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Bernaise Sauce
Place on one side of the stove in a saucepan 2 tablespoonfuls of tarragon or common vinegar and 2 of water, and a slice of onion. While this is heating, cream 4 tablespoonfuls of butter and beat very light the yolks of 3 eggs, to which add 1/2 teaspoonful of salt and paprika. Remove the onion from the heated vinegar and beat in rapidly the beaten yolks. Stir until of a creamy consistency; then add a spoonful at a time of the butter, beating all the time, so as to have the sauce very light.
A compact béarnaise built on the same principle as hollandaise: warm acid, yolks, then butter beaten in gradually. The whole thing succeeds or fails on heat control.
- "On one side of the stove"On a wood or coal range this meant the cooler edge of the top, away from the firebox. Translate it as the lowest burner setting, or better, a bowl over barely simmering water, which keeps the heat gentle and off direct flame.
- The hinge: keep the yolks below the scramble pointYolks set into grains around 180F. Beat constantly and pull the pan off the heat the moment the mixture thickens to a coating consistency, roughly 160-170F. If it begins to look granular, take it off and whisk in a teaspoon of cold water at once.
- Butter, creamed"Cream 4 tablespoonfuls of butter" means beat it soft and smooth, not melt it. Added a spoonful at a time it both enriches and cools the sauce, which is part of why the method works. Use unsalted butter and adjust the salt at the end.
- Reduce the vinegar further than you thinkTwo tablespoons vinegar and two of water is a lot of thin liquid for three yolks. Let it cook down by roughly half with the onion in it before straining out the onion, or the finished sauce will be slack and sharp.
- TarragonThe recipe allows either tarragon or common vinegar; tarragon vinegar supplies the herb flavour associated with bvinegar. If you use plain vinegar, steep a tablespoon of chopped fresh tarragon in it while it heats and add a little more, chopped, at the end.
- PaprikaThe quantity is ambiguous: it may mean half a teaspoon of salt plus paprika to taste, or half a teaspoon of each. Sweet paprika contributes more colour than heat; if you want the sauce sharper, a pinch of cayenne will do it.
- Yield and servingAbout two-thirds of a cup, enough for four servings. Serve it warm, not hot, alongside grilled steak, poached fish or shellfish; it will separate if reheated over direct heat.