A piquant sauce, creamy yellow in colour, and made of egg yolks, butter and lemon juice. It is served with vegetables, such as asparagus and broccoli, and with grilled or poached fish and poached eggs.
The main point to remember when making hollandaise sauce is to heat the egg yolks slowly and gradually. It is best to cook the egg yolk mixture in a basin over a saucepan of hot water, or in a double-boiler. Butter is added very gradually to the egg yolk mixture, rather in the way oil is added to mayonnaise, incorporating each small amount before adding the next. If added too quickly, the sauce will not thicken. Unsalted butter is the first choice for making these sauces, but you can also use salted butter.