Beef fillet stuffed with porcini
Updated: Mon, 25 January, 2021
Perfect for a Valentine dinner, the deconstructed beef Wellington is an easy take on the exquisite dish. No stress! No pastry! No searing! No foie gras! And it's as impressive as it is delicious.

Beef Wellington? Too much hassle
Beef Wellington might be a very nice dish but preparing it is far too stressful. The beef fillet needs to be seared, and then left to stand so that when it goes into the oven in its blanket of pastry, you have not a flying clue how cooked it already is.
Truffles? Foie gras? What if your diners are truffle objectors or goose rights activists? You’re stuffed, not the wellington. The next hurdle: the beef will cook quicker than the pastry, at least if you want it cooked medium rare and pink, by the book.
And so the outcome might be serving overdone beef in crispy pastry or underbaked, pale and limpid pastry parcels that half the guests will be furiously scraping the stuffing from, sending you resentful glances.
I must be painfully honest and admit I’ve not actually cooked a Wellington from scratch. But as I have explained above, I can visualise the process from the beginning to end, assess as not worth the bother and go to produce something else.
Like the roulade stuffed with wild mushroom duxelles.
Stuff the beef fillet! with mushrooms.
The first good thing about it is that we don’t bother with truffles or foie gras - the beef fillet costs a packet already. It is the alternative Wellington filling; mushroom duxelles, which is a fragrant, finely chopped or blitzed mushroom paste.
I choose to use dried porcini mushrooms which are of course second best to fresh ones, but second to none in the dried mushroom department. Rehydrated, they will almost fool you.
How to prepare porcini duxelles
It is a simple preparation. The dried mushrooms soak in boiling water and I keep them there until the liquid has cooled down enough for me to fish the 'shrooms out with my fingers. I drop them onto foaming butter and let them cook quite vigorously for a while, gradually adding back the soaking liquor to let the porcini absorb it back.
When it's all gone, a stick blender blitzes them chunkily or more smoothly, as you like, and handfuls of grated Parmesan and parsley amplify the already significant umami factor.
How to butterfly beef fillet
The butterflying and filling the fillet is more straightforward than it sounds, the video below may help. If you get a good middle cut of fillet, all you do is open it up like a book with a sharp knife, spread with the stuffing and roll it up again. Roasting time, as ever for beef, is 20 minutes per pound in low-ish oven.
And it’s so delicious, flavoursome and fragrant with the mushrooms you won’t be missing that limp or burnt puff pastry for one second.
beef fillet stuffed with porcini
Servings: 4Time: 1 hourRating: (1 reviews)
INGREDIENTS
- 500g (about 1 pound) beef fillet, middle cut
- 30g (½ cup) dried porcini mushrooms
- 1 tbsp. butter
- salt and pepper
- 2 tbsp. finely chopped parsley
- 2 tbsp. grated Parmesan
- a little oil, for roasting
METHOD
1. Prepare the stuffing: soak the dried mushrooms in boiling water for at least 30 minutes. Drain, reserving the liquid.
2. Melt the butter in a small pan over medium heat; add the drained mushrooms and season with salt and pepper. Turn the heat up to medium-high, add a third of the soaking liquid, cover with the lid and cook until the liquid is absorbed. Repeat until all the liquid is gone and there’s hardly any moisture in the pan.
3. Blitz the mushrooms coarsely with a stick blender and transfer to a bowl. Add the parsley and Parmesan, mix well and check for seasoning.
4. Preheat the oven to 190C/375F/gas 5.
5. Place the beef fillet on a chopping board and make an incision across the length at two thirds of its thickness. Turn the meat around 180 degrees and make another incision from the middle towards the edge at a third of the fillet’s thickness. You should get a flat piece of beef three times wider than originally.
6. Spread the mushroom stuffing evenly over the inside of the filet. Roll it back up and tie with a butcher string in several places.
7. Brush it lightly with oil, place it on a roasting dish and roast for 20 minutes (20 minutes per pound if you’re cooking a larger joint).
8. Rest the beef for at least 10 minutes, remove the string, slice and serve.
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Certainly, but if it’s a matter of just a few days, it will also last well in the fridge.
Hello, Thank you for a wonderful recipe. Is it okay to prepare this and keep it in the freezer to cook a few days later ? Thank you in advance
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