Eggs Hussarde
This is by far Brennans Restaurant of New Orleans most complex dish to create. The reason being is that there are so many separate things in this dish that have to be kept warm. I cooked this for breakfast at the hunting camp one time. We had been playing cards all night, so I started cooking at about 2 AM. Breakfast was ready at 445 AM. Needless to say, I did not go hunting that morning!
This is by far Brennans Restaurant of New Orleans most complex dish to create. The reason being is that there are so many separate things in this dish that have to be kept warm. I cooked this for breakfast at the hunting camp one time. We had been playing cards all night, so I started cooking at about 2 AM. Breakfast was ready at 445 AM. Needless to say, I did not go hunting that morning!
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 4 egg yolks
- 2 tablespoons worcestershire sauce
- 6 tablespoons butter
- 1 pinch cayenne pepper
- 1/2 cup onion finely chopped
- 8 large eggs
- 1 pound butter
- salt and black pepper
- 1/2 cup fresh parsley finely chopped
- 2 cups vinegar
- 1/2 cup red wine
- 8 slices canadian bacon or ham
- 8 holland rusks or english muffins
- marchand de vin sauce
- 1 1/2 teaspoons garlic finely chopped
- 1/2 scallion finely chopped
- 1/2 cup boiled ham finely chopped
- 1/2 cup mushrooms finely chopped
- 2 cups beef stock
- 1 1/2 teaspoons thyme leaves
- poached eggs
- 1 1/2 quarts water
- hollandaise sauce
- 1 1/2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons water
- Carbohydrate 29.5492295858639 g
- Cholesterol 4386.09804732 mg
- Fat 299.66254861628 g
- Fiber 1.16286250528693 g
- Protein 115.695766945798 g
- Saturated Fat 161.799782208064 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (1771g)
- Sodium 4510.56242288498 mg
- Sugar 28.386367080577 g
- Trans Fat 25.0309709979441 g
- Calories 3287 calories
Step-by-step
- Melt butter in a large saute pan and warm the Canadian bacon over low heat.
- Place 2 Holland rusks on each plate and cover with slices of warm Canadian bacon.
- Spoon Marchand de Vin sauce over the meat, then set a poached egg on each slice.
- Ladle Hollandaise sauce over the eggs; serve.
- MARCHAND DE VIN SAUCE-.
- Melt the butter in a large saucepan or Dutch oven and saute the onion, garlic, scallions and ham for 5 minutes.
- Add the mushrooms, reduce the heat to medium and cook for for 2 minutes.
- Blend in the flour and cook, stirring for 4 minutes, then add the Worcestershire sauce, beef stock, wine, thyme and bay leaf.
- Simmer until the sauce thickens, about 1 hour.
- Before serving, remove the bay leaf and add the parsley.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Yields three cups.
- POACHED EGGS-.
- Bring the water and vinegar to a boil in a large saucepan.
- Crack the eggs one at a time and drop them gently into the boiling water, being careful not to break the yolks.
- Simmer for 3 to 4 minutes, moving the eggs several times with a spoon to cook them evenly.
- When firm, remove the eggs from the water with a slotted spoon and place in a pan filled with cold water until serving.
- HOLLANDAISE SAUCE-.
- Melt the butter in a medium saucepan, skim and discard the milk solids from the top of the butter.
- Hold the clarified butter over very low heat while preparing egg yolks.
- Place the egg yolks, vinegar, cayenne and salt in a large stainless steel bowl and whisk briefly.
- Fill a saucepan or Dutch oven large enough to accommodate the bowl with about 1 inch of water.
- Heat the water to just below the boiling point.
- set the bowl in the pan over the water; do not let the water touch the bottom of the bowl.
- Whisk the egg yolk mixture until slightly thickened, then drizzle the clarified butter into the yolks, whisking constantly.
- If the bottom of the bowl becomes hotter than warm to the touch, remove the bowl from the pan of water for a few seconds and let cool.
- When all of the butter is incorporated and the sauce is thick, beat in the water.
- Serve the Hollandaise immediately or keep in a warm place at room temperature until use.
Butter does the foundational structural work in Eggs Hussarde, carrying both the richness of the hollandaise and the savory weight of the Marchand de Vin reduction. Without careful temperature management across multiple concurrent stations, this dish quickly falls apart into a logistical puzzle.
- Clarifying the pound of butter completely removes water and milk solids, which prevents the fats from breaking during emulsification.
- Cook the aromatics and minced ham for the Marchand de Vin sauce until moisture fully evaporates so the subsequent addition of flour forms a smooth roux without lumps.
- Whisk egg yolks over simmering water that never touches the base of the bowl, keeping the heat gentle enough to avoid scrambling the protein.
- Submerging cooked poached eggs in cold water halts thermal carryover cooking, allowing you to reheat them gently just before service without overcooking the yolks.
Swapping the traditional beef stock for a lighter vegetable broth or substituting standard bacon for the Canadian ham alters the density of the final plate significantly, often thinning the sauce's mouthfeel. Precision in timing separates a cohesive regional masterpiece from a kitchen catastrophe.
