I recently polled my Facebook followers to see what recipes they’ve been too intimidated to try, and hollandaise sauce was a popular answer. Well, I’m here to tell you that it’s a lot easier than you think! This super quick and easy hollandaise sauce recipe will get you rich, creamy, lemony hollandaise sauce in just a few minutes and with nothing more than just a sauce pot and a whisk. So you can have this dreamy sauce whenever you want and without breaking a sweat. Let me show you how it’s done.
P.S. if you’ve ever made my Luscious Homemade Lemon Curd, this hollandaise sauce is basically the same thing, but savory!
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What is Hollandaise Sauce?
If you’ve never experienced the magic of hollandaise sauce, let me attempt to describe it to you. It’s a very simple savory sauce made with butter, egg yolk, lemon, and salt. It has a smooth, velvety texture with just the right amount of bright lemon flavor to keep it from being too heavy. If you’ve ever had Eggs Benedict, this is the dreamy yellow sauce that is drizzled over top. But it’s great on a lot more than just Eggs Benedict…
How to Use Hollandaise Sauce
As mentioned above, hollandaise sauce is often served over poached eggs, like in Eggs Benedict, but it’s also great over steamed or roasted vegetables, like asparagus, potatoes, or broccoli. The buttery lemon flavor is also great on salmon, crab, or even steak. Hollandaise sauce is practically all butter and I think we can all agree that butter tastes great on everything!
Small Batch for No Leftovers
Hollandaise sauce is very rich, so you don’t need a lot. And since reheating leftovers of emulsified sauces can be tricky, I decided to make this a small batch recipe so you can avoid the trouble of trying to use up your leftovers. The recipe below makes about ⅓ cup, or just enough for two people (about 3 Tbsp each).
If you want to make a larger batch, it’s just as easy. Simply adjust the number in the “servings” box in the recipe below and the ingredient quantities will adjust for you. The method will be exactly the same, but it may take a few minutes longer for the sauce to heat as you whisk.
Easy Hollandaise Sauce
Servings 2 3 Tbsp eachIngredients
- 1 large egg, separated ($0.23)
- 1 Tbsp water ($0.00)
- 1/2 Tbsp lemon juice ($0.02)
- 4 Tbsp butter* ($0.44)
- 1/8 tsp salt ($0.01)
- 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper ($0.02)
Instructions
- Separate the egg and place the egg yolk in a small saucepot. The whites can be saved for a different recipe.
- Add the water and lemon juice to the pot with the yolk and whisk until smooth (no heat yet).
- Cut the butter into small pieces (about ¼ Tbsp size) , then add them to the saucepot with the egg yolk, lemon, and water.
- Place the pot over medium-low heat. Continuously whisk as the mixture heats. First the butter will melt, then the mixture will begin to get a bit frothy. Finally, as the egg yolk begins to cook, the sauce will thicken. Make sure you're whisking the entire time to achieve a light, smooth sauce. Once it thickens to the consistency of gravy, remove the pot from the heat.
- Season the sauce with salt and cayenne, then drizzle the sauce over your favorite food!
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Equipment
- Whisk
Notes
Nutrition
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How to Make Hollandaise Sauce – Step by Step Photos
Separate one large egg and place the egg yolk in a small saucepot (this is a 1 qt. saucepot)
Add 1 Tbsp water and ½ Tbsp lemon juice to the pot with the egg yolk, then whisk the yolk and lemon juice until smooth (do not heat the mixture at this point).
Cut 4 Tbsp butter into small pieces (about ¼ Tbsp sized pieces). Add them to the pot with the yolk, water, and lemon juice.
Place the pot over medium-low heat and continuously whisk while the butter begins to melt.
Continue to whisk as the mixture begins to heat. You’ll notice it begin to get frothy…
And then when the egg yolk begins to actually cook, it will thicken the sauce to a consistency similar to gravy. Make sure you’re whisking throughout this entire process. It should only take 3-5 minutes for the sauce to thicken. Remove the sauce from the heat once thickened.
Season the sauce with about ⅛ tsp cayenne and ⅛ tsp salt (or to taste).
And now your rich and dreamy lemony sauce is ready to eat! You did that!
Drizzle that heavenly sauce over all your favorite foods!
Tried your quick hollandaise sauce recipe before it could really thicken it. Separated the egg from the butter. Not sure what happened but I followed directions completely. Flavor was good but it sure didn’t come out like a gravy
I have been making my Hollandaise sauce this way for over 30 years. It is by far the easiest way you are correct. It is also a stable Hollandaise sauce which means it will not break. Because it is stable refrigerating it and reheating it the next day is simple. All you need is a little warm water or lemon juice and a small sauce pot. Put your leftover hollandaise sauce with a teaspoon at a time of water and or lemon juice until you reach your desired consistency. Serve and enjoy for round two.
Love this easy fool proof recipe!
I HAVE A FASTER AND EASIER METHOD. I PUT EGGS AND LEMON JUICE IN A GLASS MEASURING CUP AND USE MY MINI LATTE FROTH MIXER TO MIX FOR 20 SECONDS. I ADD MELTED BUTTER AND CAYENNE PEPPER AND MIXER AGAIN. CLEAN UP IS EASE. STU
I’ve made Hollandaise sauce in the past and it was like a chemistry experiment with equipment changes and mixing.
This recipe was so simple and tasted amazing. It was no more difficult than a normal bechamel sauce. I’ll be making this pretty often now.
Made for baked asparagus and lobster dinner, everyone loved it. So good and just the right amount!
Beth I made this sauce to add flavor to my mushroom omelet! DELICIOUS ❤️ Easy and quick!
Delicious! Thank you ! I always make way too much sauce and end up wasting . This is perfect for eggs Benedict for two !
Don’t add salt or cayenne as soon as you do it ruins the sauce.
Wish I’d seen this. I added it and it did indeed ruin the sauce ☹️
Followed recipe exactly and as soon as I took it off the heat it started separating
Just what I was looking for. Soooo delicious and sooo easy!
What a great, easy recipe—mine turned out perfectly by following the recipe exactly as written! I served it with homemade eggs benedict and it’s now going to be my go-to weekend brunch (for a fraction of the price of breakfast at a cafe!). Thanks so much for your awesome recipes—my twin sister and I have both been following your blog since our college days, and you’re still one of our go-to recipe sites 15 years later :)
Thank you, Jac! That makes me so happy to hear! :)
This came out excellently for me! Thank you for sharing!
What a flop your recipe was. Very thin!
Hi Jenn,
Mine came out the perfect consistency. I followed the recipe exactly (not my normal style) and as I kept the sauce on the heat just a touch longer the sauce thickened up nicely.
I made eggs Benedict for my son and I. I wish I could post the pic so you can see the sauce on it.
When I was a kid, like a lot of people my age used to, I went out to eat with my parents AT LEAST once a week (for reference I’m almost 43). We would eat breakfast out on Saturdays or Sundays and eggs Benedict was one of the things I ordered often. Fast-forward to post pandemic, devices in our faces, inflation prices and being the 1st generation to not do as well financially as our parents, now and going to a restaurant as a family and waiting to be seated then searching a menu with so many possibilities is not something happening as often as it was in the 80’s and 90’s. It wasn’t until my 16 year old and I somehow came upon the subject of hollandaise and the fact that she’d never had eggs Benny that I realized I had done her and my other daughter (14) a misservice by not keeping this tradition going; even if it was just once a month.
So I tried right then to make the dish for her and failed. Four times. She got tired and told me she was fine with just poached eggs and English muffins and I was left sad that I couldn’t reproduce the famous sauce that made a Benedict what it is.
Tonight I was determined to get it right and as I had before I googled stove top hollandaise and this was the first hit. When I read it I thought “oh my gosh, heat everything together, why hadn’t I thought of that?” I followed the super simple directions and it came out PERFECT! My daughter loved it!
I know, I know, I am being a little over the top about a dumb recipe but this perfect sauce allowed the two of us a rare moment of common joy that goes beyond butter and eggs.
It reminded me of a time that was a little brighter and showed me that I can create these moments for Violet (that’s my daughter) to cherish in a different way than my parents had done for me.
I guess what I’m really saying is thank you. 😊
Thank you for sharing that, Tiffany!! Food is such an important part of our lives and I’m so glad this recipe was able to connect you with happy memories from the past. :)
I love your story and it’s completely relatable. My mother used to love going out to lunch. She would have eaten out everyday if she could. We could afford it pre pandemic! Then things changed and she passed 2 years ago. Now I cherish those days. I’m so glad to see you found a way to keep traditions and make new ones. Violet is very lucky.
I will try it.
I tried making this over the weekend for my Fiancee and myself for Omelets. For some reason it was very thin and runny and would not thicken up!!
It sounds like the egg may have not fully cooked. A little more heat might have done the trick!
Super easy and delicious! Thank you!