Reheating hollandaise

[koukouvagia]

How do you reheat hollandaise?  And why do people consider hollandaise as having raw eggs, isn't it heated through? 

 

[phatch]

I've never reheated hollandaise. I have my doubts it can be done successfully.

I thinkI'd start in a double boiler whisking like mad and have the extra yolks and water handy and be ready to try to fix the broken sauce.

But in all honesty, I'd probably really just make a new small batch. It's easy enough and fast enough to just make as needed and discard any extra. I often only work with 1 yolk for a batch.

 

[abbot]

Heat it up on the cooktop to pretty warm, add an egg yolk and put it in the blender.

 

[petemccracken]

WHY?

 

[foodpump]

You can't.

Seen a few cooks heat it up untill it breaks, then strain off the butter and use it over again, but I never subscribed to that.

Make it fresh and in small quantities.... 

 

[prairiechef]

If you cook the egg yolk, you make scrambled eggs.

I suppose you could make Hollandaise and keep the temperature at a perfect 60 degrees celsius, never going over it during preparation, and have a pasteurized hollandaise. But the yolks would not be "cooked". That happens at around 65 degrees.

Most of us don't have perfect temperature regulated water baths in which to prepare our sauces, so we do it over an open flame, never reaching 60 degrees for a steady 3.5 minutes for pasteurization, and never cooking the eggs. So, for all practical purposes, the eggs in hollandaise sauce are "raw".

Which leads me to the next point... why would you want to reheat hollandaise? Practicality aside, It has the potential to be a bacterial stew just waiting to make someone ill.

 

[chrisbelgium]

Béarnaise, Hollandaise, mousseline etc. can turn out too thick even when making it and certainly when it cools down.

THE trick to loosen it again is to add a tbsp of very hot water. Plain and simple.

These sauces are never served hot, always luke warm.

A good dosage may prevent left-overs; I mostly make Hollandaise for 2 or 3 people and it's mostly gone. I use 2 eggyolks, 2 tbsp of water and a very small dash of lemonjuice (about 1 teaspoon), start whisking on the smallest fire and remove the pot frequently from the fire. It takes around 5 minutes of vigourous beating to get to the next stage.

When doubled in volume and no liquid left over at the bottom of the pan, add small cubes of fresh butter, a few at a time and keep stirring until dissolved. I guess I use no more than 50 grams of butter (in fact; to taste)!!! Taste for seasoning; add more lemonjuice if needed and s& white pepper.

Using clarified butter is old skool; raw butter gives a nicer taste much faster so you don't need an excess of butter to make Hollandaise or similar sauces. You don't need to believe me, just try it.

 

[chrisbelgium]

.... So, for all practical purposes, the eggs in hollandaise sauce are "raw".

Not quite, chef. Before you add the butter, you need a temperature in the starting eggyolk mixture of 82°C to get a nice binding. I wouldn't call that "raw".

 

[titomike]

imho...the eggs are cooked the way a brulee is cooked without splitting (over-cooking)...

Not reaching the ribbon stage (& thus removing the smell of raw egg) will not produce as light & voluminous (Tbsp of hot water helps) sauce and is less likely to brown under the grill without splitting...a test of good technique

For speed I always make it over a direct flame and then pass it...I pour in the clarified butter and discard the buttermilk & whey but now I see the sense in replacing the water used earlier with this more flavourful by-product...

For flavour I firmly believe in a proper reduction but still finish with lemon juice though we pre-make it so as to always have on hand...

The quickest way to fix a split holly is to whisk it slowly into a splash of warmed cream...once cold this and other methods are notoriously unreliable...I've tried & failed enough to be sure. Re-using the flavoured, seasoned butter is also problematic...you're better off saving for saute go fresh!

 

[koukouvagia]

How do restaurants keep hollandaise on hand then throughout a busy day?  there has to be some way.

When my hollandaise breaks I take it off the heat and add a dash of cold heavy cream.  Usually binds it right up.  I like to add just a pinch of cornstarch as well, it help sit bind and becomes nice and thick rather than runny.

 

[phatch]

Thermos. Pour some boiling water in the thermos to basically pre-heat it. Pour it out, pour in the hollandaise. Cap and hold. Will hold an hour or so this way , or so I've read. I've not personally done this.

 

[prairiechef]

"Not quite, chef. Before you add the butter, you need a temperature in the starting eggyolk mixture of 82°C to get a nice binding. I wouldn't call that "raw".  "

Ok. Go heat an egg yolk to 85 degrees, tell me what happens. No the egg yolk cannot reach 85 degrees... or they will solidify. All the stirring in the world will not keep them from coagulating at that temperature. It is the lecithin contained in the egg yolk that "binds" (properly "emulsifies") the butter into the sauce. Lecithin will emulsify both water and oil. These properties are not made "better" by heating to 85 degrees celsius.

restaurants won't "hold a hollandaise all day long", if they're worth their salt. They will make a new batch as needed.

Uncooked cornstarch in a sauce does not sound pleasant, regardless of stablizing properties.

and adding whipped cream to a hollandaise means it's no longer a hollandaise, it becomes a mousseline.

 

[petemccracken]

How do restaurants keep hollandaise on hand then throughout a busy day?  there has to be some way.

For me, it is simple, it takes about five minutes for a batch, I make it as necessary

Mise en place:

• Reduction, prepped & cooked and in cooler in the anticipated quantity for service
• Eggs yolks separated and portioned for batches
• Lemon juice
• Clarified butter ( my preference)

Batches sized for 15-30 minutes of service.

 

[kuan]

THE trick to loosen it again is to add a tbsp of very hot water. Plain and simple.

More like a couple drops.

 

[koukouvagia]

Over the weekend I did a search on google about "how to reheat hollandaise" and up popped my post first thing.  So I had some hollandaise left over in the fridge and I didn't want to throw it out.  To me, hollandaise is expensive stuff with all the yolks and butter in it!  When I first posted this I believe I threw out my perfectly good hollandaise because I didn't want to reheat it.  But this time I stuck it in the microwave.  Heated for 5sec and stirred.  Another 5sec and stirred.  I did this about 4times until the hollandaise was warm.  It didn't split, it held together and it was delicious the next day.  So, there is a way.  I stopped using cornstarch long ago though, don't do that anymore 

 

[kuan]

This is good to know.  

 

[ed buchanan]

I know of no state, city or county Health Dept that would permit this. For the risk involved it's not worth saving. And no the yolks are not cooked and you have left it out at higher then average room temp then refrigerated it then reheated again. The Bacteria and salmonella count would have to be high.  I would not eat it therefore I would not serve it.

 

[foodpump]

 
Ok. Go heat an egg yolk to 85 degrees, tell me what happens. No the egg yolk cannot reach 85 degrees... or they will solidify. All the stirring in the world will not keep them from coagulating at that temperature. It is the lecithin contained in the egg yolk that "binds" (properly "emulsifies") the butter into the sauce. Lecithin will emulsify both water and oil. These properties are not made "better" by heating to 85 degrees celsius.

restaurants won't "hold a hollandaise all day long", if they're worth their salt. They will make a new batch as needed.

Uncooked cornstarch in a sauce does not sound pleasant, regardless of stablizing properties.

and adding whipped cream to a hollandaise means it's no longer a hollandaise, it becomes a mousseline.

Ummm.. I know this is a very old post, but I just noticed this post.

Yes you can heat a yolk to 85, you can heat rocks to 85.  The thing is, you are making a sabayon when you add liquids (ie reductions, water etc) to the yolk and beat over heat.  No liquids added to the yolk plus heat, and you have an inedible mess.

When you make a holly with a good sabayon, the only time it will split is when you subject it to very high temperatures.

 

[ed buchanan]

Chris I use clarified butter  not that it's better. But myself and others have slightly high blood pressure and I have to keep my salt  down clarifying helps. Plus I make blender Hollandaise

 

[koukouvagia]

I know of no state, city or county Health Dept that would permit this. For the risk involved it's not worth saving. And no the yolks are not cooked and you have left it out at higher then average room temp then refrigerated it then reheated again. The Bacteria and salmonella count would have to be high.  I would not eat it therefore I would not serve it.

I'm in the privacy of my own home feeding no one but myself. It can be done, it was done, and now it's done and no harm done. Everyone chillax!