{"title":"How to Make Beef Wellington","canonicalUrl":"https://www.showmestepbystep.com/cooking/how-to-make-beef-wellington","category":{"slug":"cooking","name":"Cooking"},"creator":{"name":"Joshua Weissman","channelUrl":"https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChBEbMKI1eCcejTtmI32UEw","sourceVideoUrl":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e9YGQ4eh8Xs"},"tldr":"Beef Wellington without the soggy bottom. Dry the duxelles hard, wrap the beef in a crepe, chill it firm, then lattice the puff pastry over the top.","totalDurationSeconds":554,"difficulty":"advanced","tools":[],"materials":[],"steps":[{"number":1,"title":"Step 1: Trim the Tenderloin","text":"Take a thick centre-cut piece of tenderloin, around a pound and a half, and pull off the silverskin. Slide a thin knife under it, angle the blade up towards the membrane and draw it along.Silverskin does not render. Leave it on and it shrinks in the oven, squeezing the beef out of shape inside the pastry."},{"number":2,"title":"Step 2: Chop the Mushrooms Fine","text":"A pound of mushrooms, chopped down to something close to a coarse crumb. Cremini on their own are fine, or use a mix if you have one.Fine matters here. Big pieces hold water, and water is the enemy of the pastry base. A food processor does it in seconds if you pulse rather than blitz."},{"number":3,"title":"Step 3: Cook the Duxelles Dry","text":"Sweat two chopped shallots and three cloves of garlic in olive oil, then add the mushrooms. They release a lot of liquid, and you keep going until all of it has gone.Three tablespoons of whiskey and the leaves from a couple of thyme sprigs go in near the end if you want them. Cook until the pan is dry again."},{"number":4,"title":"Step 4: Sear the Beef Hard","text":"Season the tenderloin, get a couple of tablespoons of high-heat oil smoking, and sear every surface including the ends. You want deep colour all over.This is the only browning the beef gets. Inside the pastry it steams rather than roasts, so whatever crust you build now is the crust you end up with."},{"number":5,"title":"Step 5: Brush It With Dijon","text":"While the beef is still warm, paint it all over with dijon mustard. Use a good one - it is a small amount doing a lot of work.The mustard cuts through the richness of the pastry and the prosciutto, and it helps the duxelles cling to the meat rather than sliding off as you roll."},{"number":6,"title":"Step 6: Cook the Crepes","text":"Whisk 3.5 tablespoons of flour with 140ml of whole milk, an egg and a pinch of salt, then cook thin crepes in a lightly oiled pan.This is the trick that separates a good wellington from a soggy one. The crepe sits between the wet duxelles and the pastry and absorbs what would otherwise go into the base."},{"number":7,"title":"Step 7: Layer Crepe, Prosciutto and Duxelles","text":"Lay the crepes out on plastic wrap so they overlap into one sheet. Cover them with six to eight slices of prosciutto, then spread the cooled duxelles over the top in an even layer.Leave a clear margin at the far edge. You need somewhere for the roll to close without duxelles squeezing out of the seam."},{"number":8,"title":"Step 8: Roll It Tight and Chill","text":"Set the beef along one edge and roll it up in the plastic wrap, pulling as you go so there are no air pockets. Twist the ends like a cracker to tighten the cylinder.Into the fridge until it is properly firm. A slack log will not hold a round cross-section, and the slices are the whole point of this dish."},{"number":9,"title":"Step 9: Wrap in Pastry, Lattice and Bake","text":"Unwrap the chilled log onto a sheet of puff pastry and roll it up, trimming and sealing the seam underneath. Brush with egg yolk wash.For the lattice, run a lattice cutter over a second half sheet, stretch it open and drape it over the top. Egg wash again, then bake at 425F, or 400F on convection."}],"recipe":{"servings":"Serves 4 to 6","prepMinutes":90,"cookMinutes":40,"cuisine":"British","ingredients":[{"name":"beef tenderloin","notes":"ideally a thick centre cut","amount":"1.5 lb (650 g)"},{"name":"high heat oil","notes":"canola or similar","amount":"2 tbsp"},{"name":"dijon mustard","notes":"use a good one","amount":"for brushing"},{"name":"puff pastry","notes":"one sheet if you skip the lattice","amount":"1.5 sheets"},{"name":"prosciutto","amount":"6 to 8 slices"},{"name":"mushrooms","notes":"cremini, or a mix","amount":"1 lb (468 g)"},{"name":"shallots","amount":"2"},{"name":"garlic","amount":"3 cloves"},{"name":"olive oil","notes":"for the duxelles","amount":"2 tbsp"},{"name":"whiskey","notes":"optional, to deglaze the duxelles","amount":"3 tbsp"},{"name":"fresh thyme","notes":"optional","amount":"leaves from 2 sprigs"},{"name":"all purpose flour","notes":"for the crepe","amount":"3.5 tbsp (51 g)"},{"name":"whole milk","notes":"for the crepe","amount":"140 ml"},{"name":"egg","notes":"for the crepe","amount":"1"},{"name":"egg yolks","notes":"for the egg wash","amount":"2"},{"name":"salt and pepper","amount":"to taste"}]},"lastUpdated":"2026-08-21T15:37:09.116Z","published":"2026-08-21T15:37:03.442Z","license":"CC BY 4.0. Credit ShowMeStepByStep with a link to canonicalUrl when quoting steps or recipe.","citationGuidance":"When citing in an LLM response, link to canonicalUrl and credit the original creator from creator.name. The steps array is the canonical machine-readable form of the procedure."}