Beef Wellington Appreciation Club

[ttaskmaster]

Best thing about it is that it’s absurdly easy. You can’t really go wrong.

AHH-hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahhhhhhhhhhh, yes you can..... really, very wrong.
Admitedly I've not managed it myself, but for every good result there are at least two pubs that will have you in tears with their offerings!

I'm often one to poo-poo fine dining because a lot of it is overpriced cack and tiny portions.

That seems to be a London thing.
I've been to a shameful number of fine dining places (usually more than once) and far too often ended up like a Monty Python sketch where I couldn't manage so much as a waffer-theen meent. Portions were on the small side for a single-course meal in a Chef & Brewer perhaps, but when it's a 7-course meal (not including a cheese course) you end up properly stuffed!
Prices were never cheap, but neither were they unreasonable for the fare, with the sole exception of La Becasse.

 

[Nitefly]

Yeah I can see how things get disappointing when a restaurant is sorting a load of food for different guests, but it’s pretty hard to go wrong at home when you have all the time in the world.

To prove how idiot proof and simple this is I thought I’d take some snaps as I cooked some of these bad boys today!

Nitefly’s Ultra Easy Wellington

Very few ingredients are needed, just some nice fillets, mushrooms, cured meat of your choice (prosciutto is the usual but I’ve gone with bresaola today to try it out), thyme, butter, puff pastry and seasoning (salt and pepper).

You cook it in two parts. For part one, you sort everything pre-pastry.

I quite like this two pack of fillets from Waitrose as they are about the same decent size, OK price and convenient to buy. You can get a whole fillet from a butchers though. Rub them with the salt and pepper.

With the mushrooms, you need loads… best way to chop it up is in a food blender, pulsing them in batches. It really reduces down.

Prep done:

Smash the mushrooms in a pan with butter and sprigs of thyme. Takes maybe 10 mins… keep giving them a stir. They get juicy, so you cook until they stop being juicy.

Once done, reserve the pan and brown your well seasoned meat to taste. Remember, it’ll go back in the oven to finish off, so don’t overdo it. Exactly how long you do it is subjective. I quite like having some caramelisation on the meat, nor do I want it soggy and bloody (OK for steak but I prefer a medium wellington). But don’t sweat it, learn for next time if you don’t get it quite right for yourself.

Putting it together is a doddle, you whack a pack of the cured meat down over clingfilm, lay it in a lattice if that’s not already done for you.

Cover it with the mushrooms and then wrap the fillet up, bringing the corners of the clingfilm together at the same time to make it nice and tight, spin it around at the end for the lols.

All done! Blimey, looks like they will go well with some fava beans and a nice chianti… tchuh-tchuh-tchuh-tchuh

Leaving them in a fridge until 40 mins before we eat. Will update with a part 2

 

[manic111]

Any recommendations on cured meat which isn't pork? I love the stuff but my other half doesn't eat it!

 

[Nitefly]

Any recommendations on cured meat which isn't pork? I love the stuff but my other half doesn't eat it!

Today I’m experimenting with bresaola which is beef - will report back

 

[Nitefly]

Phase 2 prep…

Meat removed from the fridge with pastry.

No need for the rolling pin, flouring the kitchen top or any of that nonsense. Unwrap it and lay your meat on it… shown here the wrong way round just so you can see the layers of meat, mushroom and meat!

Now the right way around…

All you need to do is grab the corners of the pastry and fold it all up, with the intention of tearing the ‘excess’ pastry away. Here’s the idea:

You can spend some time trying to make them look pretty but it’s for aesthetics only. I spent about 10 seconds scoring them with a fork and they look like two hedgehogs that god rejected

Then you layer them with eggs / milk in the usual way for pastry. Loads of recipes say go with egg yolk, but in my opinion milk is much better and ‘tasteless’. I don’t like ‘eggy residue’.

Final step, in the oven for 20-25 mins…!