Gordon Ramsay says that beef wellington is the “ultimate indulgence”, and we couldn’t agree more. What’s not to love about a juicy beef fillet wrapped in a decadent mushroom filling and baked in flaky puff pastry?

This version takes the classic beef wellington, highlighting all the best parts, but portions the recipe individually so you can enjoy a restaurant-quality dining experience at home.

Fun fact about beef wellington – this dish dates back to the 18th century and is said to be named after the Duke of Wellington, who fought Napoleon in The Battle of Waterloo.

Our recipe comes from Amanda Laird, resident in-house chef at Peter Augustus, a craft butcher in Brisbane, Australia.

Serves: 6 people (1 individual beef wellington per person)

Ingredients

  • 6 x 150g pieces of beef fillet, at room temperature, seasoned with flaked sea salt
  • 2 tbsp of olive oil
  • 100g of Dijon mustard
  • 100ml of red wine

For the mushroom duxelle:

  • 2 tbsp of olive oil
  • 250g of mushrooms
  • 20g of butter, coarsely chopped
  • 2 shallots, finely chopped
  • 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
  • 2 tsp of fresh thyme, finely chopped

For assembly:

  • 50g of good quality chicken liver pate
  • 12 thin slices of prosciutto
  • 2 sheets (750g) of puff pastry
  • 1 egg, lightly beaten or melted ghee/butter

Equipment:

  • Food processor
  • Cling wrap/cling film

Method

Step 1

Season steaks well. Heat oil in a large frying pan over high heat and seal the steaks in the pan until golden (about 1 minute each side until sealed all over and rare in the centre).

Step 2

Brush both sides of the steak with Dijon mustard and set aside to cool. Deglaze the pan with red wine to remove all sediment from the pan. Keep the liquid and put to one side. 

Step 3

To make the mushroom duxelle, heat oil in a frying pan over medium heat and add mushrooms. Cook until golden brown (about 3–4 minutes). Add the butter, shallots and garlic, and saute until tender (about 2–3 minutes). Season to taste and transfer to a food processor. Pulse gently until finely chopped. Set aside to cool, then drain any excess liquid. When cool, add finely chopped fresh thyme.

Step 4

Divide the pâté into 6 equal parts and place one piece atop each steak. Lay 6 sheets of cling wrap onto the kitchen bench (approx 20cm x 30cm). Lay 2 slices of prosciutto onto the cling wrap, overlapping each other to create a rectangle. Divide the mushroom duxelle into 6 and spread evenly over the prosciutto. At one end place the fillet steak. 

Step 5

Using the cling wrap, roll the prosciutto over the beef, then roll it up to get a tight even “log”. Repeat for each steak and then chill for a minimum of 30 minutes.

Step 6

Place the puff pastry sheets on the bench. Remove cling wrap from beef and wrap a sheet of puff pastry around each bundle, sealing the pastry at the base. Brush generously with either egg wash, melted butter or ghee. Chill in the fridge until ready to bake.

Step 7

To bake, preheat the oven at 200ºC–220ºC. Bake the beef wellingtons for 20-25 minutes or until the pastry is golden brown. Rest for 10 minutes before serving.