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Eggs Benedict is hands down one of my favorite breakfast/brunch foods to order when we go out. The dish is relatively simple, allowing a lot of room for creativity and I love almost every version I have had. Making them for myself at home, however, always seemed a little daunting. Chris has made them, a task that seemed overwhelming to me, a lot of vigorous whisking, hoping the sauce doesn’t break, perfectly poaching the eggs, and getting all the timing just right. Not anything I ever thought I would be able to pull off.

There is always the option to use packaged sauce, but it is NOT the same thing.

Then I watched an episode of America’s Test Kitchen featuring the dish with a foolproof method for hollandaise. Excited to give it a shot, I was fully ready for disappointment, a common emotion for me in the kitchen.

Pulled Pork Eggs Benedict with Foolproof Hollandaise

Hollandaise

4 egg yolks

1 stick softened butter, cut into pieces

1/3 cup boiling water

2 1/2 teaspoons lemon juice

Dash cayenne pepper

Salt

Benedict

1 English muffin

2 eggs

1 tablespoon white vinegar

1/4 cup pulled pork

Drain eggs Eggs Benedict

Timing is everything with eggs Benedict. I started by cracking my eggs for poaching into a colander over a bowl. I let them sit while I made the hollandaise to allow the thin, runny whites (that messy stuff that floats around the otherwise beautiful egg) to drain.

Hollandaise Sauce

Next, I worked on the hollandaise. I separated four eggs and put the yolks into a glass bowl. I added the pieces of softened butter (you can not cheat here, only softened butter will do) to the egg yolks, placed the bowl over a pan of simmering water, and created a double boiler. I started whisking, adding the boiling water a little at a time. As I whisked, the butter combined with the egg yolks, creating a beautiful silky sauce. Steadily whisking, I continued to cook the eggs until they reached 160-degrees, about 10 minutes.

Whisk sauce Hollandaise Sauce

I pulled the nicely thickened sauce off of the heat, continued to whisk, and added the lemon juice, cayenne pepper, and salt to taste. I set the sauce to the side while I prepared the rest of the dish.

Hollandaise Sauce

Chris had made pulled pork earlier in the week, so we decided to add some to our Benedict. He heated the pork through while I worked on the eggs.

For the eggs, I added a tablespoon of vinegar to six cups of nearly boiling water in a Dutch oven. I poured the drained eggs into a small bowl and then gently added them to the water one at a time. I put the lid on the pot and let it sit for three minutes. 

If needed, you can poach the eggs ahead of time. Holding them in a pot of 150-degree water will supposedly keep them warm without continuing to cook them until you are ready to use them. I will have to experiment with this in the future.  

In the meantime, I toasted the muffins under the broiler for four minutes and then topped them with the pork. I added d the pork with the beautifully poached eggs and added the lovely hollandaise.

My timing was a little off, but I think I can master that with more practice. I was pleased with the way the dish turned out and will not hesitate to attempt it again. Bonus: the sauce recipe made more than we needed, so Chris added some shallots and tarragon for a Bernaise with our dinner.

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