Beef Fillets with Wild Mushrooms and Armagnac Sauce Beef Fillets with Wild Mushrooms and Armagnac Sauce

Beef Fillets with Wild Mushrooms and Armagnac Sauce

Impressive supper for two, ideal for special occasions. Fillet steak with a mushroom and Armagnac sauce on a bed of sliced potatoes.

prep time
30 mins

cook time
30 minutes

serves
2 people

Based on a 2cm/¾inch thick steak

To Cook Rare: 2½ minutes on each side

To Cook Medium: 4 minutes on each side

To Cook Well Done: 6 minutes on each side

Ingredients

  • 2 lean fillet steaks
  • 25g unsalted butter
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 large shallot, peeled and finely chopped
  • 50g mushrooms (wild, if in season), halved
  • 3 tablespoons Armagnac or brandy
  • 300ml good, hot beef stock
  • 2 sprigs fresh thyme leaves
  • Fresh redcurrants, to garnish
  • For the potato slices:

  • 375g small waxy potatoes, peeled and left whole
  • 25g unsalted butter, melted
  • 150ml good, hot vegetable stock

Method

  1. Preheat the oven to 200°C, 180°C Fan, Gas Mark 6.
  2. To prepare the potato slices; boil the potatoes in salted water for 10-15 minutes. Drain and cool slightly. When cool enough to handle slice to the thickness of a pound coin and transfer to a large bowl.
  3. Add the melted butter, season and toss gently. On a foil lined shallow baking tray or roasting dish arrange four 8cm cakes in a single layer of overlapping slices. Pour over the stock and bake for 15-20 minutes or until tender and most of the stock has evaporated.
  4. Meanwhile, melt half of the remaining butter with the oil in a non-stick griddle or frying pan. Season the fillets and cook according to your preference. Remove, transfer to a warm plate, cover and set aside to rest.
  5. Add the shallots and mushrooms to the same pan. Add the Armagnac or brandy. Cook for a further minute then add the stock and thyme. Bring to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 4-5 minutes or until reduced by half. Whisk the remaining butter into the sauce. Remove the thyme sprigs.
  6. Arrange the potato cakes on a warm plate, top with the beef and spoon over the sauce. Garnish with the redcurrants and serve with seasonal vegetables.

Tips:

If preferred use rib-eye steaks as an alternative to fillet steak but reduce the cooking time by about a minute on each side.