Mexican Eggs Benedict and Chipotle Hollandaise

Looking to jumpstart your day? Try this spicy Mexican Eggs Benedict and Chipotle Hollandaise. The quintessential brunch classic gets a makeover with Mexican-inspired flavors such as chorizo, and chipotle peppers and is sure to be a showstopper at your next brunch. Serve with avocado, cilantro, and some extra hot sauce for a combo worth getting out of bed for.

Eggs Benny sounds like a party doesn't it? The OG version (original- for those of a certain age- like us), doesn't do it for us. You know the one with Canadian bacon, poached egg, and hollandaise?

This version draws inspiration from Mexican flavors. Chorizo is used in place of the bacon, and a spicy hollandaise with chipotle and lime switches up the traditional lemony sauce. We still serve it on an English muffin, because we like our nooks and crannies!

And don't let the hollandaise sauce scare you. It's easy to make, and we are using a simple blender method that works every time!

Here is what you will need to make this Mexican-inspired eggs benedict.

• Chorizo look for Mexican chorizo, raw or "fresco" in the meat section. One of our supermarkets only sells Mexican chorizo pre-cooked in link form. This will work too. Here is a great article breaking down all the different types of chorizo.
• Eggs for poaching, and the hollandaise sauce (yolks).
• Lime typical hollandaise sauce calls for lemon, but we will be replacing the lemon with lime for a more authentic taste.
• Butter for the sauce and for buttering the English muffins.
• Chipotle in adobo sauce look for it in the international section of your supermarket.
• English muffins
• Salt and pepper
• Chili powder for garnishing

Optional Garnishes

• Fresh or pickled jalapeños
• Pickled red onions
• Chopped fresh cilantro
• Sliced avocado
• Salsa
• Lime

See the recipe card for quantities.

You will need a frying pan for cooking the chorizo, a small pot and slotted spoon for poaching the eggs, and a toaster or baking sheet for toasting the English muffins.

To make the chipotle hollandaise sauce, you will need a high-powered blender or immersion blender.

Step-by-step directions

Below is a visual guide to assembling eggs benedict with chipotle hollandaise. See the recipe card for full instructions.

In a non-stick skillet, cook the chorizo until no longer pink. Set aside.

To poach the eggs, set a small strainer over a small bowl. Drain the excess whites.

Bring a pot to a boil, and begin by making a funnel/whirlwind in the center with a spoon.

Lower the heat, and pour the egg into the center of the funnel.

Cook the egg for about 3 minutes, undisturbed.

Using a slotted spoon, remove the egg from the pot. Trim off any wispy egg whites.

To make the hollandaise, blend the yolks, salt, lime, and chipotle for a few seconds. Slowly add the hot butter on medium-high until emulsified.

The sauce will thicken slightly, but you can thin it out if needed with a little hot water.

Assembling the eggs benedict

• Toast your bread.
• Butter each English muffin, then add the chorizo and avocado if using.
• Top each half with a poached egg.
• Finish with the chipotle hollandaise sauce, chili powder, and additional garnishes if using.

Serve immediately and enjoy!

Top tip

We like to poach our eggs one at a time, so we can keep an eye on them. To avoid wispy egg whites, don't skip draining the excess whites.

Substitutions and variations

1. Chorizo: If you can't find chorizo, you can use spicy pork sausage. To spice it up even more, add additional chipotle/chili powder and/or smoked paprika. Also, feel free to experiment with other types of chorizo. Want to skip the meat? Try using a plant-based version or Soyrizo (a meatless soy chorizo). We easily found this brand at our local Target.
2. Avocado: If you're not a fan of avocado or it's not available, you can skip it or replace it with prepared guacamole.
3. English muffins: Sourdough, bagels, or toasted cornbread are other great options.

Keeping leftovers

Eggs benedict is best eaten right away, however you can fry up the chorizo in advance to save time. When ready to serve, poach the eggs and make the hollandaise sauce.

Hollandaise sauce can be refrigerated for up to 2 days in the fridge, and gently rewarmed in the microwave or on the stove over low heat.

Kitchen questions

What kind of chorizo should we use?

Look for "Mexican" chorizo. It is sold raw (ground) or in links, where the casing can be removed-like sausage. We found ours in the meat section of the grocery store, next to the Italian sausages.

Can we use a food processor to make the hollandaise?

We haven't tested this sauce using a food processor. The reason the blender works is because the heat from the blades helps to "cook" the eggs. An immersion blender also works well.

Our hollandaise sauce is too thick, what should we do? Our hollandaise sauce separated. What happened?

You want to ensure that the butter is hot when being poured into the egg yolk mixture. If not the sauce may not emulsify.

Mexican eggs benedict pairings

Whether your topping your benny's or pairing the solid sip, here are some of our faves!

Ingredients

Makes 4

• ½ pound (8 ounces) fresh chorizo (ground or in links (remove casing))
• 4 large eggs
• 2 English muffins
• butter for the English muffins
• sliced avocado
• chili powder for garnish
• salt and pepper to taste

Chipotle Hollandaise Sauce

• 3 large egg yolks, room temperature
• 1 tbsp fresh squeezed lime juice
• 1 tbsp chipotle in adobo sauce (Use just the sauce for easy blending)
• ¼ Kosher or fine sea salt
• ½ cup (4 ounces or one stick) unsalted butter

Equipment

• blender
• medium pot
• non-stick skillet
• slotted spoon

Method

1. Bring a medium-sized pot of water to a boil on the stove. While waiting for the water to boil, make the chorizo.

2. Heat a non-stick skillet over medium heat. Add the chorizo (breaking the meat up) and cook until browned and no longer pink, about 3-5 minutes. Set aside.

3. Poach the eggs: Crack each egg over a fine-mesh strainer into a small ramekin/bowl to remove excess runny whites. Lower the temperature of the boiling water to low heat. Using a heatproof utensil, create a whirlwind/funnel in the center of the pot. Pour the egg into the funnel. Cook, undisturbed for about 3 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon, and set aside. Repeat with the remaining eggs. If you are not new to poaching eggs, you can add all the eggs at once (just skip the funnel step), leaving room in between. Do not overcrowd the pot.

4. Assemble the Eggs Benedict:

   Toast, then butter each English muffin half. Divide the chorizo among each one. Add a few slices of avocado on top of the chorizo. Top each with a poached egg. Drizzle about 2 tablespoons of the chipotle hollandaise over the poached eggs. Season with salt, and pepper and garnish with chili powder.

Chipotle Hollandaise Sauce

1. In a heat-proof bowl, melt the butter in the microwave. We melt in 30-second intervals. You want the butter fully melted and hot. You can also melt it in a small pot on the stove.

2. Add the egg yolks, lime juice, chipotle in adobo sauce, and salt to a high-powered blender and blend on medium-high for about 15 seconds.

3. Remove the top cap from the blender, and have a paper towel ready to cover the top while you blend. With the blender running on medium-high, slowly add the hot melted butter to the eggs, and blend until it comes together and is thickened/ emulsified, about 5-10 seconds. If it's too thick, or if you prefer a thinner sauce, you can thin it out with a few splashes of hot water. Pour the sauce into a small bowl, and use it immediately (and up to 30 minutes).

Kitchen notes

Storage and Make-Ahead

Eggs Benedict is best eaten right away, however, you can fry up the chorizo in advance to save time. When ready to serve, poach the eggs and make the hollandaise sauce.

Hollandaise sauce can be refrigerated for up to 2 days in the fridge, and gently rewarmed in the microwave or on the stove over low heat.