For an impressive Sunday lunch nothing beats a traditional beef Wellington. This delicious classic recipe of beef fillet wrapped in puff pastry is ideal for entertaining.
Prepare the mushroom duxelle. Put the mushrooms in a food processor and blitz. Then put into a frying pan, season and cook over a high heat, stirring, till all the moisture evaporates. It should take about 10-15 minutes. Spread them out on a plate and leave to cool.
Heat a little oil in a frying pan and sear the beef for about 30 seconds on all sides. Leave to cool.
Lay a large piece of cling film on the work surface. Lay the slices of parma ham in the middle, overlapping slightly. Spread the mushroom duxelle over the parma ham.
Spread the mustard over all sides of the beef fillet. Lay the beef in the middle of the parma ham and wrap the ham around the beef, by pulling the cling film up at each side. Put in the fridge, wrapped in the clingfilm for about 20 minutes.
Roll out the puff pastry. Take the cling film off and put the beef in the centre of the pastry. Brush egg onto the sides of pastry and then wrap the pastry around the beef. The egg will help it stick. Put back in the fridge for another 20 minutes.
Score the top of the pastry and brush the remaining egg onto the top of the Wellington. Put in the oven at 200°c for 20 minutes. Then lower the temperature to 180°c for another 20 minutes (I left it in for another 25 minutes as my oven usually takes longer than a recipe says).
Take out of the oven and leave to rest for 15 minutes before serving.
Notes
Nutritional information is approximate and a guideline only.