Took me 45 minutes to figure out why my hollandaise kept breaking

I was making eggs benedict for a brunch special last Saturday and my hollandaise split three times in a row. Turns out my burner was running too hot even on the lowest setting, so the bowl was getting too much indirect heat. Has anyone else had a simple temperature issue silently ruin their sauces for way longer than it should have?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_taylor1mo agoMost Upvoted

Back in college I tried making hollandaise for a roommates birthday breakfast and ended up with scrambled eggs with lemon butter like three times in a row. The dumb thing was I kept blaming the eggs thinking they were old or something. Turns out the glass bowl I was using had a tiny crack I didnt see and it was letting steam get into the sauce from the simmering water below. Wasted like a dozen eggs and a whole stick of butter before my roommate pointed it out.

mason_lopez1mo ago

Honestly I gotta disagree here. My first job in a kitchen we had this old flattop that was so uneven you could literally see the oil bubbling differently on each side. But with hollandaise specifically I think most people blame temperature when the real issue is they're adding the butter too fast or not whisking hard enough. I've made it on camp stoves and even over a sterno can and never had it break if I kept the emulsion tight and took my time with the butter. Temperature matters sure but it's kind of a scapegoat for technique problems in my experience.

ruby_henderson361mo ago

My buddy once tried making hollandaise in a car engine bay after the tailgate grill died.