Beurre Blanc Sauce
This Beurre Blanc Sauce is a creamy white wine butter sauce I make with shallots, white wine, vinegar, and unsalted butter. It’s simple to prepare in just 15 minutes and always adds a touch of elegance to fish, vegetables, pork, or chicken.
Ingredients
- ½ cup dry white wine
- 1 1/2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
- ½ peeled small diced shallot, about 1/4 to 1/3 cup
- 8 ounces unsalted butter, cut up into teaspoon sized pieces
- salt to taste
Instructions
- Add the white wine, vinegar, and shallots to a medium-size saucepot and cook over low to medium heat until there are about 2 tablespoons of liquid left.
- Add in the butter and immediately begin to vigorously whisk the mixture until the butter is almost completely melted.
- Remove from the heat and whisk until the mixture becomes melted and smooth.
- Season with salt and optionally strain and serve.
Notes
For a little insider tip, here's how to keep the sauce from breaking and keep it warm longer. Add half a cup of cold heavy whipping cream after reducing the white wine and vinegar to about two tablespoons. Let it cook over low to medium heat until it thickens to a texture similar to Alfredo sauce. Then continue with the same steps, add the butter, whisk until smooth, season, strain, and serve. This is how I did it in my restaurant days so that the sauce could hold all night during service,
Au sec: I know I said this word in the video below, and it means "almost dry" in French. It's essentially the perfect stage to start adding the butter for emulsifying.
Don't strain it: Believe it or not, I don’t always strain the sauce. The shallots can add great flavor and a little texture. We used to serve it like this at Malmaison, a French restaurant where I worked in Missouri, and people loved it.
Lemon variation: It's funny because most people think this has lemon in it, but classically, it does not. To brighten the sauce up a bit, I like to squeeze in about half a lemon right at the end while whisking. If you love lemony flavors, then this tip is for you.
Make-Ahead: I don’t usually make beurre Blanc too far ahead because it’s best served fresh and warm.
How to Store: Leftovers don’t reheat well since the sauce can break, so I try to make just what I’ll use in the moment.
Nutrition
Calories: 217kcalCarbohydrates: 1gProtein: 1gFat: 23gSaturated Fat: 15gCholesterol: 61mgSodium: 4mgPotassium: 23mgFiber: 1gSugar: 1gVitamin A: 708IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 8mgIron: 1mg