The Best Eggs Benedict Recipe (with 5-Minute Hollandaise Sauce)

With my foolproof techniques, you'll be serving up the Best Eggs Benedict right in your own kitchen without the stress. Golden, buttery English muffins, perfectly poached eggs (without boiling), and a velvety hollandaise come together in minutes with this restaurant-quality brunch classic that feels effortlessly elegant.

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I love absolutely everything about Eggs Benedict, except absolutely everything about making eggs Benedict. I had a fear of egg poaching, I didn't love hollandaise sauce, and it all felt ridiculously fussy.

I fixed all of those issues by developing my foolproof poached eggs that require no boiling water, and a velvety smooth hollandaise sauce made in less than five minutes in your blender. You're welcome in advance for your delicious breakfast!

Ingredients & Substitutions

These are the ingredients you need to make a classic Eggs Benedict, but let's go over everything and see where you can make changes if needed:

• English muffins - Inexpensive English muffins (just muffins, breakfast muffins, or toasting muffins in the UK) are available in pretty much every grocery store. Personally, I like to make my two ingredient English muffins (shown above), but you can also substitute with buttermilk biscuits and make a Southern Eggs Benedict or go the Hash Brown Eggs Benedict route using store-bought or homemade hash brown patties.
• Ham - Contrary to tradition, I prefer thinly sliced deli ham, but Canadian bacon or country ham would be great. A lot of people enjoy using bacon, smoked salmon… really there's no end to what you can put on your benny.
• Egg yolks - A classic hollandaise sauce calls for eggs yolks (freeing up some egg whites to make my Coconut Cloud cake!), but did you know that you can make hollandaise sauce with whole eggs? It's a little bit thinner and more pale in color, but also less likely to split or break. You would just use one whole egg in place of every two egg yolks.
• Butter - Making hollandaise calls for very hot melted butter. Almost boiling. You can use ghee or bacon fat or any other hot fat that you like. I'm not not your mama.
• Whole eggs - I know from time to time there's some kind of "health crisis" that makes people afraid to eat eggs. If you prefer not to have a runny egg yolk for whatever reason, try making hard boiled eggs and placing half on your muffin, or grate it over the top for a fluffy bed of hard-boiled egg to pour over with hollandaise sauce.
• Lemon juice - This is to add acidity to the hollandaise as well as helps it to bind. You can use any other citrus juice you like or some people really like the flavor of white wine vinegar in its place. You may need to use more. Try it and experiment.
• Dijon - This adds flavor, as well as more biding, or emulsification. You can really use any mustard you like. It's not much, so it doesn't taste mustardy.
• Seasonings - A little salt, and some people like a pinch of cayenne pepper is really all you need to season your hollandaise. I like a little chipotle pepper because it has a nice smoky flavor, but you don't have to add any pepper if you don't want to. Taste your sauce when it's done and add what you like and leave out what you don't.

See recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and measurements.

Equipment: Blender

Since it’s just me and my husband at home now, I use a small, portable blender that holds up to 2 cups to make the hollandaise sauce. It’s the perfect size for this recipe, which makes about 1 ¼ cups (300 ml) of hollandaise sauce.

If you're making a bigger batch, you'll need a larger blender. I’ve used everything from a high-end Vitamix blender to a budget-friendly Ninja blender, and they both work great. Even an old Black & Decker blender or an immersion blender will do the job just fine!

Final note: Don't be embarrassed if you decide to use a packet hollandaise sauce. I know professional chefs who just don't ever want to make hollandaise sauce for whatever reason. They make it from a packet. This is a no judgment zone.

Quick Recipe Video

Step-by-Step Instructions

Some recipes just feel overwhelming. We just envision lots and lots of difficult steps. Let's get that out-of-the-way. This is so simple. We're going to make a blender hollandaise sauce that comes together in just five minutes (or mix a packet), we're going to make easy no-boil poached eggs, and we're gonna toast some English muffins. What's easier than that? Let's get started:

1. Melt your butter and keep it at a very low simmer so it stays hot.
2. Heat up your meat of choice if desired. I find thinly sliced deli ham warms up quickly when you top it with the egg.
3. Toast your English muffins and spread with a little butter.
4. Add 1 tablespoon of vinegar to a pan that has been filled with at least 3 inches of water and bring to a simmer over high heat.

Hollandaise sauce

• This is such a simple sauce, ready in minutes, but if you want more in-depth information, variations, and uses, see the original Quick Hollandaise Sauce recipe post.

Step 1: In a small saucepan heat your butter. Add lemon juice, dijon mustard, and kosher salt to your blender. Blend on high until fully mixed, about 10 seconds.

Step 2 :While blender is running, slowly drizzle the butter through the opening in the top. Run on high for 15 to 30 seconds. Taste and season with more salt and cayenne (or chipotle).

Poached eggs

Step 3 :Gently tip the eggs into the hot water, one at a time, leaving enough room between the eggs that the whites don't touch. Cover and set timer for 3 ½ minutes.

Step 4: Using a slotted spoon, remove eggs from the water in the order that you added them to the water. Test for doneness by gently poking the white. Set on paper towels to dry.

Assembly

Step 5: Drape each toasted English muffin half with a little bit of thinly sliced ham and top with a poached egg.

Step 6: Drizzle warm hollandaise sauce over the top of each.

Finish: Sprinkle with chives, salt, and pepper, or a little pinch more of cayenne. Dig in!

Make-Ahead Eggs Benedict for a Crowd

Making Eggs Benedict for a crowd is easier than you think—just prepare the hollandaise ahead, adding a little bit of hot water and blending again just before serving. Poach eggs ahead of time, and reheat them in warm water just before assembling everything on a tray and pouring over with hollandaise.

Let guests serve themselves. With a little planning, you can serve a beautiful, stress-free brunch without spending all morning in the kitchen!

Recipe FAQs

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