Bringing back Beef Wellington

I've always been intrigued by the stories behind recipes. From the way a specific set of ingredients is assembled to the explanation of a dish's name to the random (or not so random) evolution of a recipe through time and across cultures. An excellent example of a recipe with a tangled history is Beef Wellington.

If you've never had this dish, here's a brief tutorial on the basic recipe: beef tenderloin is briefly seared, spread with pâté and a layer of duxelles (a mixture of minced, sautéed mushrooms and shallots) and then wrapped in pastry. After the meat is baked to medium rare and the pastry to golden brown, the roast is sliced and served drizzled with Madeira or Béarnaise sauce.

Most food historians claim the dish was named for Arthur Wellesley, first Duke of Wellington, famous for defeating Napoleon at Waterloo in 1815 and subsequently serving two terms as prime minister. The only problem with this attribution is that the dish was not known during the duke's lifetime, and no mention of it appeared in any of the cookbooks published while he was living.

In fact, the first recipes in print were from a 1939 New York Food Guide and Chicago's American Palmer House Cook Book of 1940 (90 years after the duke died). In his 1985 Food Encyclopedia, chef Craig Claiborne offers a reasonable hypothesis, suggesting that the familiar French boeuf en croûte or the common Irish dish of beef in pastry was transformed into an elaborate dish for special occasions.

Beef Wellington became extremely popular in this country during the 1960s. The Kennedys made it a favorite at the White House, followed by President Nixon who regularly served it to fashionable guests. Over time, the humble origins of meat baked in pastry were buried in layers of ingredients and wrapped in an embellished crust. An explanation for these additional layers lies in the characteristics of the central ingredient. The cut of beef we call the tenderloin sits under the ribs, next to the spine. The smaller, pointed end or tail starts just past the ribs and thickens into the "sirloin." Because this muscle does so little work, it is extremely tender. However, it's also quite bland, which is why the preparation we know as Beef Wellington is designed to add layers of flavor and fat.

For the Beef Wellington in the photo, our friend Andy made a few modifications. He first portioned the tenderloin into four sections for individual servings. Since he's not a fan of mushrooms, he omitted the duxelles, but included a generous coating of grainy mustard and rich pâté. He then wrapped the tenderloin in thin slices of prosciutto, followed by the pastry.

When the Wellingtons came out of the oven, Andy let them rest a few minutes before slicing into the flakey crust and adding generous spoonfuls of Béarnaise sauce. Similar to hollandaise, this is made by whisking together egg yolks and melted butter. Its distinctive flavor profile comes from minced shallots and fragrant tarragon leaves.

Before you assemble a Beef Wellington, be sure to completely dry the meat and season well with salt and pepper. Brown the meat on all sides to seal in the juices. Use a piece of plastic wrap to organize the layers: overlap pieces of prosciutto in a rectangle large enough to cover the tenderloin; spread it with duxelles or pâté (or both); place the meat in the center and wrap it.

For the pastry, you can opt for a traditional pie-crust-style dough made with flour and shortening, or you can defrost a frozen puff pastry sheet. Consider decorating the pastry by making cuts with a sharp knife before baking. Brush the dough with an egg wash and sprinkle lightly with sea salt for a perfect crust. I've included three recipes: a basic Beef Wellington, Andy's version and a rich Béarnaise sauce. Here's to the Duke.

Beef Wellington 

1 t olive oil 
1 lb beef tenderloin 
salt & pepper 
1 lb mushrooms 
2 minced shallots 
1/4 C vermouth 
2 T butter, softened 
4 oz liver pâté 
17.5 oz package puff pastry 
1 egg, beaten 

Preheat the oven to 400 F. Heat the oil in a heavy skillet over medium high. Pat dry the tenderloin with paper towels and season generously with salt and pepper. Quickly brown the meat on all sides. Remove from heat and allow to cool. Purée the mushrooms in a food processor. Place mushrooms in the same skillet along with the shallots and vermouth. Cook over medium until all the liquid has evaporated; set aside and allow to cool. Combine the pâté with butter; set aside. Roll out the puff pastry into a rectangle large enough to encase the meat and place it on a piece of plastic wrap. Spread pâté evenly over the pastry. Spread with mushroom mixture. Place the beef in the center and fold the pastry around the beef, crimping the ends together. Brush the seam with egg wash and place the roast, seam side down, in a pan. Generously brush the surface of the pastry with remaining egg wash. Score two or three diagonal slits in the top of the pastry. Cook until the meat reaches an internal temperature of 125 (about 20 minutes). Remove from the oven and allow to rest for at least 10 minutes before carving (it will continue to cook during this time). Serve with Béarnaise or Madeira sauce. Yield: 4 servings.

Andy's Wellington 

2 lb beef tenderloin 
salt & pepper 
1 t olive oil 
1 T butter 
2 minced shallots 
1/4 C grainy mustard 
8 oz liver pâté 
8 pieces prosciutto 
2 pie crusts 
1 egg, beaten 
sea salt, to taste 

Preheat the oven to 400 F. Cut the tenderloin into 4 pieces. Pat dry with paper towels and season generously with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a heavy skillet over medium high. Quickly brown the meat on all sides. Remove from heat and allow to cool. Add butter and shallots to same skillet and cook over medium until softened. Whisk in mustard; set aside. Cut the pastry into 4 pieces and roll out into rectangles large enough to encase the pieces of meat. Place pastry on 4 pieces of plastic wrap. Arrange two prosciutto slices on each pastry piece.

Spread pâté evenly over the prosciutto. Cover with shallot and mustard mixture. Place a piece of beef in the center of each pastry and fold the pastry around the beef, crimping the ends together. Brush the seam with egg wash and place the roasts, seam side down, in a pan. Generously brush the surface of the pastry with remaining egg wash. Score two or three diagonal slits in the top of the pastry. Sprinkle with sea salt. Cook until the meat reaches an internal temperature of 125 (about 20 minutes). Remove from the oven and allow to rest for at least 10 minutes before carving (it will continue to cook during this time). Serve with Béarnaise sauce. Yield: 4 to 6 servings.

Béarnaise Sauce 

1/4 C white wine vinegar 
1 minced shallot 
1/2 t pepper 
1 T chopped tarragon 
2 egg yolks 
1 T water 
12 T unsalted butter, melted 
1 t tarragon, for garnish 

Combine vinegar, shallots, pepper and tarragon in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cook until liquid is reduced to 2 T, about 5 minutes; set aside. Fill a small saucepan with 2 inches of water and bring to boil over medium-high. In a metal mixing bowl that will fit in the top of the saucepan, whisk together shallot mixture, egg yolks and 1 T water. Reduce heat under the saucepan to very low and set the bowl over the rim (make sure the bowl never touches the water). Continue whisking until the yolks thicken and double in volume, about 6 minutes. Slowly whisk in the butter, 1 T at a time, adding more after each is fully emulsified. Stir in final 1 t of tarragon and serve.