Two techniques in one plate: a poached egg that holds its shape and a sauce that holds its emulsion. Both come down to temperature.
| Time | |
|---|---|
| Servings | 2 |
| Difficulty | Medium |
| Equipment | Wide saucepan, slotted spoon, heatproof bowl |
Contains raw egg — not for pregnancy, young children or anyone immunocompromised.
- 4 pc — egg
- 20 ml — white wine vinegar
- 1500 ml — water
- 3 pc — egg yolk
- 180 g — clarified butter
- 5 ml — lemon juice
- 4 g — salt
- Crack each egg into a small sieve first and let the watery outer white drain away. That loose white is what makes the ragged threads in the pan — thirty seconds of draining removes the problem entirely.
- Bring the water and vinegar to 85 °C — steaming, with bubbles on the bottom but none rising. Slide the eggs in and poach three minutes without stirring or making a whirlpool.
- Lift them out with a slotted spoon onto kitchen paper and trim the ragged edge with scissors if you want them neat.
- Make the Hollandaise while the water comes to temperature, not after. Both are finished things that will not wait, and the sauce waits worse than the egg.
- One serving (1 of 2): white wine vinegar 10 ml, water 750 ml, clarified butter 90 g, lemon juice 2.5 ml, salt 2 g
- Double batch (4 servings): egg 8 pc, white wine vinegar 40 ml, water 3,000 ml, egg yolk 6 pc, clarified butter 360 g, lemon juice 10 ml, salt 8 g
In the same library
- Allemande — 40 min · Medium
- Hollandaise — 20 min · Hard
- Noisette — 25 min · Hard
- Blanquette de veau — 110 min · Medium
- Chocolate mousse — 30 min · Medium
- Why an emulsion breaks — 8 min · Medium
Source · Mirepoix · Auguste Escoffier, Le Guide Culinaire (1907), no. 726