Béarnaise Sauce Recipe: Classic Version Made Easy

Name: Béarnaise Sauce Recipe
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 40 min
Yield: 16
Cuisine: French
Ingredients: 1 shallot, minced; 2 cloves garlic, minced; ½ cup + 1 teaspoon tarragon, chopped; 1 teaspoon peppercorns; ½ teaspoon sea salt; ½ cup apple cider vinegar; 1 cup white wine; 3 egg yolks; 2 sticks unsalted butter, cubed; 1 tablespoon truffle-infused oil (optional)

October 4, 2023 by Dr. Josh Axe, DC, DNM, CN

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I’m always looking for ways to liven up foods. You know the deal: you have a go-to steak recipe or favorite roasted veggies, but they can use a little oomph. If that sounds familiar, I’ve got you covered. I’ve just perfected my béarnaise sauce recipe, and it is good.

This is the sauce you’re going to want to pour over everything: this seared grass-fed steak is the most obvious choice, but béarnaise is amazing on veggies, grilled fish, poached eggs or, really, anything. It’s definitely a sauce that sounds more difficult to make than it really is, and that’s a relief, because you’re going to love this béarnaise sauce.

What Is Béarnaise Sauce?

So what is béarnaise sauce? Like so many classic sauces, béarnaise sauce is a French creation. It’s actually derived from Hollandaise sauce (if you haven’t tried it, my recipe takes just five minutes and is incredible for your eggs Benedict!), which is considered one of the five French mother sauces.

Both sauces are made from emulsifying butter and egg yolk and then adding in a little acid. In Hollandaise, that’s usually lemon juice. In a béarnaise sauce, it’s white wine vinegar. But while Hollandaise is super basic, béarnaise sauce kicks things up a notch by adding shallots and fresh herbs, like tarragon, for flavor.

In my béarnaise sauce recipe, we’ll use the traditional béarnaise ingredients but add our own take on it, too. Apple cider vinegar will add a richer flavor, and we’ll include peppercorns as well. I’ve added truffle oil as an optional finishing touch, and if you can get your hands on some, I highly recommend this step. It adds a little extra creaminess and a subtle truffle taste.

What I love about béarnaise sauce and the other French sauces is they don’t require any crazy ingredients or equipment. The average home cook can make these sauces easily and take any meal to the next level.

Once you start making your own sauces, you’ll never buy the pre-made stuff again.

How to Make Béarnaise Sauce

To get started with this béarnaise, heat a saucepan over medium heat and combine shallots, garlic, ½ cup tarragon, peppercorns, vinegar and wine.

Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat to low. Let the mix come to a simmer, then watch it closely. When the mixture has reduced to about a half-cup in volume (about 15 minutes), it’s ready.

Using a cheesecloth, strain the mixture so only the liquid remains.

Next, in a double boiler over medium-low heat, combine the liquid with the egg yolks.

Then whisk the mixture until small bubbles appear and it starts looking slightly foamy.

Add the cubed butter and melt, whisking continuously until the mixture has thickened into a sauce, about 15 minutes.

Your béarnaise sauce is now ready! Remove it from the heat and add the truffle oil and remaining fresh tarragon.

Serve about a tablespoon (or more … I’m not judging!) over your steak, fish, eggs or vegetables.

Other Flavorful Sauces

All of these sauces seem daunting until you get your hands dirty in the kitchen and realize, “no problem!”