Genmaicha Beurre Blanc Recipe

Let’s get into some classical French cooking. Beurre blanc is a velvety, tangy, and rich butter sauce, similar to hollandaise, but without the use of eggs. This sauce is traditionally served with seafood, like a pan fried fillet of fish, or, pictured here, seared scallops. This sauce takes herbs very well, and why not use tea as a herb? In this case, using genmaicha green tea as the herb element adds a nutty, toasty, and grassy depth to this deliciously lavish sauce.

Recipe:

2 sticks + 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, separated

1 tbsp genmaicha green tea

¼ cup dry white wine

1 tbsp white wine vinegar

2 tablespoons shallot, finely chopped

¼ teaspoon salt

⅛ tsp white pepper

1 tbsp lemon juice

Directions: 

In a small saucepan, combine 2 sticks of butter and genmaicha. Melt the butter over low heat, making sure the butter does not bubble or brown. Once the butter is completely melted, remove from heat, transfer into a container and cool. 

In a separate small saucepan, combine your dry white wine, white wine vinegar, and shallots, and bring to a boil. Simmer and reduce the mixture until you are left with about 2 tbsp liquid, about 5-7 minutes. Remove from heat. Begin to emulsify the genmaicha butter with the liquid by whisking in 1 tablespoon of butter at a time over low heat, adding another piece just before the previous piece has completely melted. Constantly whisk until you are out of your genmaicha butter. Remove from heat, and add your remaining two tablespoons of unsalted butter to ensure the mixture doesn’t split. Strain butter mixture, and discard the solids (genmaicha tea and shallots). Season your butter with salt, white pepper, and adjust the acidity with a little bit of lemon juice as needed. 

Serve with seafood or chicken.