Hollandaise Sauce
Hollandaise sauce is a classic creamy sauce that’s perfect for breakfast or brunch! This recipe is easy and no-fail. It takes just 5 minutes in a blender. Drizzle it on top of poached eggs, eggs Benedict, vegetables or several other recipes for a delicious finishing touch.
If you’ve had eggs Benedict before, you’ve probably encountered this rich and buttery sauce. It’s got the creamiest consistency and its flavors meld beautifully with ingredients such as eggs, asparagus, or salmon.
While this sauce may seem a bit on the fancy side, it’s actually very easy to make! But like many other emulsions, the fear that it will separate or not come together can be a bit nerve wracking. So today, I’ll walk you through the step by step on how to make perfect homemade hollandaise sauce.
How To Make Hollandaise Sauce
To make this recipe, simply heat up some butter (and it needs to be hot!) and stream it into the blended egg yolk mixture to create a velvety smooth sauce.
- Melt the butter in a microwave for about 1 minute until hot.
- Combine the egg yolks, lemon juice, dijon, salt and cayenne pepper into a high powered blender and blend for 5 seconds.
- Slowly stream in the hot butter into the mixture as the blender is running.
- Pour the sauce into a small bowl and drizzle over your meal!
Hollandaise Sauce Ingredients
All you’ll need for this sauce are six ingredients. And you probably have them in your fridge and pantry already.
- Egg Yolks – 3 eggs
- Lemon Juice – 1 tablespoon
- Dijon – 1 teaspoon
- Salt – 1/4 teaspoon
- Cayenne Pepper – just a pinch
- Butter- 1/2 cup of melted butter
How To Fix Broken Hollandaise Sauce
The key to getting the consistency right all comes down to the hot melted butter. This recipe emulsifies butter into an egg yolk and lemon juice mixture. So you want to make sure you’re streaming in butter that’s hot enough (just melted won’t do).
But in the case that your sauce does break and becomes a speckled mess, don’t fret. Below are two methods to try that will help bring your sauce back to life.
- Blend 1-2 tablespoons of boiling hot water: As you’re blending, slowly add in the hot water and blend until the consistency is right.
- Add an extra egg yolk: While the blender is on, add an extra egg yolk with a teaspoon of hot water into the blender and blend until it becomes perfectly creamy.
Can You Use an Immersion Blender?
Yes, absolutely! If you have an immersion blender, add all of the ingredients except the hot butter. Turn the blender on (with it firmly planted on the bottom of the cup or jar) and slowly drizzle in the butter. It will start to emulsify and once you’ve poured in all the butter you’re done!
How To Store And Reheat Hollandaise Sauce
While this sauce is best served fresh, you do have the option of reheating it. But keep in mind that there could be a chance where your eggs will cook up a bit. So here are two options for reheating – just be cautious!
- Microwave: Place the hollandaise sauce in a glass bowl, and microwave it in 15 second increments. Repeat this process until your sauce is fully warmed up.
- Stove Top: Pour the hollandaise sauce into a pan over low heat. Add in a smidge of melted butter and water to re-emulsify and give it a smooth texture. Once it’s warmed up, pour the sauce back into a serving bowl.
More Classic Sauce Recipes
If you thought this recipe was simple, you won’t believe how easy it is make these other sauces. So skip the store-bought jars and opt to make fresh, homemade versions.
- Béarnaise Sauce
- Marinara Sauce
- Basil Pesto Sauce
- Balsamic Reduction
- Tahini Sauce
- Vegan Alfredo Sauce
Whip any of these up and you can get creative with recipes such as my sweet potato gnocchi with pesto or parsnip noodle chicken alfredo!
Hollandaise Sauce (Easy & No-Fail)
Recipe Video
Ingredients
- 3 egg yolks
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice , or more as desired for flavor
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- pinch of cayenne pepper
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter or ghee, or more for a thinner consistency, melted and hot
Instructions
- Melt the butter in a microwave (make sure it's covered as it will splatter) for about 1 minute, until it's hot. Alternatively, you could heat it on the stove.
- Add the egg yolks, lemon juice, dijon, salt and cayenne pepper into a high powered blender and blend for 5 seconds until combined.
- With the blender running on medium high, slowly stream in the hot butter into the mixture until it's emulsified.
- Pour the hollandaise sauce into a small bowl and serve while warm.
Lisa's Tips
- I mention this above, but just to reiterate... your butter needs to be hot, not just melted. The recipe will not emulsify with luke warm butter.
- If you'd like more sauce, just add another yolk and up to another 1/2 cup of melted butter.
This recipe really worked in the blender for me. I tweaked the mustard with yellow mustard & Sir Kesington’s sauce. I also used country crock original for the butter. I added no salt & another tablespoon of lemon juice. Wallah perfect sauce. This married really well with the corn bread, honey ham & poached eggs I cooked. My family loved it! Thank you.
Wonderful! I’m happy you loved the recipe, Patrick. Sounds like it was used perfectly for a delicious breakfast!
This is absolutely delicious! My entire crew loved it! Also, where did you purchase your small bowl(s)? I know you typically put the links of your equipment, etc., but didn’t see one for these particular (ceramic?) bowls.
Thank you Lisa!
Hi Georgie- Glad everyone enjoyed this hollandaise sauce! As for the small bowl, another friend of mine had made these! I currently don’t have a link for those. But, might add once it becomes available!
Hi! I don’t have a blender and will try whisking by hand. Hopefully this will work?
Hi Rachel- Blending is going to be essential for this recipe in order to get the perfect consistency. But, if this works by whisking, do let me know!
Best hollandaise sauce I have ever made. I added a quarter cup of half and half too to make it creamier. Oh snap yes! I will keep this as my go to recipe from now on.
Hi Sharon – Excited to hear you’ve found a hollandaise sauce that works for you! And great idea on the half & half to make it creamier.
This recipe worked perfectly! How long can the sauce keep in the fridge? Thanks!
Hi Alli- It’s best to only store the hollandaise sauce in the fridge for 1-2 days. Fresh is the best!
Delicious and so easy ! It’s the first time I’ve ever made hollandaise sauce. I might try the tip Country Crock though. I feel guilty about a whole stick of butter. Not to mention my cholesterol levels or anything.
So glad you found this easy to make and follow along Beth!
That was excellent!
Easy and delicious!
Thank you!
Hi Meera- Wonderful! Glad you loved this recipe and found it easy to follow along :)
OMGoodness not only was this easy, it was fabulous and we’re picky about our hollandaise. For benedict, it worked great because Inused the extra whites in the ramekin so the poached effs had a bit more white. Highly recommend and thank you for putting this out there!
Hi Beth- So glad this hollandaise sauce recipe was a success for you!
I made this for sehri – the pre fasting meal during Ramadan. Since I was short on time, first I got a pot of water (for my poached eggs) and left it to simmer. While it was simmering, I measured my butter, separated the yolks from the whites and then got down to whipping this up. Let me tell you, it took me less than 5 minutes to make this sauce! I used an immersion blender and it came together like a dream. This sauce tastes absolutely delicious. By the time my hollandaise was ready, my pot of water had reached its simmer and I was left to poach the eggs. From start to finish, it didn’t take more than 15 minutes to whip up the hollandaise and poach the eggs. Definitely a keeper! Thanks for the recipe ❤️
Hi Arshiya- I’m so happy to hear this sauce made it’s way to your pre-fasting meal during Ramadan! Great to know this turned out beautifully with your immersion blender :)
I have tried various hollandaise recipes in the past and this one is BY FAR the easiest and tastes amazing!! I added a little bit more Cayenne and lemon juice for my particular taste but thats all I did different. I am so impressed with how the sauce turned out! I will never make it any other way again, especially if I am in a rush. 10/10!!!!
Hi Melissa- Thrilled to hear you’ve found a winning hollandaise sauce recipe!
Such an easy way to make upscale brunch. This sauce was delicious and lasted in the fridge for the next day.
Hi Dawn- Glad you found this recipe easy to make! Definitely will make any meal look a little bit fancier than normal :)
This was my first time using this recipe. The lemon was a touch strong for my liking. I was Skeptical because of how easy it was to make. It turned out amazing. This will be my go to sauce going forward!
Hi Amy – Happy to hear this sauce was a success for you!
Could not find our blender so I made it in a nutribullet! Added the butter in 4 increments and it worked out perfectly :)
Good to know this comes together in a Nutribullet!
This sauce is ridiculously easy, and ridiculously delicious.
Hi Emily- I’m so glad you enjoyed this hollandaise sauce!
So easy! Just like eating at restaurant! I went heavy on the lemon and omitted the mustard. So delicious and easy to make!
Hi Victoria- Glad you found this recipe easy to make! Now you can have restaurant quality sauce right at home.
This recipe is super easy and delicious! We found it more flavourful than our favourite packaged hollandaise sauce and even better than our favourite go to restaurant for eggs bennie. My only issue – and it was completely my fault as I did not read the full recipe before starting (tbh, I never do. lesson learned)- was that my sauce did not emulsify and looked curdled in the end. But as I said, the flavour was aMAZing! This is a keeper and next time I will follow directions and make sure the butter is HOT and not just melted (I used stovetop).
Hi Melinda- Wonderful! I’m so glad you enjoyed this hollandaise sauce. Yes, making sure the butter is hot is definitely a key step to this recipe!
I am wanting to try this recipe in my vitamix – could you tell me in the second blending when you stream in the butter how long do you blend and what speed?
Hi Leslie – The entire time you will keep the blender on medium high speed. Once you’ve blended the ingredients for about 5 seconds first then keep the blender running and slowly stream in the butter until it’s all well combined – then turn it off.
Used my vitamix. Turned out perfect.
Wonderful! Glad this method turned out well for you :)
This is the perfect Hollandaise recipe. Making it the traditional way, I never fail to scramble my first attempt. With this method it comes out beautifully every single time.
Hi Hannah- Amazing! Looks like you found your foolproof method :)
Please can you tell me the weight of butter? Thanks
Hi Jean – if you click the metric button above the recipe ingredients it will convert it for you!
Love this sause! It does splash I bit when I poor in the butter, so I tend to cover the mouth of the blender with a cloth.
Worked out amazing and reheated perfectly in the microwave after I followed the 15 second interval reheat. I had to use my electric hand mixed because my blender wasn’t doing the job, but it was just as easy! I won’t make any other hollandaise sauce again!
Hi Taylor- I’m glad this recipe still turned out okay using your hand electric mixer :) Definitely keep this recipe on hand!
Very easy and delicious. A little cayenne goes a long way!
Hi Susie – It definitely does! I’m glad you loved this hollandaise sauce :)
I’ve made hollandaise sauce before. It’s been too…something…every time so I stopped making it. I came across this recipe and I know Lisa puts a lot of effort into making sure Downshifters will be successful. That gave me the confidence to give it a shot. I was skeptical. A few quick minutes later without pulling out the double boiler or turning on the stove. Perfection…on THE FIRST try! Which is usually the case with Lisa’s recipes. After reading comments I’ll be adding more lemon juice next time. How exciting! This discovery could be bad for my waistline! 😳
Hi Jess – Wow! Thrilled to hear you finally found a hollandaise sauce that came out perfectly :)
Hello: I made this over Easter and it came out very gelatinous. What would cause that? Added more lemon juice to thin it, but it was still very thick and not like a nice sauce as in the picture.
Hi Kittie – it’s hard to say. I’d recommend double checking the recipe to make sure all your quantities were correct. And you just used egg yolks right, and not full eggs?
Correct, just the yolks. Maybe I drizzled too slowly?
Maybe, unfortunately it’s hard to know for sure. But I do hope it turns out better for you on your next try! :)
Brilliant! Super easy and fast. My butter was bubbling when I mixed it in and it came out perfect. My first time making Hollandaise :)
Hi Jenny – Congrats on making your first batch of hollandaise sauce! I’m glad it turned out perfectly.
Perfect every time!
Yay! I’m happy you loved the recipe. Thanks Lori!
Absolutely delicious!! Just made this sauce for Easter brunch as written except I used 2 tablespoons lemon juice because we love a lemony flavor. The best sauce I’ve ever eaten! Thank you for sharing this recipe. 😍
Hi Sharon- Wonderful! So glad you enjoyed this homemade hollandaise sauce :)
Fabulous and so easy! I can’t believe how easy it is to make this actually. I’ve been using store bought and packaged mixes for ages. Now I’ll always use this!
Hi Jennifer – Homemade is definitely much better. Glad this recipe turned out great for you :)
I have successfully kept hollandaise warm by storing it in a pre-warmed thermos. Handy when you’re serving a crowd (tho not this year ;-().
I also batch-poach eggs in muffin tins covered in simmering water and finished in the oven. Can you tell I come from a big family?
Happy Easter/Passover/Ramadan everyone!
Those are great tips Nancy! Thanks so much for sharing. :)
Thanks for sharing this straightforward recipe. The sauce turned out the right consistency thanks to your tips but the proportion of ingredients used by the recipe created a flavour that was closer to tasting like a mayonnaise rather than hollandaise. I used close to four tablespoons of lemon juice to get it the right flavour for me. I understand flavour is subjective though 😊
Hi Anu – I’m glad the sauce turned out perfectly for you. And yes, tastes are always subjective but I’m glad you were able to add more lemon and achieve the perfect flavor!
Will do again and again and again. Used a smoothie blender which poses a bit of a problem as I couldn’t blend as I poured the hot butter over the mixture so I poured and sloshed, poured and sloshed in small batches to temper the yolks and at the end sealed and blended. Worked brilliantly. I doubled the recipe with no I’ll effect and although I did reduce the butter by a 3rd the result was still on point.
Great – I’m glad you loved the recipe Ted! And thanks for sharing your tips on how you made it in a smoothie blender.
This is the first blender hollandaise recipe that I’ve had success with!! I halved the Dijon, used an emulsion blender (we don’t have/keep breaking regular blenders), and not only made sure the butter was piping hot, but warmed the egg mixture for about 15 seconds in the microwave before adding butter. I think this last step made all the difference—it came out so beautifully thick that I had to add a bit of cold water and more butter.
Wonderful recipe! Thanks so much for sharing!!
Yay! I’m so happy you had success with this recipe Kelly! It’s those little things that sometimes make the biggest difference. Enjoy!
The flavor is perfect but it’s a very thin consistency-like water. Is there something I should add to make it thicken up a bit?
Actually, I just ate it and wow, it was wonderful. When you heat it up a little more on the stove, it thickens a tiny bit, which made it perfect!
Oh perfect! I’m so happy you loved it. :)
Hi Kay – usually a thin consistency happens when it hasn’t properly emulsified. You can try adding 1-2 tablespoons of boiling hot water (not just warm but boiling hot) while you continue to blend. That usually helps it thicken up.
WOW! It’s always been intimidating to me to make Hollandaise but after using this recipe I don’t know what I was so afraid of! SO easy and SO good.
Hi Taylor – It can definitely look like an intimidating recipe, but it’s so simple to make!
That was truly the best and easiest hollandaise sauce ever. Will be making it again for sure. Thanks
Hi Natalie – So glad you loved this sauce! Definitely a recipe to keep on hand for many dishes such as eggs Benedict or over veggies and meats.
had it for breakfast – poached eggs on Brioche with Hollandaise sauce –
Excellent – first time – and will be using it again and again
thanks
Hi Lauren – Congrats on making our first batch of hollandaise sauce! Happy you loved this one.
Simple recipe with excellent flavor. I used my immersion blender to make this hollandaise sauce and it was so easy. I doubled the recipe and fed the family eggs benedict and will use the remainder for some steaks. My daughter is an eggs benedict connoisseur and gave two thumbs up and a gigantic smile for this sauce. Thank you for sharing your recipe! :)
Hi Nadine- I’m glad this recipe came together with your immersion blender :) And sounds great drizzled over steak!
Very easy and tasty, I’ve made other recipes and this is really great!
Hi Leesa- So glad you loved this sauce!
What a great way to make Hollandaise Sauce! This is so easy and really good! Thanks 😊
Hi Virginia – Glad you found these tips helpful!
Hi, I just made and it taste great, thank you for your wonderful recipe. Unfortunately, I made too much for 2 Benedicts, I have leftovers, so how long can this last in the refrigerator once made?
Thanks
Hi Diana – I’m glad you enjoyed it! It will last about 1-2 days in the fridge.
Great sauce. I added just a touch more cyan pepper
Hi there – Happy you enjoyed this sauce!
Love your recipes! btw can you tell me where you got that cute little pitcher the hollandaise sauce is in that’s in the photo?
Hi Cynthia – Thanks! I actually got it from a friend who makes ceramics :)
Hi Lisa
Quick question, I’m calorie counting and very new to it. Is the calories per portion or a total of the 4 portions together?
Thanks
Sarah.
Hi Sarah – My nutrition facts are per serving :)
Thanks !
I assume there’s no way around the butter/ ghee here, right? Or can it be substituted with ‘any’ fat? (e.g. extra virgin olive oil, coconut butter,…)
You could create another sauce with a different fat, but I don’t think it would be considered a hollandaise sauce.
We made this sauce this morning in a Ninja and it was delicious. Now on to making the eggs benedict! Can this sauce be made using an immersion blender like you do when you make your homemade mayonnaise? If so, would you drizzle in the hot butter or would you add it all at once before you start the immersion blender?
Yes, absolutely! You’ll slowly drizzle the butter in while the blender is on. I’ll add a note to the recipe about that right now. Glad you enjoyed the recipe!
I can’t tolerate any dairy at all. What could I substitute for the butter or ghee in the hollandaise sauce? All your recipes sound so delicious.
Thanks
Hi Debbie – You can try using coconut oil in replacement of butter or ghee!
Making hollandaise in the blender is my favorite way to make it. I’m not sure why you would want to make it any other way!
Hi Kelly – I completely agree! It’s so simple to make in the blender versus hand mixing it.
I had forgotten all about hollandaise sauce! I haven’t had it in ages! Definitely making eggs benedict in the morning!
Hi Tonje – Definitely a classic to bring back this weekend for breakfast :)
This looks so simple! I love the video tutorial!
Hi Nicole – Thanks so much! Hope this tutorial works out for you :)
Can’t wait to use this to make eggs benedict this weekend. Thanks, Lisa!
Hi Sapana – Enjoy the recipe! :)
Delicious and SO EASY with these instructions. Will for sure be making all sorts of hollandaise topped goodies this weekend.
Hi Tristin – Perfect for tons of recipes, especially eggs benedict :)