Poached Eggs, Bearnaise

A brief professional formula that assumes you already have béarnaise standing ready. The eggs are the easy part; the sauce and the timing of the toast decide whether it works.

• Scale and yieldTwelve eggs on six slices of toast serves six, two eggs each, as a lunch or supper dish. Halve it comfortably; three quarts of water is more than enough for six eggs.
• The acid and saltTwo tablespoons of vinegar in three quarts is a light hand, and deliberately so — more will flavour the whites and toughen them. Whether salt in the water helps the whites set is disputed; here it is chiefly seasoning.
• Water temperature"Boiling water" is the period shorthand for a poaching pot, but a rolling boil shreds the whites. Bring it to the boil, then hold it at a bare tremble, around 180-190F, before the eggs go in.
• Three minutesThat gives a set white and a liquid yolk — correct for this dish, since the yolk is part of the sauce once cut. If you want the yolk firmer, four minutes is the limit before it goes chalky against a rich béarnaise.
• "Trim neatly"Restaurant practice: lift each egg with the skimmer and cut away the ragged skirt of white with a knife or the edge of a round cutter so the egg sits as a clean oval. Drain on a cloth first, or the toast goes to pulp.
• Holding the béarnaiseThis is the hinge. Béarnaise will curdle if taken much above roughly 160F, and it stiffens as it cools toward room temperature, so hold it in a warm bain-marie around 130-140F and whisk it smooth just before pouring. Do not make it hours ahead.
• Egg safety, plainlyNeither the poached yolks nor a warm-held béarnaise can be assumed to be pasteurised; pasteurisation depends on time as well as temperature. For anyone pregnant, elderly, very young or immune-compromised, use pasteurised eggs for the sauce.
• Assemble at the last minuteToast, eggs and sauce all cool fast and the toast softens within a minute or two. Warm the platter, toast last, and pour as it goes to the table.