Eggs Benedict with Hollandaise Sauce
Classic Eggs Benedict features soft, poached eggs over warm Canadian bacon, toasted English muffin, and topped with a smooth and buttery Hollandaise sauce.
One of my main reasons for creating this site was to share recipe for classic restaurant dishes that people love to order. (And some of my unique and original recipes as well, of course.) Eggs Benedict is one of the most ordered brunch dishes at restaurants and I can’t wait to show you how to make it at home.
There are few KEY elements to this dish are poached eggs and the Hollandaise sauce. Many people are intimidated by homemade Hollandaise sauce but I have to say, it only has 5 ingredients and I have the BEST tip to make it foolproof at home!
For more special and brunch recipes, check out our Frittata Recipe and Shakshuka recipe.
Tips To Make Hollandaise Sauce
- It’s best to use a double boiler but if you don’t have one, use a sauce pot with a glass mixing bowl fitted into it (make sure that the bowl fits about half way in but not touching the water!
- Be sure to not put the top part of the double boiler into the warm water until the eggs are whisked well, or you will cook your eggs!
- Important Tip: To make it easy, use an immersion blender with a whisk attachment (or a hand mixer with 1 whisk attachment) to make Hollandaise sauce. Seriously, this is the way any home cook can make the sauce super easy! No extra whisking effort.
- Make sure to SLOWLY drizzling in the butter while constantly whisking. Be careful not to drizzle the butter in too quickly.
- To tell if the sauce is done, you are looking for a very pale yellow color and light, airy, and smooth texture.
Tips For Perfectly Poached Eggs
- Important Tip: To make the poached eggs easier to add to the water, crack them into individual small bowls.
- Bring the water to a gentle boil (not a roaring boil) over medium heat.
- Don’t skip the white vinegar!
- Swirl the water with a spoon right as you add the egg, this will help keep the white around the yolk because it will kind of wrap it around.
- Remove the eggs from the water carefully, you don’t want to break the yolk.
How to Store Hollandaise Sauce
- Store this homemade sauce either in a plastic zip-top bag, or in a glass food storage container. Personally, I keep it in a glass food storage container and place a sheet of plastic wrap over the sauce and make sure it’s touching the sauce before closing the airtight container.
- Hollandaise sauce will be good in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.
- To reheat Hollandaise sauce, I do not recommend using the microwave, because you run a high risk of it overheating quickly. Instead, reheat the sauce slowly in a bottom heavy sauce pot over medium-low heat. Make sure to stir it slowly while it’s reheating.
What Other Meats Can Be Used In Eggs Benedict
If you don’t love Canadian bacon, there are so many other options for protein or vegetables. Get creative and use:
- Smoked Salmon
- Hot Smoked Salmon
- Bacon
- Ham
- Crab Cakes
- Pulled Pork
- Roasted Vegetables
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Eggs Benedict Recipe
Equipment
- Double boiler
- Hand blender with whisk attachment
- Pot
- Skillet or a cooking pan
Ingredients
Hollandaise Sauce:
- 1 cup unsalted butter melted
- 4 egg yolks
- 1 tbsp fresh squeezed lemon juice about 1/2 lemon
- 1 tsp sea salt or coarse salt
- pinch cayenne pepper to taste
Eggs Benedict:
- 4 English muffins
- 8 eggs
- 1 tbsp white vinegar for poaching eggs
- 8 slices Canadian bacon
- dill weed, parsley, or chives for garnish
Instructions
- Important TIP: To make Hollandaise sauce, you would have to whisk very vigorously and constantly for several minutes. Use a immersion blender with a whisk attachment to make it easy on yourself!
Hollandaise sauce:
- Melt butter either in a microwave or in a sauce pot on the stove.
- Heat up water in the double boiler over medium heat (make sure that the water in the bottom pot doesn't touch the top pot). If you don't have a double boiler, use a glass or metal mixing bowl to set on top of another pot. Don't put the top part on yet or you will cook your eggs.
- Whisk eggs with lemon juice in the top pot of double boiler but not over the hot water. Whisk vigorously until the yolks start to lighten in color (this is where that immersion blender with a whisk attachment comes is super handy!)
- Place the top pot onto the bottom pot that is on the stove and start slowly drizzling in butter while whisking constantly and vigorously! (Again, thank yourself for using the immersion blender.)Make sure not to drizzle too fast and take breaks for a couple of seconds if needed.
- Continue whisking as the sauce lightens, thickens and about doubles in size.
- Take off heat and stir in salt and cayenne pepper. Transfer into the serving dish and cover with saran wrap while preparing Eggs Benedict.
Eggs Benedict:
- Crack the eggs and divide them into individual ramekins of small bowls. (This will make it easier to add them to water.)
- You can set a pan to preheat over medium heat to toast English muffins and sear Canadian bacon at the same time to save time and extra equipment.
- Fill up a pot with at least 3 inches of water. (Note that the pot should be wide enough to give each egg some cooking space.)
- Bring water to gentle boil over medium heat (not a hard boil) and add a tablespoon of vinegar.
- Stir the water a few times and then carefully add eggs one at a time. Cook eggs for 3-3 1/2 minutes and take them out with a slopped spoon. (Be careful not to break the egg because the yolks are still soft and runny.)
- While the eggs are cooking, you can put together the bread and meat. Place two English muffins onto each place and add a slice of Canadian bacon to each English muffin.
- Place a poached egg on top of each English muffin and generously drizzle Hollandaise sauce on top. Garnish with dill weed, parsley, or chives if you wish.
Video
Notes
- More Ways to Use Hollandaise: There are so many incredible ways to enjoy this homemade sauce. I love drizzling hollandaise sauce over Eggs Florentine, cooked vegetables like broccoli and asparagus, and breakfast dishes like Crustless Quiche and Sausage Breakfast Casserole.
- Storing Hollandaise Sauce: Store this homemade sauce in an air-tight food storage container. Personally, I keep it in a glass food storage container and place a sheet of plastic wrap over the sauce and make sure it’s touching the sauce before closing the airtight container. Hollandaise sauce will be good in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.
- To reheat Hollandaise sauce, I do not recommend using the microwave, because you run a high risk of it overheating quickly. Instead, reheat the sauce slowly in a bottom heavy sauce pot over medium-low heat. Make sure to stir it slowly while it’s reheating.
Nutrition
Some More Brunch Recipes To Try
There are two cardinal rules for hosting the best brunch – you must serve delicious food and refreshing cocktails!
When you serve this delicious Eggs Benedict, make sure you accompany them with some of these brunch-favorite cocktails.
You can also accompany your Eggs Benedict crunch with other dishes like French Toast and Ricotta Pancakes.
Originally published on Will Cook For Smiles in February, 2014.
All images and text ©Lyubov Brooke for ©Will Cook For Smiles. Please do not use my images without prior permission. If using my posts in collections and features, please link back to this post for the recipe.
Disclaimer: Nutrition information shown is not guaranteed to be 100% accurate as most ingredients and brands have variations.
I love age Benedict but I can’t remember the recipe for the sauce so I’d appreciate this and thank you have a wonderful Sunday
You are so welcome, glad I could help! 🙂
My eggs curdled why?
First time making hollandaise sauce and poached eggs, and it came out amazing!
I halved everything except the lemon juice for the sauce because I didn’t want to waste that much butter if something went horribly wrong. I mixed it by hand, so while it was work, it is doable! I also used peppered bacon instead of Canadian bacon. My husband and daughter said not only is this the best eggs benedict they’ve ever had, it might be the best thing I’ve ever made! Needless to say, they have some high expectations now!
I am so glad you liked it, Kelly!
I’ve made traditional eggs Benedict for NYrs day for ages but didn’t have my old recipe with me this trip. Do I looked at many recipes and settled on this one. I liked the melted butter instead of adding cubed butter. Quick tasty. And easy. Although on last plating sauce broke but added a few tsp of water snd all was well. Thx!
I am so happy you liked it, Sandra!
I’ve made traditional eggs Benedict for NYrs day for ages but didn’t have my old recipe with me this trip. Do I looked at many recipes and settled on this one. I liked the melted butter instead of adding cubed butter. Quick tasty. And easy. Although on last plating sauce broke but added a few tsp of water snd all was well. Thx!
The amount of ads on this page is ridiculous
I don’t usually comment but I made this for a Father’s Day brunch and it was amazing! Better than some restaurants!
I am so glad you liked it!