← Nouns Cooking · American

Ingredients

• 3 egg yolks
• 1½ tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tbsp Water
• 175 g unsalted butter, cubed
• ¼ tsp Salt
• 1 pinch Cayenne pepper
• 8 very fresh large eggs
• 1 tbsp white vinegar
• 8 slices Canadian bacon or thick-sliced ham
• 4 English muffins, split
• 1 tbsp butter, for the muffins and ham
• 1 tbsp Chives, snipped

Method

1. For the hollandaise, set a heatproof bowl over a pan of barely simmering water (the bowl shouldn’t touch the water). Whisk the yolks, lemon juice and water in it for 1–2 min, until pale and slightly thickened.
2. Add the butter a cube or two at a time, whisking constantly and letting each addition melt in before adding more, for 5–6 min, until thick and glossy. Season with salt and cayenne, take off the heat and keep it warm over the pan, whisking now and then.
3. Bring a wide pan of water to a gentle simmer and add the vinegar. Crack each egg into a cup, swirl the water and slide in 4 eggs. Poach for 3 min, until the whites are set but the yolks are runny, then lift out with a slotted spoon onto kitchen paper. Repeat.
4. Meanwhile, toast the muffins and butter them. Warm the ham in a frying pan with a little butter for 1 minute per side.
5. Top each muffin half with ham and a poached egg, spoon over plenty of hollandaise and finish with chives and a pinch more cayenne.

Tips

• If the hollandaise starts to look greasy or split, whisk in a teaspoon of hot water off the heat.
• The yolks stay soft, so use very fresh eggs and avoid serving this to anyone pregnant, very young or elderly.

Sources

Written in our own words after cross-checking these recipes:

RecipeTin Eats Once Upon a Chef