Loquitur Posted December 22, 2009 Report Share Posted December 22, 2009 Hi! I'm doing individual Beef Wellingtons for Christmas dinner at my mother's house. I don't have any reason to fire up the KK on Christmas Day except to sear the filets but I will be using the KK on Christmas Eve. Do you think its OK for me to sear the filets on Christmas Eve and then add the pate and duxelles and wrap them in pastry the next day? I would be cooling and refrigerating them after searing whether I do it the day before or not. Then I will be transporting them to my mother's house and baking them there. Susan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mguerra Posted December 22, 2009 Report Share Posted December 22, 2009 Do It Your technique should work perfectly. Lucky recipients! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bryan Posted December 22, 2009 Report Share Posted December 22, 2009 Susan I have not done it but I see no reason it will not work. I would go for it. Once they bite into meat from the KK their eyes will be closed anyhow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loquitur Posted December 22, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 22, 2009 Thanks Doc and Cook_Shack - this will really make my life easier at a busy time!!! Susan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sanny Posted December 22, 2009 Report Share Posted December 22, 2009 That's what a lot of restaurants do with the prime rib, anyway. Sear it, then slice and cook to order in the jus. I'm sure they do the same with the boef wellington - sear first, then cook as needed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loquitur Posted December 23, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 23, 2009 Hi Sanny, Very interesting and helpful info - thanks!! Susan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
primeats Posted December 27, 2009 Report Share Posted December 27, 2009 The recipe we have used,many years ago and pre-KK, was a two day method for Wellington. I can only imagine yours turned out superbly! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loquitur Posted December 27, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 27, 2009 Hi Dave! Would love to hear about that recipe! This Christmas was the first time I did the individual Beef Wellingtons. My family was totally impressed but I was disappointed that I didn't get the rise out of the puff pastry that I expected. I've since done some research and have decided it was my fault for rolling the pastry too thin and applying the egg wash on the sides as well as the top, both of which apparently effect the rise. The texture and flavor of the filet mignon seared on the KK the day before, with a black truffle mouse pate and duxelle applied the next day, was wonderful. And the meat, which was a thick cut and refrigerated until ready for the oven, was cooked to a perfect medium rare degree of doneness after 400 deg for 20 min. My goal for the next cook is to repeat everything except perfect the puff pastry. If anybody has any hints, I'm all ears!!! Susan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duk Posted December 27, 2009 Report Share Posted December 27, 2009 did you keep the puff pastry cold--that will make a diff--you can't let the butter in the layers of the dough to get soft--and when going to bake it it should go into a hot cooker to create the steam to let it " puff " just my opinion Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loquitur Posted December 31, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 31, 2009 I was trying to keep it cold, Duk, but I honestly felt that rolling it out was counter productive. First it had to come to a low enough temperature that it could be stretched and then I fiddled around with it to get the right sized pieces. I don't have a lot of experience with puff pastry but I have used it a number of times to top a casserole where I cut it to size while it was still frozen and then put the dish straight in the oven. Those instances came out really nice. I did notice that the scraps I used to decorate the Wellingtons, which were not rolled out nearly as thin as the pieces to encase the filet, did have a better rise and that's mainly why I'm attributing the problem to rolling it out too thin, probably the diagnosis as yours - dough wasn't cold enough!!! Thanks so much for your thoughts. This is a great dinner and not really hard to do when you spread it out over two days. I will be very happy if I can get the puff pastry as good as the rest of it. Happy New Year!!! Susan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loquitur Posted December 26, 2010 Author Report Share Posted December 26, 2010 Re: Can I sear steak the day before for Beef Wellington? The puff pastry on my Christmas Beef Wellingtons came out fabulous this year!! I followed the thawing directions on the package exactly and just rolled it out a little bit. Then I kept all the pastry in the frig except the one steak and one piece of pastry I was working with at the time and then each wrapped filet went staight back in the frig as I finished it. The KK seared filets and duxelles were done the day before and kept in the frig with the pate until I was using them. This focus on keeping everything cold per Duk's instructions made a huge difference in the appearance and texture of the final product. If I knew it would come out that great, I wouldn't have forgotten to take a camera to my mother's house where I baked them. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to everyone!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Conodo12 Posted December 27, 2010 Report Share Posted December 27, 2010 Re: Can I sear steak the day before for Beef Wellington? Great follow up on this one Susan! Often times these threads become deserted after "x" period of time with no resolution. I hadn't realized this was a two-Christmas thread until your last post. Now that I have read how you perfected your technique, I will give it a go too! Thanks again! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loquitur Posted December 26, 2011 Author Report Share Posted December 26, 2011 Re: Can I sear steak the day before for Beef Wellington? My third KK seared Christmas Beef Wellingtons. Just wish my camera phone wouldn't wash out the pictures so much. The pastry was much more golden brown than it appears. I kept them very cold and put them in the freezer for 40 min before baking which worked great in getting the pastry completely cooked yet keeping them on the rare side. I also tied them around the side when I seared them to keep them plump so the center of the steak wouldn't cook. Susan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loquitur Posted December 26, 2012 Author Report Share Posted December 26, 2012 Practice Makes Perfect My fourth Christmas Wellingtons (10 oz filets) Don't mind my decorations - I never graduated kindergarden art. Tips: 1) Don't roll out the puff pastry at all. Separate the sheets into three pieces at the folds and piece it back togther by putting one edge on top of the other and pressing evenly across just at the seam. 2) Tie the filets so they are plump and don't cook too much during the sear. 3) Sear steaks and make duxelles the day before so everything is cold. 4) Work on one at a time with all other ingredients in the frig. 5) Put in freezer for 45 min immediately before baking. 6) Brush with eggwash thinned with heavy cream instead of water before placing in oven. 5) Roast at 450 for 15 min. My temp at this point was 88 deg. 6) Reduce heat to 375. Cook for 7 more min. or until temp is 118 and remove to rest. Temp will continue to rise as it rests. 7) Rest Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mk1 Posted December 27, 2012 Report Share Posted December 27, 2012 Re: Can I sear steak the day before for Beef Wellington? Outstanding! Thanks.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DennisLinkletter Posted December 31, 2012 Report Share Posted December 31, 2012 Re: Can I sear steak the day before for Beef Wellington? My 2 cents would be yes absolutely sear the day before.. You would still get all the flavor boosting from the Maillard reaction/effect.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
