Sous Vide Beef Wellington

In our house, special dinner is always Beef Wellington. Over the years, I’ve done whole tenderloins of beef wrapped in pastry. I’ve done individual steaks wrapped in pastry—some like the beef well done, others of us like it rare. What none of us like is an overcooked Beef Wellington, and the Anova Precision Cooker keeps these steaks from ever overcooking and drying out. I used two 1-inch thick steaks for this recipe. You may have to cook a little longer if your steaks are thicker. The garnish of a layer of mushrooms duxelles (cooked puree of mushroom) and the cap of puff pastry dough make this simple to finish at the last minute. Have all your side dishes hot and ready to go, and when you finish the searing process, garnish and serve. Makes a special dinner easy to put onto the table.

Author

Barbara Freda

I grew up in a cooking family and after getting a degree in Spanish and Anthropology, realized what I really wanted to do was to go to culinary school. After working in a NYC bank for a few years, I managed to get to culinary school and got my first jobs in NYC kitchens, including a long stint at Union Square Cafe in its earliest years. After (sadly) leaving NYC, I realized I needed to step away from the 80-hour work weeks, so I left the heat of the kitchen for the cool of the computer keyboard: I started writing about food, the business of food, and technology in the food industry, as well as teaching cooking classes. Recipe development remains one of my top loves, and the opportunity to develop recipes for Anova has been fun every step of the way.

Prep Time: 00:35

Recipe Time: 01:30

Temperature : 130F / 54.4C

Ingredients

• 2 (6-ounce) filet mignon steaks, about 1 inch thick
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 sheet prepared puff pastry, thawed if frozen
• 1 large egg
• 5 ounces white button mushrooms
• 1/4 small onion
• 1/4 cup sherry
• 2 fresh sage leaves, chopped, plus more for serving

Directions

1. Set the Anova Sous Vide Precision Cooker to 130ºF (54ºC) for medium-rare.
2. Season steaks with salt and pepper. Place in a large zipper lock bag and top each steak with 1/4 tablespoon butter. Seal the bag using the water immersion technique. Place the bag in the hot water and set the timer for 1 1/2 hours, or up to 2 hours.
3. About 30 minutes before the steaks are finished, heat the oven to 450ºF.
4. Prepare the puff pastry by cutting it into two rounds, about the same size as the steaks. Place the puff pastry rounds on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
5. In a small bowl, whisk the egg with 1 tablespoon water. Brush the egg wash over the puff pastry. Transfer puff pastry to the oven and bake until golden brown, 7 to 10 minutes. Turn off the oven and leave pastry inside to keep warm.
6. While the pastry is baking, prepare the mushrooms: Process mushrooms and onion in a food processor until finely chopped.
7. Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. When the butter stops foaming, add the mushroom and onion mixture. Sauté until the mushrooms begin to release liquid.
8. Add the sherry and cook until all of the liquid has evaporated from the pan, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat, stir in the chopped sage, and season to taste with salt and pepper. Cover to keep warm.

Finishing Steps

1. When the timer goes off, remove the bag from the water bath. Remove the steaks from the bag and pat dry with paper towels.
2. Melt remaining 1 tablespoon butter in a cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add steaks and sear until well-browned, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer to a cutting board and let rest for 5 minutes.
3. Place steaks on serving plates. Top each steak with a thick layer of mushrooms and a puff pastry round. Garnish with sage leaves. Serve.