Individual Beef Wellingtons with Crisp Bottoms

No one - apart from babies, I suppose - appreciates a soggy bottom, and that's the problem with most of the Beef Wellingtons I've ever eaten. I'm not a fan of greasy puff pastry to begin with (whoever invented the sausage roll has a lot to answer for) and an undercarriage of sodden pastry soaked with meaty juices really ruins a Wellie for me.


I do love Beef Wellington, though, so I've spent some time figuring out a method that results in a perfectly crisp pastry base. This recipe takes time and some attention to detail (not to mention requiring two and a half rolls of pastry), but I reckon that if you're going to spend a small fortune on a fine fillet of beef, it's worth putting in the extra effort to produce a faultless end-result.

This is a good choice for an extravagant dinner party or a very special occasion, not only because the individual Wellingtons are tall and majestic-looking in their rustling golden cloaks of pastry, but also because they can be prepared a full  24 hours ahead, and then popped into a hot oven half an hour before you serve them. The second time I tested this recipe, I left one portion in the fridge, unbaked, for 36 hours, and it was perfect when it came out of the oven.

Because oven temperatures vary, the cooking times I have given in the recipe are a guide. I suggest that you cook the Wellingtons for the recommended time, and then test one (the one you're going to eat, of course) by cutting a deep slit into its side to check whether it's perfectly done. If it's too rare, return all the parcels to the oven for a few more minutes.

I've left the classic filling of chicken-liver pâté out of this recipe because I don't fancy it with beef and mushrooms, but if you'd like to include it, stir 6 tablespoons of good pâté into the mushrooms when they've finished cooking.

I think Beef Wellington does need some kind of sauce, so serve this with a home-made gravy, or a creamy mushroom sauce or - best of all - a lovely Béarnaise.

Individual Beef Wellingtons with Crisp Bottoms
1 large (about 1.9 kg) fillet of beef (see Cook's Notes, below)
3 rolls ready-rolled puff pastry, thawed (again, see Cook's Notes)
1 egg, lightly beaten with a teaspoon of water
4 tsp (20 ml) Dijon mustard
milled black pepper
1 T (30 ml) olive oil
2 T (30 ml) butter
2 packs (about 500 g) portabellini or button mushrooms, finely chopped
a clove of garlic, peeled and crushed
2 T (30 ml) dry white wine
a large sprig of fresh rosemary

At least 8 hours before you start the recipe (preferably a day in advance), prepare the fillet. Trim off any sinew or silvery membrane. Using a ruler, measure out 30 cm of the thicker end of the fillet, and cut off the remaining thin end (save for a stir-fry or steak sandwich.)

Put a 60-cm long sheet of clingfilm lengthways on your counter, place the fillet on top and wrap the plastic tightly around the meat, twisting the ends in opposite directions, as if you are making a Christmas cracker. Continue twisting until you have a neat, tight, evenly thick roll, like a giant salami. Tuck the twisted ends under the roll, place on a plate and refrigerate.

Heat the oven to 220ºC. Cut the fillet, straight through the clingfilm, into 6 medallions each 5 cm thick (again, measure them with a ruler). Peel off the plastic and tie a piece of kitchen string around the 'waist' of each one. This will help the meat hold its shape during the initial browning. Set aside.

Put a new sheet of clingfilm on your counter and unroll the puff pastry onto it. Gently roll out the pastry using a lightly floured rolling pin so it's 1-2 cm bigger on all four sides. Now mark out 6 circles that are 1 cm (10 mm) bigger in diameter than the medallions of fillet steak you've just cut. You can do this by placing a medallion on the pastry and cutting round it with a sharp knife, or using a suitably sized bowl to mark a circle before cutting it out. Prick the circles all over with a fork and place them on a baking sheet lined with a piece of greaseproof baking paper. Put them in the hot oven and bake for 8-10 minutes, or until they are risen and a light golden colour.  Remove from the oven, brush the tops with beaten egg, then return them to the oven for 4-5 minutes, or until golden brown and completely dry to the touch.  Lift the circles from the paper and place them on a wire rack to cool.

In the meantime, prepare the steaks. Rub a little Dijon mustard on the top and bottom of each  medallion and grind over plenty of black pepper. Put a large non-stick frying pan on the hob and heat it 4-5 minutes, or until blazing hot. Add the oil, wait for a few seconds until it starts to shimmer, then then put the steaks in. Fry them for exactly one minute (set a timer!) on each side. They should be brown and nicely caramelised but still completely raw in the middle.  Remove the steaks from the pan and place them on a plate. Cover and allow to cool.

Melt the butter over a medium-high heat in the same pan in which you fried the steak. Add the mushrooms and rosemary sprig and fry for 4-5 minutes, or until the mushrooms are soft. Add the wine and garlic and cook for a further 4 minutes, or until the liquid in the pan has completely evaporated. If you're using chicken-liver pâté, stir it in now. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Remove the rosemary sprig and set the mixture aside to cool

To assemble the Wellingtons, divide the mushroom mixture into six portions and pat a generous layer onto the top of each pastry circle. Remove the string from the steak medallions, pat their undersides quite dry on kitchen paper and place them on top of the mushroom layer. Season with salt, to taste.

Unroll the second rectangle of pastry on a sheet of clingfilm. Cut it into four equal rectangles. Put one rectangle onto a board and gently roll it out with a floured rolling pin to form it into piece big enough to cover a fillet stack completely. Put a fillet stack on a plate and drape the pastry over it, as if you're throwing a cloth over a table so its edges drape onto the floor. Trim the bits draping onto the 'floor' into a rough circle, then tuck them neatly under the pastry base. (If you like, you can flip the whole bundle over to do this). If there are any tears, patch them with bits of left-over pastry. Repeat the process for the remaining two stacks, using half of the third roll of pastry. Shape the parcels between your palms to form nice neat towers. Brush the pastry all over with beaten egg, and use the left-over trimmings to add some leaves, roses and similar extravagant flourishes to the top. Brush the trimmings with beaten egg. Now use the tip of a sharp knife to cut a 4-mm slit in the top of each Wellington so steam can escape. Put the parcels in the fridge for 15 minutes to firm up, then brush with another layer of egg.

At this point, you can refrigerate the parcels for up to eight hours (but make sure that the pastry bases, the mushrooms and the steaks have cooled to room temperature before you assemble the parcels, and take the parcels out of the fridge to come to room temperature at least an hour before you bake them).

Bake the Wellingtons on a sheet lined with greaseproof baking paper at 200º C (or 210º C if you don't have a fan-assisted oven). For a steak that is perfect rose-pink inside, baked them for about 20 minutes. If you want a bloody steak, cook them for about 15 minutes, and if it's well done you're after, 25-30 minutes.

Serve piping hot with a sauce of your choice and a green salad.

Serves 6. 

Cook's Notes

• There will be some wastage if you buy a whole beef fillet, as you will use only the thicker part of the fillet.  It might be more economical to ask you butcher for four 5-cm-thick medallions

• Use a good-quality butter pastry, preferably Woolworths brand. Avoid the brand called 'Today' which tastes synthetic and always, but always, cracks when you unroll it.