M&S recipe inspiration
Beef fillet with beef bonbons, wild mushrooms and seared fennel
If you’re a little short of time, you can serve the beef with M&S Diane sauce instead.
Ingredients
- 200g M&S lean beef mince
- 1 clove M&S garlic, peeled and crushed
- 1 tsp M&S cut rosemary, chopped
- 1 tsp M&S cut thyme, chopped
- ½ tsp M&S cornflour
- ½ tsp M&S English mustard
- 100g M&S plain flour
- 2 M&S eggs, beaten
- 200g M&S panko breadcrumbs
- 1 litre M&S sunflower oil
For the beef bon bons
For the sauce
- 2 rashers M&S smoked bacon, chopped
- 1 small M&S leek, chopped
- 2 tbsp M&S red wine vinegar
- 2 tsp M&S juniper berries, crushed
- 300ml M&S red wine
- 800ml M&S beef stock, allow for extra
- 3 tbsp blackcurrant jelly
- 50g cold M&S unsalted butter, cubed
For the fennel
- 2 tbsp M&S unsalted butter
- 2 bulbs M&S fennel, quartered
- 30g M&S soft brown sugar
- 50ml M&S chicken stock
For the beef fillet
- 50g M&S unsalted butter
- 4 x M&S beef fillet steaks
- Sprig of M&S cut thyme
- 1 clove M&S garlic, peeled and crushsed
- Juice of half M&S lemon
For the garnish
- 1 tbsp M&S olive oi
- 100g M&S mixed exotic mushrooms, halved if large
- 100g M&S watercress leaves, picked
Method
- Preheat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan. To make the beef bonbons, put the mince, garlic, rosemary, thyme, cornflour and mustard into a bowl, season, mix well and roll into small balls the size of a large walnut. Chill for 15 minutes.
- Put the flour, egg and breadcrumbs into three separate bowls. Dip the beef bonbons in first the flour, then egg, and finally the breadcrumbs. Place on a tray, cover and chill until ready to cook.
- To make the sauce, heat a medium pan then sauté the bacon and leek for 3-4 minutes. Add the vinegar and deglaze for a minute. Add the juniper berries and wine. Reduce to a syrup, add the stock and jelly and stir until it starts to thicken. Sieve the sauce and return to the saucepan. Whisk in the cold butter over a high heat and season well. Keep warm.
- For the fennel: Melt the butter in a shallow oven-proof saucepan. Sear the fennel on both sides over a medium heat. When browned, add the brown sugar and the stock. Season well and place in the oven. Bake for 15 minutes until golden and the sauce is syrupy.
- For the beef fillet: Melt half the butter in a large frying pan. When the pan is very hot, add the beef fillet steaks. Sear on both sides, then add the remaining butter, thyme, garlic and some salt, freshly ground black pepper and the lemon juice. Keep basting for about 5 minutes until it’s medium rare. Rest on a plate for 10 minutes covered in foil.
- Now back to the beef bonbons: Heat the oil in a wok until the temperature reaches 180°C, then cook the bonbons, in batches, for 4-5 minutes or until golden brown. Drain on a wire rack set over a baking tray.
- For the garnish, heat the oil in a small saucepan. When it’s very hot, add the mushrooms along with some seasoning. Cook over a high heat for 2-3 minutes.
- Serve the steaks with the fennel, wild mushrooms, and bonbons. Add a little of the sauce to each plate and serve the rest in a jug. Finish with a garnish of watercress
