Beurre Blanc (French white butter sauce for fish, eggs, poultry or vegetables)

Beurre blanc sauce is a rich French sauce made from an acidic reduction whisked together with chunks of fresh butter. The result is used on things like fish, eggs, poultry, and vegetables to add a complex, rich layer of flavor. Many French restaurants offer foods lavishly garnished with beurre blanc sauce, and the food can also be made at home relatively easily, for patient cooks with steady hands.

In French, beurre blanc translates into “white butter.” The name is a reference to the fact that while the sauce is cooked and blended, it is not browned, as in the case of things like roux. Beurre blanc sauce is sometimes mixed with other ingredients, but as a general rule it makes a delicate white sauce, rather than a heavier and more dense brown sauce.

A traditional beurre blanc sauce starts with reducing very finely chopped shallots in vinegar, lemon juice, or white wine. Once the acidic reduction is made, chunks of slightly softened butter are added and briskly whisked in. Cooks whisk rapidly, to capture multiple small air bubbles in the sauce so that it will hold up well. Beurre blanc sauce is usually used immediately, and cooks differ on whether or not to strain it.

Some cooks add cream to a beurre blanc sauce, to stabilize it. This deviation from traditional should not technically be called beurre blanc sauce, since the cream dramatically changes the composition and texture of the sauce. Other ingredients such as tarragon or dill may be added as well, for additional flavor.

Beurre Blanc
Recipe courtesy Alton Brown

1 to 2 shallots, chopped fine
8 ounces white wine
2 ounces lemon juice (reviewers said to use half this amount)
1 tablespoon heavy cream
12 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cubed
Salt and white pepper, to taste

Combine the shallots, white wine, and lemon juice in a non-reactive saucepan over high heat and reduce to 2 tablespoons.

Add the cream to the reduction. Once the liquid bubbles, reduce the heat to low. Add the butter, one cube at a time, whisking first on the heat and then off the heat. Continue whisking butter into the reduction until the mixture is fully emulsified and has reached a rich sauce consistency. Season with salt and white pepper.

Store beurre blanc in a thermos until ready to serve.

Makes 4 servings