A brilliant yellow hollandaise infused with the subtle flavor of lobster mushrooms is one of the more creative lobster mushroom recipes on this site. It takes some time time make, but it might just be the greatest hollandaise you'll ever have.
The Secret: Lobster Mushroom Butter
One day while cooking a big batch of Wild Mushroom Confit using lobster mushrooms, I noticed that the butter turned a brilliant yellow and tastes like mushroms. I wrote about making the butter at home with scrap and trim in my post Lobster Mushroom Infused Butter.
By itself, the flavor of the infused butter is mild, but noticeable. Naturally, the chef in me had to make it into hollandaise. I also mix in some lobster mushroom duxelles to add a little texture and pops of red color. It's important that the mushrooms are very finely chopped.
It's a hollandaise like no other. The combination of layering the flavor using the infused butter and the duxelles is the key. What you end up with is a thick, creamy butter sauce with a wonderful shellfish-mushroom flavor.
How to Serve
It's a great accent to places where you might want such a sauce: on steak, with fish, or even as a dip for french fries or vegetables. It's great directly out of the whisking bowl with a spoon, or fingers too. Pretty much anything could use some lobster holly.
Lobster Mushroom Hollandaise
Equipment
- 1 Medium mixing bowl
- 2 quart sauce pot for the double boiler
- 1 Whisk
Ingredients
- 2 egg yolks whites reserved for making meringue or something later
- ½ cup lobster mushroom butter warmed, but not hot (recipe here)
- ⅛ cup shallot diced ⅛ inch
- Pinch of cayenne pepper
- Kosher salt to taste
- ¼ cup champagne vinegar
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 2 tablespoons dried lobster mushroom duxelles recipe here
- 2 tablespoon warm water
- 1 teaspoon chopped fresh tarragon
Instructions
- Heat the shallot and vinegar in a small sauce pan. Reduce until the pan is nearly dry, then reserve the mixture.
- Heat the tomato paste in a pan, stirring occasionally, until it steams. Allow the paste to cool. (Cooking the paste helps improve the flavor)
- Fill a small pot halfway full of water and heat. Place the egg yolks in a stainless steel bowl and whisk lightly with the water, then put the bowl on top of the simmering pot of water to create a double boiler. Whisk the egg yolks vigorously, until smooth, very light in color and doubled in volume.
- Gradually start drizzling in the warm butter, continuing to whisk to create a creamy emulsion. Continue to drizzle in the butter and whisk until all the butter has been added and the mixture is thickened. Add the duxelles in batches.
- Then stir in the shallot mixture a little bit at a time to add acid to the sauce. Season the sauce to taste with the cayenne and salt. Transfer the sauce to something with high sides, and keep warm.
- Once it's made, it should sit for a while, and the consistency should tighten up a bit. If needed, adjust the sauce with a little water to loosen it, or by whisking in some more butter to thicken it. Keep the sauce warm in a place with indirect heat until needed.
Pamela Marshall
Where do you add the dried lobster mushroom duxelles? I've re-read this several times and don't see where you add it in.
Alan Bergo
It's outlined in step 4