Crab Benedict with Old Bay Hollandaise Recipe

Crab Benedict on a plate with hollandaise and green onions.

Crab Benedict with Old Bay Hollandaise Recipe

This Crab Benedict layers broiled Crab Imperial over buttery English muffins with poached eggs and a silky Old Bay hollandaise. No breadcrumb filler and no crab cakes — just 8 ounces of crab, and a blender sauce that comes together in about a minute. Special-occasion brunch, ready in 25 minutes.

Prep Time5

Cook Time20

Total Time25

Course: Breakfast, Brunch

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Crab Benedict, Crab Eggs Benedict

Servings:

Calories: 1168kcal

Author: Sharon Farnell

Equipment

Immersion Blender

Ingredients

2 English muffins split
2 tbsp butter melted
4 eggs for poaching
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon white vinegar

Crab Imperial Mixture

8 oz crab claw meat or jumbo lump crab meat broken up into smaller pieces
1 egg yolk
¼ cup mayonaise
½ teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon Old Bay
fresh ground black pepper, to taste
the juice of half a lemon

Old Bay Hollandaise

2 egg yolks
½ tsp lemon juice
8 tablespoon hot melted butter
6-8 shakes Old Bay seasoning

Instructions

Turn the broiler in your oven on high.
Melt 2 tablespoons butter in the microwave on high for about 45 seconds, or in a small saucepan on the stove over low heat, until completely melted.
Split English muffins and lay on a broiler-safe baking tray or on a cookie sheet. Brush all 4 with melted butter (reserve any remaining melted butter). Place under broiler and broil until golden brown, about 3-5 minutes (checking frequently to ensure they don’t burn).
While your muffins broil, mix all Crab Imperial mixture ingredients in a small mixing bowl, and bring a large pot of water with vinegar and 1 teaspoon salt added to a simmer on the stove so that it’s ready for poaching the eggs.
Once English muffins are golden brown, remove from broiler and top each evenly with crab mixture. Brush remaining melted butter on the top of the crab mixture and return to the broiler. Broil until crab mixture is golden and crisp on top, about 5-8 minutes.
While the crab mixture cooks, poach your eggs. (I like to crack the eggs into a fine mesh sieve, then let the extra white run through for a prettier-shaped poached egg, but cracking them right into the simmering water works just as well. Simmer 3-4 minutes on low heat in about 4 cups of water with 1 teaspoon salt and 1 tablespoon vinegar until whites are just set and yolk is still jiggly, and carefully remove with a slotted spoon to a paper towel lined plate to drain.
As soon as the crab mixture is browned and ready, get your Hollandaise ready. Melt 8 tablespoon of butter on the stovetop in a small saucepan. Add egg yolks, lemon juice and 6-8 shakes of Old Bay seasoning to a cup/liquid measuring cup just wide enough to fit your immersion blender, and place blender into cup.
Pulse egg yolks, Old Bay and lemon juice briefly to combine/slightly thicken. Once butter is fully melted, with the immersion blender running, slowly stream the hot butter into the cup. Continue to blend until all butter is well incorporated and sauce is slightly thickened, about 1 minute.
Place two crab topped muffins on each plate. Top each muffin with a poached egg, and pour Hollandaise sauce over all 4. Sprinkle a bit of Old Bay over top each muffin and serve!

Notes

Go slow with the butter. Stream the hot butter into the blender cup in a thin, steady trickle. The yolks need a few seconds to warm up before they can hold all that fat — rush it and the sauce comes out thin.
If the hollandaise breaks. Whisk a fresh yolk with a couple teaspoons of hot water, then slowly whisk the broken sauce into it.
Make the sauce last. Hollandaise doesn't hold or reheat. Have the muffins toasted, crab broiled, and eggs poached before you touch the blender.
Make ahead. The crab mixture can be mixed up to a day in advance and kept covered in the fridge.

Nutrition