Frequently, crushed coriander seed is added, and variations may include the addition of other herbs such as chervil, chives, parsley, etc.
The ingredients are combined and allowed to infuse or macerate (depending on whether heat is applied or not) in the oil to create the sauce.
The sauce is usually served with shellfish, delicately flavoured white-fleshed fish such as cod, sole, etc.
The sauce was popularised in the 1980s by Michel Guérard,[1] a French chef, author, one of the founders of nouvelle cuisine, and the inventor of cuisine minceur, from Eugénie-les-Bains, Aquitaine, in south-western France; the sauce has since become a modern classic.
[1] In its original form, the sauce was intended as a Mediterranean preparation and contained a lot of garlic.