Master Class with Maggie Phillips
13 September 2026 · 5:29 watch
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Hickory Hills Country Club's Executive Sous Chef Maggie Phillips demonstrates how to execute a high-volume Steak Oscar using a stabilised béarnaise sauce.
Key takeaways
- Stabilising béarnaise with a commercial butter sauce base prevents splitting during hot holding on the pass.
- Infusing a prepared butter base with fresh tarragon and shallots maintains scratch-cooked flavor profiles.
- Efficient service flow is achieved by securing the sauce emulsion early, freeing up line focus for proteins.
- Using pre-blended compound butters for sides like Parker House rolls reduces prep times in high-volume kitchens.
In this masterclass, Maggie Phillips, Executive Sous Chef at Hickory Hills Country Club, demonstrates how to modernise a high-volume club favourite: Steak Oscar. For chefs catering to large banquets or fast-paced weekend dinner services, the primary challenge of this classic dish lies in sauce stability and timing. Phillips shows how utilising a specialised, pre-stabilised butter sauce base can streamline service without compromising the rich texture and classic flavour profile expected of a traditional béarnaise.
Streamlining the Mother Sauces on the Line
Traditional béarnaise is notoriously temperamental, prone to splitting under the heat of the pass or during prolonged holding. Phillips addresses this operational headache by incorporating a commercial butter sauce base as the foundation of her stabilised béarnaise. This approach allows the kitchen to prepare the sauce well ahead of service, ensuring it holds its emulsion under heat lamps without separating.
The technique involves infusing the base with classic béarnaise aromaticsAromaticsIngredients such as onions, garlic, celery, herbs and spices used to build flavour in a dish.—typically tarragon, shallots, vinegar, and black peppercorns. By using a stable base, chefs achieve a consistent viscosity that coats the steak and crab perfectly, reducing waste and ensuring uniform presentation across fifty covers or five hundred. This method reduces the reliance on precise temperature-controlled bain-maries, allowing line cooks to work more efficiently during peak hours.
Component Assembly and Service Flow
Steak Oscar is a multi-component assembly that demands precise timing. The steak must be cooked to temperature, the asparagus must remain crisp and vibrant green, and the crab meat must be warmed gently without breaking apart into dry shreds. Phillips walks through the service flow, demonstrating how a stable sauce allows the kitchen to focus on execution elsewhere.
To complete the club dining experience, she pairs the steak with fresh Parker House rolls. These are finished with a garlic herb butter, showcasing how pre-blended premium butter products can reduceReduceTo simmer a liquid so that water evaporates, concentrating flavour and increasing viscosity. prep times on secondary items while still delivering a scratch-quality finish. For club and resort chefs looking to maintain high-end standards under tight labour constraints, this demonstration provides a clear roadmap for combining convenience products with fresh assembly techniques.
Questions from the pass
Frequently asked questions
What is the main benefit of using a stabilised butter sauce base for béarnaise?
A stabilised butter sauce base prevents the béarnaise from splitting under heat or during holding. Traditional egg-and-butter emulsions break easily on the pass, but a pre-stabilised base allows the kitchen to hold the sauce at service temperature for extended periods, reducing waste and ensuring consistent plate presentation across high-volume banquets.
How do you introduce classic béarnaise flavours into a pre-made butter base?
You introduce classic flavours by folding a traditional reduction of tarragon, shallots, white wine vinegar, and peppercorns into the warmed butter sauce base. This allows you to retain the sharp, herbaceous profile of a scratch-made béarnaise while benefiting from the physical stability and smooth texture of the prepared base.
What is the best way to heat and handle the crab meat for Steak Oscar?
Gently warm the crab meat in a little butter or steam it briefly to avoid breaking the delicate lumps. You should avoid aggressive tossing or high direct heat, which shreds the crab. Keeping the lumps intact is essential for the visual appeal and premium texture of the finished dish.
How do Parker House rolls complement this specific menu format?
Parker House rolls offer a classic, comforting bread element that helps balance the rich, savoury flavours of the Steak Oscar. Serving them warm with a garlic herb butter provides a high-quality, crowd-pleasing side that requires minimal kitchen labour but enhances the overall guest experience.
Main ingredients
Original video by Club + Resort Chef. This overview is written independently by The Chef's Circle editorial desk — watch the original on YouTube.
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