Ingredients
- 15 Egg yolks
- 2 lbs Butter
- 1 Shallot
- 3 Bunches of Tarragon
- 1/3 Cup White Wine, plus more for consistency
- 1/2 Lemon (The Juice)
Instructions
- Clarify the butter. To do so but the butter in a cold sauce pan and put on medium heat. The butter will melt and a white foam will form on the top. Let it go and the white foam will fall to the bottom. Soon after that you will notice its no longer making steam, take it off the heat. Transfer to a different, metal container or pot to pull heat out of it quicker. Let it rest 10 minutes.
- While its resting, separate 15 eggs. Put the yolks in the bowl of a food processor.
- Brunoise, or very finely dice, a shallot. Add it to a small sauce pan with white wine. Reduce it down au sec, or until all liquid is gone.
- Put the butter into something you can pour from, like a measuring cup or 1/6th pan, if it is not already.
- Turn on the food processor with the egg yolks in it. Add in the lemon juice and let it process for about 20 seconds.
- Start pouring the butter in, very slowly at first. After about 15 to 25 seconds you will see it start to thicken up and steam will form in the food processor. You can start adding the butter a little faster. If the butter starts to pool on top, stop and let the machine catch up. Try and pour the butter at the spot where the processor blade meets the center spindle. This will mix the butter better and cool it down slightly before it hits the egg.
- Once all the butter is added, let it process for another 15 seconds and then stop the food processor.
- It will probably be too thick, thin it out with a little white wine, mix with pulses of the food processor. Goal consistency is a nice thick gravy. It should be barely pourable.
- Transfer into a serving dish or 1/6th pan. Add in the shallot mixture.
- Finely dice the tarragon leaves and mix in. Add salt to taste, 2 good sized pinches of kosher salt always did it for me.
Notes
- Read all of these steps before starting, once you hit step 5 you will need to focus and will not be able to read this.
- This is the exact recipe the fine dining steakhouse I worked at used. At least this much was made and used, every single night.
- The most common way this dish is ruined is too hot butter, or butter poured in too quickly. You need to temper the eggs or they will scramble. My trick with pouring in that specific spot always made it much easier. I could clarify the butter, transfer to a 6th pan, and then make the sauce in the processor within 5 minutes this way.
