Beef Wellington is a cooked fillet of beef tenderloin topped with some pâté and mushroom cap then wrapped in puff pastry and baked until golden brown; it is simple yet legendary. There is a lot to read in this recipe but it is quite easy to make so don't get scared.
Ingredients
- 2 8-10oz well trimmed tenderloin steaks ( filet mignon )
- Some liver pate of your choice (buy it all made)
- 2 good stuffing size mushroom caps with stems removed
- Some good olive oil
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- A package of Pepperidge Farm frozen puff pastry shells ( 2 defrosted shells required )
- Some flour for rolling shells
- Egg wash
Directions
THE STEAK
Get the meat to room temp then heat or light your grill to high with the grate as close to the heat as possible. Hardwood that comes from Canada is the best for grilling. If you don't have this type of grill, gas or charcoal will do. Take the grate and place it right on top of the hard wood, the lava rock etc. except burnable charcoals. You don't want ash all over your steak. Place pieces of fat right on the wood or whatever and wait until it flares up before putting on the steak. The flame from the natural burning fat will char the meat fast to keep the juices in. When one side is charred, flip it and do the other side. Sprinkle some magic on both sides of the meat before grilling; this will help caramelize and sear it. When it comes to cooking steak on a grill everyone has a different opinion. Some recommend rubbing it with oil or butter but as far as I'm concerned, all that does is turn it a sooty black. For this dish you want to cook your steak less on the grill; if you eat it med- rare cook it rare, etc. when you bake it in the shell it finish off the cooking. As soon as the steak is charred and done get it off the grill and refrigerate it. This is to retard any further cooking.
I am not going to tell you how long to cook your steak because I like mine still raw and slightly warmed on the inside. The cooking time will vary pending how you like your meat and your fire. Listed below is an article by Miss Jennifer Jensen, MS, MBA, RD. regarding E. coli and cooked red meat. http://www.geocities.com/~jenniferjensen/DOCUMENTS/foodsafe.htm
I didn't know how to eat steak until I was old enough to by my own. All of a sudden I realized it wasn't the burned, curled up shoe leather my mother cooked. My father wouldn't buy steak that often due to $$ but when he did, it was a slab of meat that was on sale and should have been used for stew. My mother would cook it in a frying pan standing over it with a knife and fork and kept making little slices down the center checking for doneness. "It's still pink 10 more minutes"
One of the best tests for doneness of a steak is to feel it. Squishy to the touch is raw or extremely rare; cooked to rare will still be quite soft but not squishy; medium-rare the meat will feel springy with a slight bit of firmness and, well-done steak will feel hard and unyielding. Remember, meat continues to cook and firm up after it is off the heat.
THE PREPARATION:
On a flour dusted pastry board roll out a pastry shell to about 8-9 inches in diameter then roll up in some Saran Wrap and refrigerate until needed. Both shell can be done ahead of time.
Pre-heat the oven to 350 -375° and get out a couple if pie plates, a small pizza pan, whatever. Thinly coat with oil and dust with flour. Or, use some Pam non-stick cooking spray. Open out the pastry shell flat. Place the cooled down steak in the center and top with a spread of pate. Coat the mushrooms with olive oil and place on the pate stem side down. Proceed to cover over the top with the shell by wetting the edges with a little water to make it stick together. Once the steak is completely enclosed give it a slight egg wash. Bake for about 8-10 minutes until golden brown. Serve in a warm dinner plate, drizzle some mushroom demi-glaze sauce around the outside. Place the cooked shell in the center of the plate and cut open down the center and display like a sandwich.
SHERRY WINE SAUCE FOR VEAL, BEEF OR VENISON:
This sauce can be used for beef and venison or any other red meatI don't know why I'm doing this when I could have sold you another recipe??
INGREDIENTS:
2 Shallots or a small onions chopped
1/2 cup of Sherry (no not cook with any wine you wouldn't drink)
1/4 cup of good olive oil
1/2 stick of butter
1/4 lb. of fresh sliced mushrooms; if using canned, use straw mushrooms and don't cook as much
A small handful of fresh chopped or dried chives
1/2 cup of beef stock
2-3 cloves of chopped garlic
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
INSTRUCTIONS:
In a sauté pan on med./high heat, add a little oil, a patty of butter and a pinch of the garlic. As soon as the butter is melted add the mushrooms. Sauté for 30-45 seconds and with a skimmer or slotted spoon, transfer the mushrooms to a small dish and set aside. To the pan add the remaining oil and butter and bring back to heat. Add the shallot and sauté until translucent. Add the wine and let reduce, add the beef stock and let it further reduce. When it seems to be a good consistency, add 1/2 the chives, the rest of the garlic, the mushrooms and S&P to taste. If you like your sauce a little on the sweeter side, add a little more sherry and if you want it a little thicker add a little ROUX. Let this sauté for about 20 -30 seconds then remove from heat. Reheat to a simmer just before use. Upon serving, top meat with sauce and sprinkle with additional chives.
ROUX: This is the best thickening agent and can be used in anything. Demi-glaze, Gravies, Soups, etc.
Equal parts butter & flour. Melt butter, slowly whisk in flour and simmer until golden brown and remove from flame. DONE! When using a roux it must be at room temp or cooler than the product being cooked. Over med. Heat, stir in a little roux until dissolved and let thicken. Start off with a teaspoon per qt. of liquid, or fraction thereof, and add as required.
NOTE: when you buy tenderloin it is usually trimmed very well. When you see the price of this meat you'll know why they trim it so well. If the meat has been trimmed of most of the fat so ask your butcher to give you a chunk which you will probably get for free. If you know how to pick out meat do your best, if not, your butcher will gladly help you.
This recipe was created in the honor of Arthur Wellesley, Duke of Wellington (1769-1852). He was a British general, also known as the Iron Duke and became a hero of the Napoleonic Wars and eventually defeated Napoleon. The Duke of Wellington was one of the most prominent statesman and soldier of the nineteenth century. As the story goes, this dish that bears his name was not because he was a great General or even a gourmet but because at the end results of the cooking it resembled one of his brown shiny military boots. Whatever the case may be this dish became "the ultimate dining experience" of the 1960s.
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Submitted 12/27/05.
Source: SOUTH SIDE SOCIAL CLUB COOKBOOK
Submitted By: VINCENZO PAOLINO
vinpaolino@verizon.net
BEEF WELLINGTON