Beef Wellington
Recipe courtesy Tyler Florence, 2008
Beef Wellington was the premier dinner party dish of the 1960s. It is a preparation of beef tenderloin coated with pâté and duxelles (a mixture of mushrooms or mushroom stems, onions, shallots and herbs sautéed in butter, and reduced to a paste), which is then wrapped in puff pastry and baked.
A whole tenderloin may be wrapped and baked, and then sliced for serving, or the tenderloin may be sliced into individual portions prior to wrapping and baking.
Tyler's recipe below uses prosciutto in place of the traditional pâté. You may want to substitute pâté for the prosciutto in the recipe.
Beef Wellington is always served with a sauce. In its 1960s heyday, it was served with various sauces derived from Sauce Espagnole: sauce madere, mushroom and madeira sauce, sauce perigordine or other brown sauces with truffles. Bordelaise is another sauce more or less derived from sauce espagnole that was used with Beef Wellington. Other traditional sauces include Maderia Wine Sauce and red wine demi-glace.
To make a delicious, quick sauce: Take a cup of good red wine, a cup of good beef stock and reduce it down to about 1 cup. Add a pat of butter at the end. Serve hot with the Beef Wellington or other beef dish.
FMM: When we made this the bottom crust came out soggy. I have read that the problem is probably with the mushrooms as they release a lot of moisture. Be sure to cook them until the liquid has fully evaporated and the duxelles are very dry. A comment I found on a web site might be helpful:
"BEFORE you cut them and fry them, remove the stems, put them in a baking sheet, right side up in the oven for 20-30 minutes on about 400f, preferably with convection if it's possible (not necessary though.) The mushrooms will look shriveled and gross, but that is because you've just removed a critical amount of moisture from them. I try to put them on a rack so the water drips away from them, but foil or parchment is really fine. Take them off the sheet, slice them as you will, and put them straight into a hot pan with oil. You will then witness the miracle of mushrooms caramelizing straight away, not steaming in their own juice. I learned this trick from the Seattle season of Top Chef and have never gone back."
Individual Beef Wellingtons: Cut beef tenderloin filets about 1 1/2 inches thick, sear them, and make as below wrapping each steak into an individual bundle placing the steak flat-side down. When wrapping in the pastry, tuck in and flatten any parts of the pastry that are sticking out and make sure the filet is completely encased in a single layer of pastry. Place individual bundles on a baking sheet, seam side down, brush with egg wash, score a design and create vents, and bake in preheated 425°F oven; immediately reduce temperature to 400°F. Bake, rotating baking sheet halfway through bake time, until pastry is golden brown and thermometer registers 115°F, 30 to 32 minutes.
For the Duxelles:
3 pints (1 1/2 pounds) white button mushrooms
2 shallots, peeled and roughly chopped
4 cloves garlic, peeled and roughly chopped
2 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves only
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the Beef:
1 (3-pound) center cut beef tenderloin (filet mignon), trimmed
Extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
12 thin slices prosciutto [or thin slices of country ham]
6 sprigs of fresh thyme, leaves only
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
Flour, for rolling out puff pastry
1 pound puff pastry, thawed if using frozen
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 teaspoon coarse sea salt
Minced chives, for garnish
Green Peppercorn Sauce, recipe follows
To make the Duxelles: Add mushrooms, shallots, garlic, and thyme to a food processor and pulse until finely chopped. Add butter and olive oil to a large saute pan and set over medium heat. Add the shallot and mushroom mixture and saute for 8 to 10 minutes until most of the liquid has evaporated. Season with salt and pepper and set aside to cool.
To prepare the beef: Tie the tenderloin in 4 places so it holds its cylindrical shape while cooking. Drizzle with olive oil, then season with salt and pepper and sear all over, including the ends, in a hot, heavy-based skillet lightly coated with olive oil - about 2 to 3 minutes.
Meanwhile set out your prosciutto on a sheet of plastic wrap (plastic needs to be about a foot and a half in length so you can wrap and tie the roast up in it) on top of your cutting board. Shingle the prosciutto so it forms a rectangle that is big enough to encompass the entire filet of beef. [The prosciutto adds a protective barrier between the duxelles and the pastry.] Using a rubber spatula cover evenly with a thin layer of duxelles. Season the surface of the duxelles with salt and pepper and sprinkle with fresh thyme leaves.
When the beef is seared, remove from heat, cut off twine and smear lightly all over with Dijon mustard. Allow to cool slightly, then roll up in the duxelles covered prosciutto using the plastic wrap to tie it up nice and tight. Tuck in the ends of the prosciutto as you roll to completely encompass the beef. Roll it up tightly in plastic wrap and twist the ends to seal it completely and hold it in a nice log shape. Set in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to ensure it maintains its shape.
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
On a lightly floured surface, roll the puff pastry out to about a 1/4-inch thickness. Depending on the size of your sheets you may have to overlap 2 sheets and press them together. Remove beef from refrigerator and cut off plastic. Set the beef in the center of the pastry and fold over the longer sides, brushing with egg wash to seal. Trim ends if necessary then brush with egg wash and fold over to completely seal the beef - saving ends to use as a decoration on top if desired. Top with coarse sea salt. Place the beef seam side down on a baking sheet.
Brush the top of the pastry with egg wash. [Using a sharp knife, very lightly score the puff pastry without cutting through it; this is for looks only.] Then make a couple of slits in the top of the pastry using the tip of a paring knife - this creates vents that will allow the steam to escape when cooking. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes until pastry is golden brown and beef registers 125 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer. Remove from oven and rest before cutting into thick slices. Garnish with minced chives, and serve with Green Peppercorn Sauce, and Roasted Fingerling Potatoes.
6 - 8 servings
Green Peppercorn Sauce:
2 tablespoons olive oil2 shallots, sliced
2 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
3 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves only
1 cup brandy
1 box beef stock (2 cups?)
2 cups cream
2 tablespoons grainy mustard
1/2 cup green peppercorns in brine, drained, brine reserved
Add olive oil to pan after removing beef. Add shallots, garlic, and thyme; saute for 1 to 2 minutes, then, off heat, add brandy and flambe using a long kitchen match. After flame dies down, return to the heat, add stock and reduce by about half. Strain out solids, then add 2 cups cream and mustard. Reduce by half again, then shut off heat and add green peppercorns.
