British · Breakfast
Eggs Benedict
Benedict with a British accent — thick bacon chops glazed in black treacle, muffins, and a hollandaise sharpened with cider vinegar
- Prep
- 30 min
- Cook
- 25 min
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
- Thick-cut bacon chops or gammon steaks — 4 x 100 g
- Black treacle — 30 g
- Dijon mustard — 10 g
- English muffins — 4, split (280 g)
- Free-range eggs — 4, plus 3 yolks
- Unsalted butter — 175 g, clarified (yields ~150 g)
- Cider vinegar — 45 ml (15 ml reduction, 15 ml hollandaise, 15 ml poaching)
- Shallot — 25 g, minced
- Black peppercorns — 6, crushed
- Lemon juice — 10 ml
- Watercress — 40 g
- Fine sea salt — 3 g
Method
- Mix treacle and mustard. Grill or pan-fry bacon chops 3 minutes per side, brushing with the treacle glaze in the final 2 minutes until lacquered.
- Reduce 15 ml vinegar with shallot and peppercorns to about 10 ml; strain.
- Whisk yolks with the reduction over a bain-marie at 65–70°C until thick and ribboning, 4–5 minutes.
- Slowly whisk in warm clarified butter until emulsified; season with 15 ml cider vinegar, lemon juice and salt. Hold at 50°C.
- Poach eggs in barely simmering water with 15 ml vinegar, 3 minutes; drain on cloth.
- Toast muffin halves until golden.
- Rest bacon 2 minutes, then slice thickly against the grain.