My first sighting of Beef Wellington was on Masterchef Australia. It looked so golden and delicious but not too scarily difficult to actually make yourself. I love anything with pastry so meat plus puff pastry is my ideal meal. It was actually pressed for time while making this because I was making it for a special dinner and I only started it around 12/1pm and didn’t have enough time for chilling. However, it came out surprisingly well and ever more so delicious with that sweet red wine sauce. Check out Gordon Ramsay’s BBC Good Food recipe below.

Beef Wellington with Red wine & Shallot sauce (Gordon Ramsay)

Cooking and Prep Time 1 hr – 2 hrs / 20 minutes (Sauce)
Serves 6 / 4 (Sauce)

Ingredients (Beef Wellington)
a good beef fillet (preferably Aberdeen Angus) of around 1kg/2lb 4oz
3 tbsp olive oil
250g/ 9oz chestnut mushroom , include some wild ones if you like 50g/ 2oz butter (I used Portobello mushrooms)
1 large sprig fresh thyme
100ml/ 3.5 fl oz dry white wine
12 slices prosciutto
500g/1lb 2oz pack puff pastry , thawed if frozen
a little flour , for dusting
2 egg yolks beaten with 1 tsp water

Ingredients (Shallot & Red Wine Sauce)
250g shallots , sliced
4 tbsp olive oil
1 garlic clove , lightly crushed sprig rosemary
5 tbsp balsamic vinegar
400ml red wine
400ml beef stock or brown chicken stock, preferably homemade
knob of butter

Method (Beef Wellington)
1. Heat oven to 220C/fan 200C/gas 7. Sit the 1kg beef fillet on a roasting tray, brush with 1 tbsp olive oil and season with pepper, then roast for 15 mins for medium-rare or 20 mins for medium. When the beef is cooked to your liking, remove from the oven to cool, then chill in the fridge for about 20 mins.

2. While the beef is cooling, chop 250g chestnut (and wild, if you like) mushrooms as finely as possible so they have the texture of coarse breadcrumbs. You can use a food processor to do this, but make sure you pulse-chop the mushrooms so they don’t become a slurry.

3. Heat 2 tbsp of the olive oil and 50g butter in a large pan and fry the mushrooms on a medium heat, with 1 large sprig fresh thyme, for about 10 mins stirring often, until you have a softened mixture. Season the mushroom mixture, pour over 100ml dry white wine and cook for about 10 mins until all the wine has been absorbed. The mixture should hold its shape when stirred. Remove the mushroom duxelle from the pan to cool and discard the thyme.

4. Overlap two pieces of cling film over a large chopping board. Lay 12 slices prosciutto on the cling film, slightly overlapping, in a double row. Spread half the duxelles over the prosciutto, then sit the fillet on it and spread the remaining duxelles over. Use the cling film’s edges to draw the prosciutto around the fillet, then roll it into a sausage shape, twisting the ends of cling film to tighten it as you go. Chill the fillet while you roll out the pastry.

5. Dust your work surface with a little flour. Roll out a third of the 500g pack of puff pastry to a 18 x 30cm strip and place on a non-stick baking sheet. Roll out the remainder of the 500g pack of puff pastry to about 28 x 36cm. Unravel the fillet from the cling film and sit it in the centre of the smaller strip of pastry. Beat the 2 egg yolks with 1 tsp water and brush the pastry’s edges, and the top and sides of the wrapped fillet.

Using a rolling pin, carefully lift and drape the larger piece of pastry over the fillet, pressing well into the sides. Trim the joins to about a 4cm rim. Seal the rim with the edge of a fork or spoon handle. Glaze all over with more egg yolk and, using the back of a knife, mark the beef Wellington with long diagonal lines taking care not to cut into the pastry. Chill for at least 30 mins and up to 24 hrs.

6. Heat oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6. Brush the Wellington with a little more egg yolk and cook until golden and crisp – 20-25 mins for medium-rare beef, 30 mins for medium. Allow to stand for 10 mins before serving in thick slices.

Method (Sauce)

1. Sauté the shallots in a medium saucepan with the oil over a high heat for about 3 mins until lightly browned, stirring often. Season with ground black pepper and add the garlic and rosemary. Continue cooking for a further 3 mins, stirring often to prevent the shallots burning.

2. Pour in the vinegar and cook until evaporated away to a syrup, then pour in the wine and cook until reduced by two thirds or until it thickens.

3. Pour in the stock and bring to the boil. Turn down the heat and simmer until reduced by two-thirds again, to around 250ml. Remove the garlic and rosemary. Add a little salt to taste and finally ‘monte’ (whisk) in a knob of butter. Add any juices from the steaks just before serving.

Impressions

For my first attempt I think I did a pretty good job if I don’t say so myself. The beef came out pink so it wasn’t overcooked which was my worst fear. However, although the pastry was nice and crispy on top, because I didn’t have enough time to chill the beef before I wrapped it in the mushroom, proscuitto and puff pastry, the juices from the beef still came through when baking it with the pastry. This meant the juices oozed out of the bottom, making the pastry a tad wet and not crispy at all as you can see in my photo of the beef sliced.

Other then that, I was delighted that the mushroom mix was so good and complemented the beef very well. The mushrooms were well seasoned and added fantastic texture to the dish.

My first attempt at the red wine sauce came out slightly too “liquidy”, but I followed the recipe and reduced it by two thirds. I put it back on the stove and let it simmer some more, and finally it was a tad viscous and just like a sauce should be. I must admit this red wine sauce goes spectacularly well with the beef wellington. I really can’t complement these two being together anymore. I can’t see myself having it any other way.