slowly. As long as you do that, almost any method will work.
I make perfectly good hollandaise sauce. Few dishes, fast and holds great and cooks the eggs a little. This a skilled shortcut to restaurant hollandaise. I am a bit reluctant to share. Not because of any sectrets. It just relies on timing and skill. I will do my best to present it here.
I will give no measurements as the exact measurements depenend on the variables introduced during cooking and I don’t know how much you want. Doesn’t really work with less than four yolks. And a 1/4 stick of butter. I can do it but be prepaird for fail.
You will need a whisk a suitable sized pan a kitchen towel and a small pot. A bit of water on the ready.
Melt some butter in the pot. Keep it warm, the lowest setting.
About one egg yolk per serving directly into the pan. No heat yet. Whisk till it thickens a bit. Add lemon juice. Whisk like mad for a bit. Turn up the heat.
Now his is where the skill comes in. I crank it to high but I would not recommended this on your first go. Most recommended a double boiler but I find it a nussance and it takes to long.
Turn up the heat and whisk till it thickens again. Pay close attention to the edges. Dont bother to much with the thermostat. Just move the pan of and on the flame/element to agjust the heat. Now is where I add a few drops of water. Just before you fear it scrambling pull it off the heat and put it on the towel. This will keep the pan from spinning around while you whisk as you will need you hand to pour in the butter as you whisk. Slowly drizzle in the butter and whisk away. It will begin to thicken, really thicken. Keep adding the butter till it is a bit thicker than you would like. Sprinkle bit of water or wine tobasco, worchestershire, and salt to taste. Adjust thickness with water and serve. You can warm it up a bit if you need to. Be careful!!!
This should be done fast. Three min. tops.
Either reaction is acceptable.
Mmm, hollandaise. With fresh asparagus looking especially good in the markets right now, I think I’m getting ideas for weekend meals.
Adding some zest is a great idea. I love lemony flavor.
When I did it professionally, this was the method used:
Place 4 egg yolks in a stainless steel bowl.
Over medium heat, whisk the egg yolks just until the start to slightly thicken.
Remove bowl from heat and place on prep table. (Use a wet kitchen towel to create a rope like ring on the table to hold the bowl. This frees up your hands for other things)
Whisking all the while, slowly pour in from a ladle a thin stream of clarified butter. Do this until the right consistency is reached.
Whisk in a few drops of lemon juice and a pinch of salt.
For Bernaise, reduce some dried tarragon in red wine vinegar until the vinegar is absorbed. Follow the steps above, except omit the lemon juice and add some of the tarragon reduction instead.
Be very careful when adding any water to hollandaise. 1 drop too much and the sauce will break.
Perfect.
Should have read your post before I posted. 
Not true. Mine was bulky and used shortcuts. The double boiler is the way to go. I just can’t be bothered with it. And true.about the water.
Pro tip: if you break your sauce don’t throw it out. Make a perfect small batch and drizzle in the broken sauce. Works for almost all emulsifications.
You don’t need a double boiler at all. It makes life a lot easier, but it’s not necessary if you have the feel and the skill. See the Julia Child recipe I posted above. I briefly worked in the kitchen of a Michelin-starred restaurants back in my college days, and they made Hollandaise and Bernaise directly.
Oooh… okay. I thought it might have something to do with the Wizard of Oz, but just couldn’t parse it. I mean, no place like home, yellow… sauce, etc.
And it’s come to my attention that I didn’t actually use butter for the hollandaise mix. Vegetarian Boyfriend put margarine that looked like a brick of butter into my fridge. :mad: Is that why my sauce ended up lumpy?
As far as I know, that shouldn’t be the reason. I’ve never had a sauce turn out lumpy because of the fat being used–it only turns out lumpy if I try to add starch (flour, arrowroot, cornstarch, etc.) to a hot liquid. You have to dissolve the starch well in fat first or in a cold liquid, otherwise it clumps up.