Eggs Benedict for a Crowd

One of my earliest cooking jobs was at a fine dining restaurant in Boston near the State House. Once a week or so, the restaurant would open early to serve breakfast to politicians and bigwigs who'd rent it out for their fundraisers or meetings. As the new guy, it was my job to get there early to make breakfast.

This meant lots and lots of poached eggs and hollandaise.

Back then, I made Eggs Benedict—the classic brunch dish of poached eggs on top of a toasted English muffin with a slice of Canadian bacon and a blanket of creamy Hollandaise—the traditional way. I made the hollandaise by hand, with a whisk and a double boiler, and I poached the eggs to order by gently tipping them into the center of a gently whirlpool of water kept at a bare simmer in a giant pot. (You can see me demonstrate those techniques in this video here).

It was a tedious, painstaking process that took a lot of practice, a lot of frustration, and a lot of broken eggs.

If I'd known then what I know now, I could have saved myself some headaches.

The real key to making eggs benedict for a crowd? Poach the eggs in advance and use a hand blender for the Hollandaise.

Poached Eggs are Easy (So Water You Waiting For?)

It's true! You can poach eggs up to a couple days in advance, drop them in an ice bath, store them in the fridge, then gently reheat them just before serving, which eliminates the most stress-inducing part of poaching eggs for a group. What's more, if you strain your raw eggs before poaching them to eliminate the loose, stringy whites, you can drop then drop them into the water all at once, which makes poaching a dozen eggs nearly as simple as poaching a single one.

Here is the full technique and recipe for foolproof poached eggs for a crowd  (or you can watch it demonstrated in the video above).

I've used the same technique to poach four dozen eggs at the same time (here's a real short video of me poaching 30 at once).

Hollandaise is Easy (You Butter Believe It!)

The only other tricky part of Eggs Benedict is the Hollandaise, a creamy emulsification of eggs yolks and melted butter seasoned with lemon. The good news is that it's not as tricky as it seems. Even with a whisk and a bowl, it's not that hard once you get the hang of it, and if you have a hand blender, it becomes nearly foolproof as the rapid vortex created by a hand-blender makes short work of the emulsion.

You can get the full recipe for my foolproof hollandaise here. (While I call my recipe foolproof, I should note that really it's only fool-resistent, as I find that no matter how many fools I plan for, someone more foolish can always come along.)

Once you've got your eggs pre-poached and know how to make hollandaise the easy way making Eggs Benedict is as simple as toasting English muffins, cooking off some Canadian bacon, and assembling it.

And with those skills under your belt, you now also have a reliable shortcut for making new friends.

Eggs Benedict for a Crowd

Time: 30 minutes

Active time: 30 minutes

Yield: 1 to a dozen servings

Ingredients:

• 1 to a dozen English muffin halves

• 1 to a dozen slices of Canadian bacon

• 1 to a dozen pre-poached eggs (see recipe here), reheated in a bowl of hot water.

• 1 recipe foolproof Hollandaise, held covered in a warm spot near the stove

• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

• Chives or cayenne pepper, as garnish

Directions

1. Toast the English muffin halves in a toaster or under the broiler until browned and crusty. Meanwhile, cook the Canadian bacon in a skillet over medium heat until lightly browned.

2. Arrange the English muffin halves on a serving platter, split-side-up. Add a slice of Canadian bacon to each. Carefully lift the poached eggs out of the water bath with a slotted spoon, allowing excess water to drain off, then place on top of each Canadian bacon slice. Season the eggs with salt and pepper. Spoon the Hollandaise over the top, making sure it coats each egg completely. Garnish with chives or cayenne pepper. Serve immediately.