Canada Beef Wellington with Madeira Sauce.
Holiday traditions are made of family, friends and delicious food. This year, although holiday festivities will be reimagined, some more intimate, others virtual, the importance of a special meal remains central to our celebrations.
I’ve partnered with Canada Beef to showcase their Beef Wellington recipe. The ultimate special occasion meal, perfect for Christmas or New Year’s Eve.
Made with centre-cut Canada Beef Tenderloin, mushrooms, paté and readymade puff pastry, then served with Madeira sauce for a classically rich and extremely flavourful dish.
A show-stopping centrepiece, that is easier to create than it looks. Just 30 minutes of prep time, 15 minutes to rest in the fridge and about 30 minutes to cook. Leaving you plenty of time to whip up the Madeira sauce and a couple of side dishes to boot!
Ingredients
Beef Wellington
- 2 ½ lb (1.13 kg) trimmed centre-cut Canada Beef Tenderloin Premium Oven Roast, about 4-inches (10 cm) in diameter
- 1 tbsp (15 mL) olive oil
- Coarsely ground salt and pepper
- 2 tbsp (30 mL) butter, divided
- 1 tbsp (15 mL) vegetable oil
- 2 shallots finely sliced
- 1 green onion finely sliced
- 2 cups (500 mL) finely chopped mushrooms
- 1 pkg (397 g) puff-pastry dough, thawed
- 2 ½ oz (70 g) chicken or duck liver pâté (foie gras), thinly sliced
- 1 egg, beaten
- Madeira Sauce, recipe follows
Madeira Sauce
- 4 cups beef broth (or 1 L container)
- ⅔ cup Madeira
- generous splash of whipping cream
- 1 tsp corn starch (optional)
- 1 tsp cold water (optional)
- salt and pepper to taste
Preparation
Beef Wellington
If roast is tied, remove twine. Rub and season all over with olive oil, salt and pepper. Heat 1 tbsp (15 mL) of the butter with the vegetable oil in heavy skillet over medium-high heat; brown meat on all sides, about 8 minutes. Set aside.
In same skillet, melt remaining butter; add shallots and onion and cook over medium-high heat, stirring, until softened for about 1 minute. Add mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, until there is no liquid from the mushrooms remaining, about 5 to 10 minutes. Season to taste and set pan aside to use for the Madeira Mushroom Sauce.
Pat reserved tenderloin dry with paper towel; top with paté slices and mushroom mixture, pressing mixture onto tenderloin to hold. Set aside. Line rimmed baking sheet with foil; spray lightly with non-stick spray. Set aside.
Roll out the package puff pastry dough on lightly floured board, on its underside, into a 13 x 12-inch (32 x 30 cm) rectangle, rolling over the seam to hold the 2 squares together.
Place over tenderloin and tuck dough around the sides and ends. Gently turn over, wrapping dough around underside and ends of tenderloin to fully enclose; brush some beaten egg along edges of seams where dough overlaps, pressing gently to seal. Place seam side down onto prepared baking sheet.
Refrigerate for at least 15 minutes or up to 1 hour. (If refrigerated 1 hour, let the Wellington sit at room temperature 30 minutes before baking.)
Adjust oven rack to lowest position and heat oven to 450°F (230°C) oven. (NOTE: The Beef Wellington is roasted on the lowest rack of a very hot oven to help create a crispy crust.)
Cut 3 slits across the top of pastry to allow steam to escape while baking; brush all over with beaten egg.
Bake Beef Wellington until golden brown (shielding with loose cover of aluminum foil if getting to brown), and digital instant read thermometer inserted into centre of roast reads 145°F (63°C) for medium-rare doneness, about 35 minutes.
Let stand for 10 minutes and transfer to carving platter. Carve into thick slices and serve with Madeira Sauce.
Madeira Sauce
Place skillet used to make mushrooms over medium-high heat; stir in beef broth, stirring up brown bits from bottom of pan.
Bring to boil and cook for 15 to 20 minutes to reduce to 1-2/3 cups.
Stir in Madeira and continue to boil until liquid is reduced again to 1-2/3 cups about 5 minutes. Stir in whipping cream to finish.
If desired, thicken by stirring in corn starch mixture; cook 3 to 4 minutes until slightly thickened. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Pour into gravy boat to serve.
This holiday season make Canada Beef a part of your family celebrations.
Wishing you all a safe, healthy and very happy holiday season!
This Canada Beef Wellington with Madeira Sauce recipe and a wonderfully informative instructional video can be found at https://canadabeef.ca/recipes/beef-wellington/
*** I have participated in a paid partnership with Canada Beef. Opinions in this post are my own.