The Umami-Packed Ingredient That Takes Eggs Benedict From Ordinary To Extraordinary

Eggs Benedict is a classic brunch staple for good reason. When it's well made, it's a delicious balance of flavor, fat, salt, and blended textures to wake up your palate on a bleary weekend morning. But even a perfect, buttery eggs Benedict can feel a little tired on repeat. One easy way to transform an ordinary Benny to an extraordinary one comes to us from New York City-based chef and restaurateur Sungchul Shim. 

Talking exclusively to Chowhound, he recommends adding a touch of miso paste to the dish. Umami notes from the fermented soybean paste blended into hollandaise sauce transforms each bite of egg, meat, and bread into a complex flavor dance. In the case of hollandaise, "white miso is best for its mild and sweet flavor," he says. It also has the added benefit of not altering the creamy white or light-yellow color of one of the most popular of the five French mother sauces.

Born and raised in South Korea, Shim trained in some of New York City's top restaurants before opening Michelin-starred Kochi in 2019 and Mari, a second Michelin-starred spot, in 2021. At both restaurants, Shim and his team aim to expand the concepts and boundaries of what defines Korean cuisine. While you won't find eggs Benedict with a miso-infused hollandaise sauce on Mari's menu, the food does feature many other umami elements, like Japanese bonito, kimchi onion jus, and charred soy bean sprouts.

We've extolled the flavor-enhancing magic of adding miso to everything from chicken noodle soup to pizza sauce. But picking the right type is challenging. Globally, there are over 1,300 versions of miso, from sweet and mild to dark and super funky. A lot of the miso options fall roughly into three categories: white (and yellow), red, and brown. Colors correspond roughly with the range of how mild and how fermented they are. As chef Sungchul Shim suggests, white miso — also called shiro miso — is ideal for upgrading hollandaise sauce since it trends milder and sweeter, and won't discolor the sauce. While it adds more complex flavors, the miso also helps balance the egg and fat notes that dominate both classic hollandaise and the other ingredients in eggs Benedict, enhancing the overall dish.

When whipping up a hollandaise, simply add a dollop of miso paste to a blender with your egg yolks and seasonings. If you've already made the hollandaise or are using a pre-made sauce, you can still add miso, according to Shim. "Dissolve a small amount of white miso into the warm hollandaise while whisking to ensure it blends smoothly," he says. Or transfer a small amount of sauce to a separate bowl and use that to start blending the miso, creating a slurry you can mix into the main sauce.

Shim also recommends introducing the umami blast a little at a time. "Start with a teaspoon of miso and adjust to taste," he says. "Strain the sauce for a silky finish before serving."