Butter Sauces

Butter sauces, those that aren’t emulsified with egg like a hollandaise or béarnaise may be as simple as a browned butter. They include compound butters, beurre blanc, and broken butters.

Compound Butters

A compound butter is made by mixing cold, softened butter with flavoring ingredients such as fresh herbs, garlic, vegetable purées, dried fruits, preserves, or wine reductions. The compound butter is typically rolled into a cylinder shape and wrapped on plastic wrap or parchment paper, and refrigerated  until needed. At service, a slice of the compound butter is cut from the roll and placed on the warm food where it melts and forms the compound butter sauce. Compound butters can be prepared in advance and refrigerated for a few days or stored in the freezer for longer periods of time. Compound butters may be served alone or over grilled meats, fish, or vegetable dishes.

Butter      Preparation
Almond     Finely grind 4 oz. of almonds until very smooth; add 8 oz. of whole butter and mix well
Anchovy Soak 1 oz. of anchovies in cold water for 15 minutes to remove excess oil and salt; pat anchovies with paper towels to dry; place anchovies in food processor with 8 oz. of whole butter; purée until smooth
Bercy Reduce 1 cup of white wine and 2 minced shallots until only about 2 tbsp. of liquid remain; cool mixture; add 8 oz.of whole butter and 2 tbsp. of diced parsley; purée until smooth
Colbert Place 1 tbsp. of chopped fresh tarragon, 3 tbsp. of glace de viande, 3 tbsp. of chopped fresh parsley, and 1 tsp. of lemon juice in a food processor and purée until smooth
Herb Add 2-4 tbsp. of desired chopped fresh herb to 8 oz. of whole butter and purée until smooth
Lobster, shrimp, or crayfish In a meat grinder, grind 6 oz. lobster, shrimp, or crayfish shells with 8 oz. of whole butter; place in a small saucepan over low heat until butter melts; keep on very low heat for 30 minutes and strain; chill the melted butter until solid;season to taste and purée until smooth
Maître d’hôtel Place 3 tbsp. of freshly chopped parsley, 1 tsp. of fresh lemon juice, and 8 oz. of whole butter in a food processor and purée until smooth
Marchand de Vin Combine 1 cup of dry red wine, 1 tbsp. of glace de viande, 1 minced shallot, 1 clove garlic, and 6 cracked black peppercorns; reduce until about 2 tbsp. of liquid remain and chill; blend in a food processor with 8 oz. of whole butter

Beurre Blanc

Beurre blanc is not a classic French sauce. It isn’t listed in Escoffier’s le Guide Culinaire.  Originally from the Nantes region of France and called Beurre Nantais, the sauce was prepared with Muscadet wine from the area.

When preparing a beurre blanc, small amounts of butter are whisked into a the acid reduction over low heat. It is important to whisk constantly while maintaining the sauces warm, not hot temperature. The sauce can be made quicker over high heat if larger pieces of butter are used to moderate the temperature and the sauce is whisked constantly. Heavy cream is often added and will help to stabilize the emulsion.

Beurre blanc must be held warm, no warmer than 135˚F and allowed to cool to no more than 80˚F. If the sauce breaks, a little warm cream can whisked into the beurre blanc to re-establish the emulsion. This can only be down once. Variations of a beurre blanc include a beurre rouge where red wine replaces white wine, beurre citron where lemon juice replaces wine and vinegar, beurre à l’ ail, where garlic replaces the shallots.

Broken Butters

Butter, in its whole state is an emulsion. When butter is heated, the fat, milk solids, and water separate or “break.” Broken butters are typically finished with an acid, such as lemon juice or wine vinegar.  One of the most iconic dishes served with a broken butter sauce is Sole à la Meunière, a classic French dish consisting of lightly bread sole served with a brown butter  or beurre noisette sauce and lemon.

  • Beurre noisette or brown butter is prepared when whole butter is melted and the milk solids are allowed to brown. The browned milk solids give the butter a toasted nut flavor. In French, beurre noisette literally translates to hazelnut butter.
  • Beurre noir or black butter replaces lemon juice is replaced with wine vinegar and the butter is cooked until the milk solids turn dark brown. Sherry vinegar, champagne vinegar, and balsamic vinegar are common vinegars paired with a beurre noir.