Tag: Beef

Classic Beef Wellington

Ingredients for the Beef Wellington :

• 1 kg beef fillet
• 1 tbsp olive oil, plus extra for greasing
• 5 – 6 thin slices prosciutto
• plain flour, for dusting
• 500 g pack all-butter puff pastry
• 1 egg, beaten

For the mushroom stuffing :

• 20 g dried porcini mushrooms
• 400 g chestnut or button mushroom, roughly sliced
• 1 tbsp fresh thyme leaf
• 50 g Butter
• 1 large shallot, finely chopped
• A splash of Worcestershire sauce
• 2 tbsp freshly grated Parmesan

For the gravy:

• 25 g butter
• 1 shallot, finely chopped
• sprig of thyme
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tbsp plain flour
• splash of brandy
• glass of red wine
• 1 beef stock cube

How to Cook The Beef Wellington :

• First soak the dried Porcini Mushrooms in 400 ml of kettle-hot water and set aside.
• Pat the beef fillet with kitchen paper to dry it of any blood then season with salt and then heavily with black pepper.
• Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan until very hot then spend 8-10 mins searing and turning the fillet with tongs until it’s well browned on all sides.Hold it up to sear both ends as well.
• Set the beef aside on a tray to catch any juices and turn the heat off the pan but don’t clean it.
• Drain and squeeze out the dried porcini but reserve the juice and tip the porcini into a food processor with the other mushrooms and thyme.
• Season everything with salt and pepper and pulse until finely chopped but not completely smooth.
• Place the beef pan back on the heat with the butter and when it starts to sizzle add the shallot and cook for 2 mins until softened.
• Turn the heat up and tip in the mushrooms, add a splash of Worcestershire sauce and cook everything for 10-12 mins until you have a paste that comes away from the side of the pan.
• Tip into a bowl to cool, stir through the Parmesan and set aside.</>
• Turn off the heat from the pan but don’t clean it.
• For the first stage of assembly of the beef wellington, get a large sheet of cling film and overlap the prosciutto slices on it in a row, tip the mushroom mix on top then cover with another sheet of cling film.
• Either with your hands or a rolling pin, pat it down or roll it out to a thin layer that just covers the prosciutto.
• Remove the top sheet of cling film and sit the fillet down in the center of the mushrooms.
• Using the edge of the cling film lift and roll the prosciutto and mushrooms to encase the beef then use the cling film to roll everything into a tight sausage.
• For the best results now place the sausage in the freezer for 30 mins to firm up – do not leave for longer or cooking times will be affected.
• On a lightly floured surface, roll the pastry to a rectangle a little larger than a magazine, trim the edges to neaten and save the trimmings.
• Lightly brush the pastry all over with beaten egg.
• Carefully unwrap the prosciutto parcel and lay in the middle of the pastry.
• Like wrapping a parcel or making a spring roll fold the shorter edges over the fillet then roll the whole thing around the fillet to encase the beef wellington.
• For a really neat finish get another clean sheet of cling film and roll the Wellington into a sausage tight sausage again.
• Place in the fridge and chill the beef wellington, for at least 30 mins or up to a day.
• Heat oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7 with a sturdy, lightly oiled baking tray in it.
• Unwrap the Beef Wellington, brush all over with egg.
• Sprinkle with flaky sea salt and transfer, sealed side down to the heated baking tray.
• Bake the for 10 mins then reduce the heat of the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6 and continue to bake for 25 mins for rare meat, 30 mins for medium rare, 35 mins for medium and about 45 mins for well-done, making sure the pastry doesn’t burn (you can cover it with foil if it starts to become too dark.
• Remove the beef wellington  from the oven and leave for 10 mins to relax.
• To make the gravy, heat the butter in the mushroom pan and fry the shallot, thyme and bay, scraping the crispy bits of the pan with a wooden spoon.
• Scatter over the flour and brown then splash in the brandy, sizzle for a minute, then add the red wine and boil to a purple paste.
• Pour in the mushroom soaking liquid, avoiding the gritty bits at the bottom, crumble in the stock cube and any juice from the resting beef and simmer for 5 mins until you have a tasty gravy, season to taste.
• Using a very sharp knife carefully carve the Wellington into 6 thick slices.
• Serve on heated plates with a jug of gravy.