Chicken Hollandaise

Ingredients

• 1.5 tbsp butter
• 1 tsp onion, finely chopped
• 2 tbsp cornstarch
• 1 cup chicken stock
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 0.33 cup celery, finely chopped
• 0.25 tsp salt
• a few grains paprika
• 1 cup cold cooked chicken, cut into small cubes
• 1 egg yolk

Method

Melt the butter over medium heat and add the finely chopped onion. Cook for two minutes until the onion softens and turns translucent — you're building an aromatics base here, not colouring it. Add the cornstarch and stir constantly for one minute to cook out the raw starch flavour. This brief toasting is critical; skip it and your sauce will taste chalky.

Pour in the stock gradually while whisking to prevent lumps forming. The cornstarch will thicken the liquid as heat agitates the granules and they absorb moisture — this is gelatinisation, and it happens between 65 and 80°C. Keep stirring until the sauce coats the back of a spoon and no starch grittiness remains when you rub a sample between your fingers. Add the lemon juice, celery, salt, and paprika now. The acid from the lemon will brighten the chicken stock's flavour and prevent the sauce from tasting flat.

Fold in the cold cooked chicken, breaking up any clusters so it disperses evenly. Let the sauce return to a gentle simmer — approximately 85°C — so the chicken warms through. This takes about two minutes. Do not skip this step; cold chicken will shock the sauce temperature and prevent the egg yolk from emulsifying properly.

Remove from the heat and wait fifteen seconds for the surface to stop steaming, then whisk the lightly beaten egg yolk into the sauce in a thin stream. The residual heat will denature the yolk's proteins and thicken the sauce further through emulsification, creating a glossy, cohesive finish. Whisk constantly as you add it — stop whisking and the yolk will scramble. If the sauce breaks or splits, transfer to a clean bowl, whisk a fresh egg yolk with a tablespoon of cold water, then slowly whisk the broken sauce into that emulsion to repair it.

Season to taste and serve immediately over buttered toast. The sauce will tighten slightly as it cools, so err on the side of loose rather than thick while still hot.