Name: Béarnaise Sauce
Ingredients: 30 ml (2 tablespoons ) tarragon vinegar; 30 ml (2 tablespoons) sherry vinegar or dry white wine; 1 shallot , finely chopped; 2 egg yolks; 75–100 g (⅓–½ cup / 3–4 oz ) melted butter (warm but not hot); Salt; Cayenne pepper to taste; 1 tablespoon freshly-chopped tarragon; 1 tablespoon freshly-chopped parsley

Why it works: Tarragon and shallot match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 602 recipes. Both carry eucalyptol, which smells eucalyptus, herbal. The science ↓

Béarnaise Sauce

Ingredients

30 ml (2 tablespoons ) tarragon vinegar
30 ml (2 tablespoons) sherry vinegar or dry white wine
1 shallot , finely chopped
2 egg yolks
75–100 g (⅓–½ cup / 3–4 oz ) melted butter (warm but not hot)
Salt
Cayenne pepper to taste
1 tablespoon freshly-chopped tarragon
1 tablespoon freshly-chopped parsley

Directions

Make the reduction

Put the vinegars, shallot, and herbs in a small saucepan.
Simmer until reduced to 1 tablespoon.
Strain and set aside to cool.

Emulsify and serve

Add the egg yolks and whisk until the ribbon stage with a balloon whisk.
Place the bowl over a pan of hot water (double boiler) and continue whisking.
Gradually add the melted butter, whisking until the sauce thickens and all the butter has been added.
Season and serve.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

226Calories

7 gProtein

17 gFat

5 gCarbs

What these numbers assume: 9 portions

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Butter	1 tbsp (14g)	102
Egg	1 large egg (50g)	78
Wine	2 tbsp cooking wine (30ml)	25
Chili	1 tsp (2.7g)	8
Shallot	1 tbsp minced (10g)	7
Vinegar	1 tbsp (15ml) distilled	3
Tarragon	1 tsp dried (0.5g)	2
Parsley	1 tbsp chopped fresh (3.8g)	1
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Wikibooks Cookbook.

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

Tarragon + shallottop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together602 recipes

Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).
Tarragon + parsleytop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together1,563 recipes

Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
Shallot + parsleytop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together3,737 recipes

Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
Pepper + parsleytop 2% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together34,122 recipes

Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
Tarragon + peppertop 5% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together2,399 recipes

Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Egg yolks: Emulsify the butter and thicken the sauce as they set gently over heat.
Melted butter: Provides richness and fat that, emulsified with the yolks, gives the sauce its body.
Tarragon vinegar: Adds sharp acidity that balances the richness of the butter and yolks.
Shallot: Contributes a mild sweet, aromatic onion flavour to the reduction.

The step that matters

Gradually add the melted butter. Butter added too fast or over heat that is too high can break the emulsion, leaving the sauce greasy or scrambled. Adding it slowly while whisking lets the yolks absorb the fat evenly and thicken the sauce.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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Béarnaise Sauce