The Perfect Beef Wellington

A true classic, a perfect Beef Wellington is a real treat, and the perfect shared centerpiece to a special occasion or celebration. Although it might be revered as a complex dish, in fact if you follow the steps carefully, then creating a perfect wellington is straightforward, and immensely rewarding.

The classic beef wellington consists of melt-in-your-mouth tender prime beef fillet, wrapped in a intense mushroom stuffing or duxelle, covered with a crispy layer of prosciutto to keep the moisture in, and finished with beautiful puff pastry.

For a great variation with a woodland feel, try the Wild Venison loin fillet instead of beef fillet.

Serves 6

Preparation time – 30 minutes

Cooking time – 50 minutes

Used in this recipe

Print This Recipe

Ingredients

1 x 1.5kg Dorset Meat Company Whole Fillet of Beef

For the Mushroom duxelle-

250g fresh mushrooms – chestnut, porcini or cup mushrooms, based on personal preference and what you can source – finely chopped
10g dried porcini mushrooms, soaked in boiling water
4 shallots– finely chopped
50g butter
1 large sprig of thyme (tip – if you freeze the thyme, the leaves will fall off easily)
100ml madeira, or white wine
A pinch of sea salt and ground black pepper

To wrap – 12 slices of prosciutto, or parma or coppa ham

For the pastry

500g pack of puff pastry, defrosted.
2 egg yolks for glazing

For the sauce

4 sprigs of thyme
2 shallots
1 tablespoon redcurrant jelly
500ml good quality beef stock
100ml madeira or white wine
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons plain flour

Method

First prepare the duxelle. Sweat the finely chopped onions with the thyme until soft and golden, then add the finely chopped mushrooms, and cook down until almost dry. Add the wine, and cook down to a paste. Leave to cool.
Prepare your beef. If necessary trim or shape to a uniform size for even cooking. Heat a pan over a high heat, with as splash of oil. When smoking hot, add the fillet using tongs, and sear briefly on all sides until you get a lovely brown crust, but for no longer than 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, then allow to cool so the heat doesn’t loosen the duxelle and pastry during assembly. Keep the pan with the lovely crispy meat juices aside for your sauce.
Preheat the oven to 210°
Next lay out your parma ham in slightly overlapping slices on a piece of cling film, to create a rectangle with the same surface area as your beef fillet. Spread your mushroom mixture evenly over the ham, and rest the beef on top. Now use the cling film to gently roll up the ham over the fillet until it is evenly covered.
Roll out the pastry to a size which is large enough to fully envelope the beef, with extra at the ends for an overlap. Place the pastry on a sheet of greaseproof paper or baking parchment. Place the beef on the pastry and carefully roll up, egg wash the edges, tucking and crimping the ends underneath to create a tidy parcel. It is really important at this stage to ensure the parcel is well sealed to keep the moisture in. Decorate the pastry top with lattice cuts of spare pastry or patterns as you prefer, and then glaze well with egg wash and a pastry brush.
Transfer the wellington on the parchment to a large baking tray, then place in the oven for 35 minutes until the pastry is golden. The wellington will be rarer in the middle than at the edges, so bear this in mind when serving based on the preferences of your diners. If you have a probe thermometer, check the centre of the beef to ensure it is 55°C for medium rare meat. Once cooked, leave to rest for 15 minutes.
While the Wellington is roasting, prepare your sauce. Ass there are no cooking juices, it is necessary to make the sauce from scratch. Using the same pan, sweat the finely chopped shallots in butter, then add the thyme. Cook for 20 minutes. Add the madeira, and reduce, then add the redcurrant jelly, and mix well. Add the flour slowly, coating the shallots, then slowly add and mix the stock. Reduce by half to a smooth consistency, and then blend or pass through a sieve.
Serve the wellington whole at the table, and carve carefully into 2cm thick

Print This Recipe