Cooking a Beef Wellington for the first time can be a daunting prospect but it's easier than it looks! And the end result is delicious, savory, and worth the extra effort!
For this recipe we made our own puff pastry, as we think homemade makes it taste the best, but you can use store bought puff pastry in a pinch for a wonderful holiday roast. This recipe is sure to make any Beef Tenderloin absolutely delicious.
Preparing the perfect Beef Wellington looks daunting at first but it's actually really easy and extremely delicious! Use store-bought puff pastry, or elevate it by making your own. The flavor is rich and savory, and there's no doubting why this is a classic go-to centerpiece for festive feasts, big events, and holidays! Thanks to Gordon Ramsey for this excellent recipe: we've adapted Gordon Ramsey's Beef Wellington to make it perfect for our Hart Country Meats Beef Tenderloin and Verlinde Farms American Wagyu Beef Tenderloin.
Wrap tenderloin tightly in a triple layer of cling wrap to form a tube, then chill overnight to set its shape.
Remove cling wrap and sear the beef tenderloin in a hot pan greased with a little olive oil until browned all over and rare in the middle. Remove from the pan and leave to cool.
Fry mushrooms a hot pan with a little olive oil, thyme leaves, and your favorite seasonings. Cook over high heat for about 10 minutes until excess moisture has evaporated and you get a mushroom paste (known as a duxelle). Remove the duxelle from the pan and leave to cool.
Place puff pastry on a lightly floured surface and form it into a rectangle large enough for the tenderloin. If the tenderloin is too big, you can either pinch multiple pastries together or cut the tenderloin into smaller pieces. Chill pastry in the refrigerator.
Spread a large sheet of cling wrap on a clean countertop and place 4 slices of prosciutto in the middle, slightly overlapping them to create a rough square. Spread half of the mushroom duxelle evenly over the prosciutto.
Season the beef tenderloin with salt and pepper, then place it on top of the mushroom-prosciutto mixture. Using the cling wrap, roll the prosciutto over the beef, then roll and tie the cling wrap with butchers twine or string to get an evenly thick log. Chill for at least 30 minutes.
Remove the pastry from the refrigerator and brush it with the egg yolks that have been beaten with water. Remove the cling wrap from the beef, then wrap the pastry around the prosciutto-wrapped tenderloin. Trim the pastry and brush all over with the egg wash. Cover with cling wrap and chill for at least 30 minutes.
Make the Red Wine Sauce:
Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large pan, then fry the beef fat trimmings for a few minutes until browned. Stir in the shallots and peppercorns, bay, and thyme and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently, until the shallots are browned.
Pour in the vinegar and simmer until almost dry, about five to ten minutes. Add wine and boil until almost completely reduced. Add beef stock and bring to a boil again. Reduce heat and simmer gently for 1 hour, removing any skin or solids that develop on the surface of the sauce, until reaching your preferred consistency. Strain the liquid through a fine sieve lined with muslin and set aside.
Cook the Beef Wellington:
Score the pastry lightly and brush with the egg wash again, then bake at 400°F for 15 to 20 minutes until the pastry is golden brown and cooked. Rest for 10 minutes before carving.
Reheat the sauce if needed and serve with slices of the Beef Wellington.