I've been using Julia Child's béarnaise recipe---2 tbl reduction, 3 egg yolks, 4 oz clarified butter---, which produces a very thick sauce. Is this just how it's supposed to be, or is there a non-heretic way of making it thinner?
4
-
1How thick is "very thick"? It's supposed to be as thick as commercial mayonnaise.– FuzzyChefApr 29, 2019 at 1:30
-
@FuzzyChef, yes, I suppose it's about as thick as that.– ToothrotApr 29, 2019 at 4:06
-
1Well, that's the desired texture. If you want it thinner ... whip/cook it less.– FuzzyChefApr 29, 2019 at 4:21
-
1If you make your Béarnaise (or other Hollandaise derivative) over a bain-marie, and everything is clean, you can slacken it with a splash of hot water from there,.– Robin BettsMay 6, 2019 at 14:58
Add a comment
|
2 Answers
The thickness is coming from the ratio of oil to water. Like mayonnaise, bearnaise is an oil-in-water emulsion, and will get thinner the more water is in it. (Consider the relative thickness of moist sand and mud; the butter in the bearnaise is like the sand.) Adding a bit of hot water will work well to thin it, but do so a bit at a time, stirring well afterwards, as a little bit of water will go a long way.
Every sauce is different in viscosity. To test the 'perfect' viscosity, the classic test for it is to see if it coats the back of a spoon smoothly and evenly. To solve your problem, I will suggest that you thin it with water or stock; and don`t use butter or oil.
-
2
-
After you have made a bearnaise sauce , with 'butter', and the sauce is "thick" then one should use water or stock to "THIN" it. Oct 16, 2019 at 14:53