Eggs, Lesson #5 - Eggs Benedict

Chicken Eggs are incredibly the most nutritious and versatile of foods, widely used in a range of dishes; both savoury & sweet, including baked goods.

Eggs are very important in most areas of the food industry, and some of the common preparation of eggs include scrambled, fried, hard-boiled, soft-boiled, omelette and also pickled.

Although cooked in several different ways, on their own, they are extensively used in a wide variety of food. The egg whites help give volume, thicken, bind mixtures, glaze surfaces and the egg yolks help to emulsify.

To learn more about the Health Facts of Eggs and the popular Egg Dishes around the world, you can go through the introductory lesson - Eggs... In So Many Ways!‍

Egg Recipe of the Day

The Eggs Benedict is classic comfort food and we couldn’t agree more!

One of the most famous stories behind this dish was from Chef Charles Ranhofer of Delmonico’s Restaurant in the US. He came up with this classic egg dish for one of his regular patrons, Mrs Le Grand Benedict. He then published a recipe called “Eggs a’la Benedick” in his cookbook “The Epicurean” published in 1894.

Another story being from a traditional French dish named oeufs bénédictine, consisting of a brandade (a puree of refreshed salt cod and potatoes) spread on triangles of fried bread. A poached egg is then set on top and napped with hollandaise.

For most people, Eggs Benedict is comfort food and we couldn’t agree more! It is all about textures and flavours coming together, from the English muffin to the crispy bacon and the Hollandaise sauce!

‍This Dish

This dish is simply about textures and flavours coming together, from the soft & dense English Muffin to the sharp & crispy bacon and overflowing richness of Hollandaise sauce!!

Recipe Card

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‍Method of Preparation

For the Hollandaise

• To clarify butter: Melt the butter in a saucepan on low heat, once it starts bubbling; skim the foam using a tablespoon and discard into a bowl.
• Make sure to skim only the whitest bubbles that are at the surface; continue until there are no more bubbles and all the fat is clear.
• In a small sauté pan on medium heat, add the peppercorns and vinegar, reduce to 1/3. Add 1 tbsp of water and simmer for 1 minute on medium heat. Take off heat and strain the mixture using a tea strainer into a small mixing bowl, set aside to cool.
• Whisk the strained reduction along with the egg yolk in a clean bowl on a bain-marie until it doubles in volume. Take the mixture off the heat when it reaches a ribbon consistency.
• Emulsify the clarified butter into the whipped yolk mixture by adding little at a time and finish with lemon juice, cayenne pepper and salt to taste.

For Poached Eggs

• In a large, shallow pot, bring a mixture of water, salt and vinegar to a boil. Turn down the heat to poaching temperature.
• Break the eggs into a bowl one at a time, being careful not to break the yolks.
• Slide the eggs into the poaching water and poach until done, for 5 minutes.
• Remove the eggs carefully with a skimmer or slotted spoon.

To Serve

• On a hot pan without using oil, pan fry the bacon and toast the split and buttered English muffin. If toasting the muffin in the same pan as the bacon was fried, then butter is not required.
• Top each English muffin with sliced bacon.
• Then top with poached eggs.
• Spoon over warm Hollandaise sauce to cover the poached eggs and serve immediately.

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