Beef Wellington Frozen Cook Temp Food

BEEF WELLINGTON

Steps:

• Chop the mushrooms into chunks. Place chopped mushrooms in your food processor and pulse them until they are very finely chopped (almost like a paste). Season lightly with a touch of salt and pepper with some fresh thyme leaves. Go very light on the salt.. (set this aside for now)
• Cut some 6oz filet steaks. make sure you pat them dry and season them with salt and cracked pepper. On a hot (VERY HOT) cast iron skillet or whatever you have add a little oil and sear each side of the steaks. You do not want to cook the steaks only sear them so be sure not to leave them on the heat too long, A HOT SKILLET is the key here.
• Remove the steaks and while they are hot coat them in English mustard, Wrap in cling film and place in the freezer (Be sure to watch the video to see how I did it)
• In the same skillet on a lower temp add your mushrooms and all the liquid that had come off of them. Allow the liquid to completely cook out until there is no more liquid remaining. Remove the mushrooms and let cool.
• On a piece of cling film place several pieces of prosciutto. Rub your mushroom paste all over the cured meat. Get your steak that's been in the freezer and remove the cling film. Place it on your cured meat/mushroom mixture and roll tightly. After its all rolled up place in the freezer to firm up for about 45 minutes. (watch video to see how I did it)
• Finally get your puff pastry and roll it out. 1/8 inch is about the thinnest you want but you can go a little thicker. Just not too thick. Get your wellington from the freezer and remove it from the cling film. Place it on the center of your puff pastry. In a ramekin mix 1 egg yolk with 1 tsp of water, brush this all around the edges of your pastry (this will be your glue). Fold the pastry around your wellington and make sure to seal all the edges tightly (you don't want any leaks!!)
• trim excess dough away as needed, just make sure that your wellington is completely covered by pastry and there are no tears or rips in your dough (easier to do if its not too thin).
• You are now FINISHED Let your wellington firm up in the freezer before placing it in a food saver bag or before wrapping tightly in seran wrap and placing it in a zip lock bag. If you freezer save it (our recommendation) it will be good and retain freshness for up to 1 year. If you wrap in seran it will be good for 3 months-5 months. Be sure to label it and write the date..
• Preheat your oven to 400F - 425F. Remove wellington from package and brush some egg yolk/water mixture all over the top. Score the top (with a pairing knife) with a cool design to impress your friends and neighbors. Place your frozen Beef Wellington in your preheated oven on a baking tray or a cast iron skillet (what we do) and let it cook.
• Cooking times will be very relative to the size of your steak, your altitude, your oven. Our recommendation is to get a good kitchen thermometer and about 35 minutes into the cook check your temperature by sticking the thermometer in a discrete area of your wellington. Be sure to stick the thermometer all the way to the center of the steak to get an accurate reading. We found that 35-40 minutes was producing med rare. 45-50 was producing medium and 50-60 minutes was producing medium well. Over that then your wellington isn't worth eating :)
• Med Rare (135F) Medium (145F) medium Well (150F)

THE ULTIMATE BEEF WELLINGTON

Steps:

• For the Duxelles:
• 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.
• For the Beef:
• 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. 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 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, Roasted Fingerling Potatoes with Fresh Herbs and Garlic, and Warm Wilted Winter Greens.
• 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.
• Preheat oven to 500 degrees F and place a baking sheet inside to heat.
• Add potatoes, rosemary, sage, thyme, and garlic to a medium bowl. Drizzle with olive oil, and season with salt and pepper. Remove sheet pan from oven, lightly coat with olive oil, and pour potatoes onto pan. Place potatoes in oven and reduce heat to 425 degrees F. Roast for 20 minutes, or until crispy on outside and tender on inside.
• Cook honey and balsamic together over medium-high heat in a large saute pan, about 5 minutes. Toast walnuts in a small skillet; set aside to cool.
• Pile greens on a platter. Stir mustard into balsamic-honey dressing, then whisk in about 1 cup extra-virgin olive oil; pour over greens. Season greens with salt and pepper and garnish with walnuts, pomegranate seeds, shavings of Parmesan, and shallot.

INDIVIDUAL BEEF WELLINGTONS

Steps:

• In a large skillet over medium heat, combine the mushrooms, onion, sherry, butter or margarine and parsley and saute until all the liquid is absorbed and the mixture resembles a paste. Cover the top of each steak with the mixture.
• Partially thaw the puff pastry sheets and roll out pieces thin enough to cover the top, sides and bottom of each steak. Place the steaks on a baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator until serving time.
• Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
• Bake steaks uncovered in the preheated oven for 25 minutes. (Note: They will be rare but will continue cooking while dish is sitting.)

BEEF WELLINGTON

Steps:

• Heat oven to 220C/fan 200C/gas 7.
• Sit the 1kg beef fillet on a roasting tray, brush with 1 tbsp olive oil and season with pepper, then roast for 15 mins for medium-rare or 20 mins for medium. When the beef is cooked to your liking, remove from the oven to cool, then chill in the fridge for about 20 mins.
• While the beef is cooling, chop 250g chestnut (and wild, if you like) mushrooms as finely as possible so they have the texture of coarse breadcrumbs. You can use a food processor to do this, but make sure you pulse-chop the mushrooms so they don't become a slurry.
• Heat 2 tbsp of the olive oil and 50g butter in a large pan and fry the mushrooms on a medium heat, with 1 large sprig fresh thyme, for about 10 mins stirring often, until you have a softened mixture.
• Season the mushroom mixture, pour over 100ml dry white wine and cook for about 10 mins until all the wine has been absorbed. The mixture should hold its shape when stirred.
• Remove the mushroom duxelle from the pan to cool and discard the thyme.
• Overlap two pieces of cling film over a large chopping board. Lay 12 slices prosciutto on the cling film, slightly overlapping, in a double row.
• Spread half the duxelles over the prosciutto, then sit the fillet on it and spread the remaining duxelles over.
• Use the cling film's edges to draw the prosciutto around the fillet, then roll it into a sausage shape, twisting the ends of cling film to tighten it as you go.
• Chill the fillet while you roll out the pastry.
• Dust your work surface with a little flour. Roll out a third of the 500g pack of puff pastry to a 18 x 30cm strip and place on a non-stick baking sheet.
• Roll out the remainder of the 500g pack of puff pastry to about 28 x 36cm.
• Unravel the fillet from the cling film and sit it in the centre of the smaller strip of pastry.
• Beat the 2 egg yolks with 1 tsp water and brush the pastry's edges, and the top and sides of the wrapped fillet.
• Using a rolling pin, carefully lift and drape the larger piece of pastry over the fillet, pressing well into the sides.
• Trim the joins to about a 4cm rim. Seal the rim with the edge of a fork or spoon handle.
• Glaze all over with more egg yolk and, using the back of a knife, mark the beef Wellington with long diagonal lines taking care not to cut into the pastry.
• Chill for at least 30 mins and up to 24 hrs. Heat oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6.
• Brush the Wellington with a little more egg yolk and cook until golden and crisp - 20-25 mins for medium-rare beef, 30 mins for medium. Allow to stand for 10 mins before serving in thick slices.

BEEF WELLINGTON

Steps:

• Using kitchen twine, tie the tenderloin into a 12-inch log, folding the thinner end onto itself. (Use your hands to squeeze the meat into a log. You can be aggressive here.)
• Place pancetta in a cold 12-inch skillet. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until pancetta starts to brown, 6 to 8 minutes.
• Add butter, raise heat to high, and stir in mushrooms and shallot. Cook until the liquid released by the mushrooms has cooked off, 4 to 7 minutes. Reduce heat to medium and continue to cook until mushrooms are browned, stirring frequently, another 18 to 23 minutes. (Take your time here, you want a deep golden color for the best flavor.) Scrape bottom of the skillet as necessary to prevent burning.
• If the pan looks dry, drizzle in a little olive oil, then stir in garlic and thyme leaves. Cook until fragrant, another 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in sherry, scraping up the browned bits on the bottom of the pan. Scrape mixture into a medium bowl to cool. (Do not add salt at this point.)
• In the same skillet, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium-high. Season beef generously with salt and pepper, then sear on all sides until browned, 1 to 2 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate, and cool slightly. Remove any twine. Brush meat all over with mustard.
• On a clean work surface, overlap long sheets of plastic wrap (about 15-by-15 inches). Place prosciutto slices on top to make about a 14-by-7-inch rectangle, arranging them in an even layer and overlapping the pieces slightly. Spread cooled mushroom mixture on top.
• Place beef along one long end of the prosciutto slices, and roll prosciutto tightly around beef. Wrap tightly with plastic wrap, twisting both ends like a candy wrapper. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes and up to overnight.
• Meanwhile, heat oven to 400 degrees, and line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. In a small bowl, whisk together egg and 1 teaspoon water. Lay puff pastry out on the prepared baking sheet, lightly draping over edges. (The pastry needs to be at least 14-inches long and 13-inches wide to cover the beef; if not, roll it out as needed.)
• Carefully unwrap and place chilled log along the edge of one long side of puff pastry. Roll beef up tightly, then place it seam-side down on the baking sheet. Tuck puff pastry over the ends of the beef to cover them, pinching to seal and folding underneath. Brush top and sides of pastry with egg wash, and use a small sharp knife to cut a few slits into the top of the pastry.
• Bake until a thermometer inserted in the center reads 115 degrees for rare, 25 to 35 minutes. (This timing will yield rare pieces at the thicker end and medium done pieces at the thinner end of the loin.) Remove from oven and let rest for 10 minutes, then slice and serve while warm.