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Sauce

Mock Béarnaise Sauce

A non-egg mayonnaise-based sauce flavored with shallot, tarragon, and pepper.

From the Wikibooks Cookbook · 5 ingredients
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Why it works: Shallot and tarragon 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 ↓

Mock Béarnaise Sauce

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare the flavourings

  1. Combine onion powder and dried tarragon with 2 tbsp water in a microwaveable measuring cup or small bowl. Microwave for about 6 seconds, then set aside.

  2. Soften the butter in the microwave, stopping the oven every 5 seconds to mash and stir the butter until it is very soft but not liquid.

  3. Microwave the mayonnaise for 5 seconds in a small bowl or glass measuring cup.

Make the sauce

  1. Remove mayonnaise from the microwave and beat in the butter a teaspoonful at a time.

  2. Stir in the onion, tarragon, and pepper.

  3. Test the temperature; if it is not warm enough, heat it for 6 seconds at a time in the microwave, stirring each time. Do not overheat or it might separate; it should be warm not hot.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

239Calories
8 gProtein
17 gFat
14 gCarbs
What these numbers assume: 6 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Butter1 tbsp (14g)102
Egg1 large egg (50g)78
Onion1 medium (110g)44
Shallot1 tbsp minced (10g)7
Black Pepper1 tsp ground (2.3g)6
Tarragon1 tsp dried (0.5g)2

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.

  1. Shallot + tarragontop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together602 recipes

    Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).

  2. Tarragon + peppertop 5% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together2,399 recipes

    Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).

  3. Shallot + peppertop 11% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together5,898 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).

  4. Shallot + buttertop 17% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together4,426 recipes

    Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).

  5. Tarragon + buttertop 17% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together1,572 recipes

    Shared aroma: anethole (sweet, anise).

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

What each ingredient does

Butter
Adds richness and a smooth, silky body when beaten into the mayonnaise.
Real mayonnaise
Provides an emulsified base that gives the sauce its creamy structure.
Dried tarragon
Supplies the herbal, anise-like aroma that defines a béarnaise flavour.
Shallot or onion powder
Adds a mild savoury sweetness and aromatic depth to the sauce.

The step that matters

Warming the sauce gently. Heating in short bursts and stopping while the sauce is still warm keeps the emulsion stable. Overheating can cause the butter fat to separate, leaving the sauce greasy and grainy.

Swap the shallot

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (tarragon, butter, pepper):

  1. Shallotthe original
  2. Chivefits about as well
  3. Mustardfits less well
  4. Lettucefits less well

Fit is the average pairing score against tarragon, butter, pepper. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“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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