A special occasion dish brought to the belly kitchen by our fabulous astrogourmet Lilith
BEEF WELLINGTON WITH MADEIRA AND BLACK TRUFFLE JUS
This special occasion dish was named for Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of
Wellington, created to satisfy his love of beef, truffles, mushrooms,
Madeira wine, and pâté – its time consuming, but most of it can be prepared
in advance.
INGREDIENTS to serve 8
1.35 kg of beef tenderloin fillet
2 tablespoons olive oil
30g unsalted butter
175g foie gras or whatever pate
you can afford
1 beaten egg
450g puff pastry
Mushroom Stuffing
55g unsalted butter
small onion, finely chopped
220g flat black mushrooms,
finely chopped
3 tablespoons heavy double cream
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
Madeira and truffle jus
3/4 cup Madeira wine – you can use red if that’s what
you have
3/4 cup beef stock, knob of unsalted butter
2 tablespoons finely chopped black truffles (optional)
watercress to garnish
METHOD
First the stuffing: Heat butter in a frying pan, and saute chopped onion a
few minutes till soft and golden. Add chopped mushrooms and sauté till
moisture evaporates. Add cream, season with salt and fresh black pepper,
cook over a low heat till reduced to a thick pureé. Remove from heat, mix
in chopped parsley, allow to cool and refrigerate till needed.
Then the beef: Heat olive oil and butter in a large pan. Season beef with
salt and black pepper, brown on all sides over a high heat for a few
minutes. Remove from pan and let it cool, reserving any juices. On a
floured surface, roll out the puff pastry 3mm thick to an oblong big enough
to fit your piece of beef. Spread the pâté across centre of the pastry,
same width as the beef. Spread the mushroom stuffing over the pâté.
Place the beef on top of the stuffing and gently settle it into the mix. Cut
away the middle of the pastry ends and brush all edges with beaten egg.
Carefully fold the pastry up to completely envelope the beef, tucking in the
ends and very carefully turn the parcel over onto a large buttered baking
tray. With a sharp knife make a few small incisions in the pastry, decorate
the top with pastry leaves cut out of the leftovers and refrigerate
uncovered for half an hour.
Preheat the oven to 450F/230C/gas mark 8. Brush wellington all over with
beaten egg and bake at high heat for 10 minutes. Then turn it down to
375F/190C/gas mark 5 for a further 20-25 minutes till pastry¹s golden brown.
Remove from the oven and let it rest uncovered for 10 minutes.
While its baking, do the jus. Simmer reserved juices from the beef pan with
the wine and beef stock till reduced by half. Add finely chopped truffles
(if using them), and simmer another 2 minutes. Take pan off the heat, add a
knob of butter, let it melt to give a shine to the sauce and season to
taste.
TO SERVE: Cut wellington into thick slices and arrange on warm plates. Pour
over some Jus, garnish with fresh watercress.
This is a very rich complex recipe, so keep accompaniments simple: new
potatoes, green beans, an orange and watercress salad.
If this all sounds a bit too gouty, our local chef Nadine Abensur has a
gorgeous recipe for Mushroom Wellington which I personally prefer.