curdled sauce
Grainy, separated condiment
A curdled sauce has separated into grainy clumps suspended in liquid, losing its smooth texture.
This happens when eggs or dairy proteins coagulate from too much heat, or when fat and water emulsions break.
The term applies literally to hollandaise or custard that's gone wrong, and figuratively to anything that's soured or gone bad: Their friendship curdled after the argument.
- brokenDamaged beyond function
- lumpyHaving irregular bumps
- grainyRough with particles
- splitSeparation into parts
- separatedPut or kept apart
béarnaise · egg yolks · cream · eggs · butter · heavy cream · heat · whisk · rescue · clumpy · oily · mayonnaise · custard · roux · emulsion · greasy · scrambled · too hot