This easy Béarnaise sauce recipe is made in a food processor, or blender, for an easy foolproof method! It’s creamy, rich and perfect on a sandwich, eggs, or steak for some fancy flare.
Jessica’s Notes
Béarnaise sauce used to intimidate me. The whisking, the risk of it breaking… It just felt like too much for a weeknight dinner. But then I discovered this blender (or food processor) method, and it totally changed everything.
Now I can have rich, velvety Béarnaise in minutes. No arm workout, no stress, just a silky, flavor-packed sauce every time! I usually blend it up while the steak is resting, and it’s always ready right on time. You can also drizzle it over seafood, roasted asparagus, or eggs benedict.
The ingredients are simple, too. As long as you’ve got eggs, butter, vinegar, and fresh tarragon, you’re good to go. Once you make it, you’ll wonder why you haven’t been putting it on everything!
Looking for more amazing homemade sauce recipes? Try these reader favorites, like my “Oh My!” steak sauce recipe, fresh tzatziki sauce, zesty chimichurri sauce and this creamy mushroom sauce for steak!
What is Béarnaise Sauce?
Béarnaise sauce is a rich, creamy French sauce that dates back to the 1830s. A “child” of the classic Hollandaise sauce, it’s made by emulsifying egg yolks and clarified butter with a reduction of white wine, shallots, and fresh tarragon. I know this sounds fancy and intimidating, but I promise this easy recipe makes it a simple and quick process!
While Hollandaise is smooth and lemony, Béarnaise amps up the flavor with the addition of shallots, tarragon, and vinegar, giving it a bold, herby flavor. Both are rich and creamy, but Béarnaise has a stronger, more aromatic taste.
Want to save this recipe?
Email this recipe to yourself for easy access later!
Ingredient Notes
Butter wine and eggs are the base of this easy but decadent sauce. Below you will find helpful notes and substitutions for a few key ingredients for this easy Béarnaise sauce recipe. Visit the printable recipe card below for the full ingredient list and amounts.
- Butter: You can use salted or unsalted butter. If you use salted butter, I recommend waiting to add the salt to the sauce until the end and season it to taste. I use melted hot butter in this recipe for ease and convenience as it blends quickly and still creates a smooth, creamy sauce. However, if you want a more traditional and richly flavored Béarnaise, you can use clarified butter instead. It takes a little extra time, but it offers a silkier texture and a more classic finish.
- White Wine: You will want to use a dry white wine, not a sweet wine. Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, or Pinot Gris all work great.
- Tarragon Vinegar: I like to use tarragon vinegar because it adds an extra punch of tarragon flavor. If you don’t have tarragon vinegar, you can use white wine vinegar instead. Champagne vinegar or apple cider vinegar will also work too.
- Shallots: Adds a mild, slightly sweet onion flavor that complements the tarragon and wine. You can substitute with a small amount of finely minced yellow onion or green onion (white part), but use less since they’re stronger in flavor.
- Egg Yolks: Make sure to use fresh egg yolks, as they emulsify better and create a smoother, creamier sauce. Let them come to room temperature before blending for best results. If you’re concerned about raw eggs, use pasteurized egg yolks.
- Fresh Tarragon Leaves: Tarragon is the signature herb of Béarnaise sauce, so don’t substitute this. I add the leaves whole to be pureed by the blender as I prefer my sauce smooth. However, you can add finely chopped tarragon leaves after blending for a pop of color.
Recipe Variations
Below are a fun flavor swaps you may want to try in your Béarnaise sauce:
Chive or Dill: Swap the tarragon for fresh chives or dill for a slightly different but still herbaceous twist. This works especially well with fish or vegetables.
Garlic: Add 1 small clove of garlic (sautéed or roasted) to the reduction for a more robust, savory sauce. Great with steak or roasted potatoes.
Lemon: Go with a hollandaise twist and replace the vinegar with fresh lemon juice for a brighter, citrusy note.
How to Use Béarnaise Sauce
There are SO many ways you will find to use this creamy sauce! Honestly, it goes on just about everything. Here are a few ideas to get you started:
Protein: My favorite way to use Béarnaise sauce is on a perfectly grilled and charred steak, like this flank steak. It is the best pairing out there. You’ll love it over air fryer salmon and baked chicken, too.
Eggs: This sauce goes great with eggs – top some scrambled eggs or an omelette (like my tortilla Española) with it, drizzle it on top of Eggs Benedict, or smear some on a fried egg sandwich.
Vegetables: You can also drizzle it over your favorite veggies, like air fryer asparagus or sautéed green beans.
Fries: Have you tried dipping your fries in Béarnaise? Life. Changing. Honestly, one of our favorite dinners is a good steak, some crispy potato wedges and this sauce to dip both into!
Béarnaise Sauce Recipe
Ingredients
- 6 oz dry white wine
- 3 tablespoons tarragon vinegar
- 1 large shallot, minced (about 2 tablespoons worth)
- 3 egg yolks, room temperature
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon garlic salt
- 4 tablespoons fresh tarragon leaves
- ¾ cup unsalted butter
Want to save this recipe?
Email this recipe to yourself for easy access later!
Instructions
- Combine wine, vinegar, and shallot in top of a double boiler. If you don't have a double boiler, use a heat-safe glass or metal bowl set over a saucepan. Just make sure the bottom of the bowl doesn’t touch the water.
- Simmer mixture until reduced by half and then let mixture cool completely. It's important to let it cool, otherwise the heat will scramble your eggs!
- Once cooled, place the mixture in a food processor or blender with egg yolks, pepper, garlic salt, and tarragon leaves. Blend for about 10 seconds.
- Melt butter in microwave for a 1:15, or until hot and slightly bubbling, but be careful not to burn it! Then remove the center stopper from the food processor (or blender) and slowly pour the butter through the opening while the motor is running. This process should take about 30 seconds.
- Process for another 10 seconds after all the butter has been added. The sauce should be the consistency of a thin mayonnaise, thick enough to stick to a spoon easily, but thin enough that you can pour it. If not, blend for another 5 seconds (adding a little water if needed). Serve immediately.
Notes
Video
Nutrition
Categories:
More Easy Homemade Sauce Recipes To Try
- You only need 5-ingredients to make my very favorite honey mustard recipe!
- This homemade marinara sauce is rich and flavorful or go with a fresh basil pesto sauce.
- Spice up Tex-Mex night with this enchilada sauce recipe or this homemade adobo sauce.
- My easy homemade Alfredo sauce recipe is a fan favorite! Or if you prefer a tangier sauce, try this Alfredo sauce with cream cheese.
Post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy.
I made this tonight, first time, it came out EXCELLENT. And it was very easy. I had to use an immersion blender, I was worried about that, but it worked great. I will be making this again for sure. I couldn’t find fresh Taragon so I used dry and only used half (2 tablespoons), any comments or recommendations on this would be appreciated. Thank you.
I did a test run, came out just perfectly. Now my concern for Christmas I need more sauce for a larger group. Can bearnaise sauce recipes be doubled?
Yes you can double it! Glad you enjoyed it! 😉
A boneless steak cooks at a rate of 3 min. per side per inch of thickness. It demands a special occasion to spend a half an hour making a sauce for a 10 minute steak, so we make everyday Beranaise in about 5 minutes. Egg yolks are used in the classic recipe to thicken melted butter. Its a long pain in the butt way to thicken melted butter. We omit the yolks and thicken with Arrowroot or cornstarch. Arrowroot costs more but puts an attractive sheen on the sauce.
Make the thickener: put cornstarch in a very dry measuring cup. Add the wh wine & vinegar (we skip vinegar. Its better without) and stir until all the thickener is in suspension. Melt the butter in a pan, Add tarragon to the melted butter and a pinch of cherval. Stir the thinker again, it will have settled. Pour it into the butter. Raise heat to boiling and gently boil for 2-3 minutes. This does two things. It causes the thickener to thicken and it boils off the alcohol. Simple, easy, and fast. You can kick up the ‘weight’ of the sauce to more closely resemble the classic sauce by adding a small dollop of heavy cream.
BTW: I do not measure, so you will have to play it by ear to find the right quantities. BTW BTW: There are good reasons to never measure when cooking except fro some baked goods, but that’s another story
I have made this recipe several times now and it is perfect every time. This technique is very similar to James Beard’s hollandaise sauce that I have made for over 40 years. Sauce has a velvety smooth texture and is perfect for steaks and many other meats and vegetables.
Tarragon vinegar? Any substitute for that?
White wine vinegar then add some dried tarragon let it soak and infuse for 10 minutes
You can also use plain white vinegar, but if you are already at the store, I love the flavor the tarragon vinegar adds to it!
I’m sorry but this sauce looks curdeld and not soft and smooth at all.If my bearnaise looks like this I’ll say it went wrong. Still might taste fabulous, but not the way a good bearnaise should look like.
hoping to reheat my sauce tonight very important party
This looks incredibly tasty! I am actually hosting an asparagus-themed linky party over at 2 Sisters 2 Cities as part of our Fresh Produce Tuesday series. I would love if you linked up this post!
-m
Hmmm – this looks sinfully delicious. I can see myself growing very addicted to this sauce.
I love this post!
This is dangerous. My thighs will hate me for this!
Yum! Bernaise sauce has always been one of my favorites… especially on steak! Not the most ass-friendly thing out there, but wort the splurge every once in a while!
You really can’t go wrong with those ingredients…and I love that you found an easier method to make this wonderful sauce. I want to make this now (and it’s well past midnight!) Thank you for sharing yourself with me tonight. Your words and recipes bring me joy.
Oh dear, now look what you’ve done. Béarnaise is pretty good on just about everything, love the stuff 🙂
Sounds rich & delicious!
I’ve never made Béarnaise sauce before and now I’m feeling like I have to try it!
I am so excited you posted this! I recently had a bearnaise sauce on eggs benedict at a restaurant and my boyfriend and I loved it! I’ve never made it before and I can’t wait to try it! Thanks for sharing all those great tips with it too!
Oh bearnaise. such a dangerously beautiful thing. I hope you’ll understand if I wait to make this until I lose ten pounds. I’ll need the leeway.
Ok, yum!!!! Trying to get skinny for my wedding and reading food blogs seems to be counter productive….
Love this recipe! Thanks for sharing. I’ve always wanted to try and make this.