Venison wellington
This loin of venison wellington, wild mushroom, truffle and Parma ham makes a showstopping main for any event especially Christmas.
Ingredients
Fresh Ingredients
- 650 g Venison loin, trimmed & all silver skin removed
- 50 g Butter
- 2 Large shallots, peeled & finely chopped
- 2 Garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 400 g Chestnut mushrooms, finely chopped
- 1/2 tbsp Fresh chopped thyme leaves
- 1 tbsp Fresh chopped parsley
- 8 slices Parma ham
- 1 Large sheet ready rolled puff pastry
- 2 Egg yolks, beaten
Store Cupboard Ingredients
- Sea salt flakes
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tbsp Olive oil
- 25 g Dried porcini mushrooms, soaked in warm water, drained & finely chopped
- 1 tbsp White truffle oil
- 1-2 tbsp Dijon mustard
Instructions
- Dry the venison loin with kitchen towel and season well.
- Heat the oil in a frying pan and sear the venison all over.
- Remove from the pan, allow to cool and then chill for 30 minutes in the fridge.
- Add the butter to a frying pan and fry the shallots and garlic until softened. Add the mushrooms and herbs and season with a little salt and pepper.
- Cook for around 10 minutes until you have a paste-like mixture. Stir in the truffle oil, remove from the heat and allow to cool.
- Using a clean surface, overlap two or three sheets of cling film and lay the Parma ham on the cling film in two rows, slightly overlapping the slices.
- Using a palette knife, spread the cold mushroom mixture over the Parma ham, leaving a thin border all the way around.
- Take the venison out of the fridge, brush one side with a little mustard and place mustard side down in the centre of the Parma ham slices. Then brush the top and sides of the venison with the remaining mustard.
- Using the cling film, carefully wrap the mushroom mixture and Parma ham around the venison loin.
- Roll into a sausage shape, twisting the cling film at either end to tighten around the venison.
- Return the venison to the fridge to firm up for 30 minutes.
- Unroll the puff pastry sheet and lay it on a piece of baking parchment. Unwrap the cling film from the venison and lay the venison in the centre of the pastry sheet.
- Fold one half of the pastry sheet over the venison and lightly brush the edge of the pastry with a little beaten egg.
- Fold the other half of the pastry sheet around the venison to encase it, pressing the edge of this pastry half over the other edge (which has been brushed with the beaten egg) to seal.
- Neatly fold the ends of the pastry to form a parcel, using a little water to help seal the edges of the pastry together.
- Transfer to a lightly greased non-stick baking sheet. Smooth the pastry around the meat with your hands, expelling any air bubbles.
- Add a pastry decoration to the top of the wellington if desired (e.g. stars for Christmas) and brush the top and sides with a little beaten egg.
- Chill in the fridge for about an hour.
- Meanwhile preheat the oven to 220°C/200°C fan.
- Twenty minutes before you want to cook the wellington, take it out of the fridge to come up to room temperature.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes (or 35 minutes for medium). Remove from the oven and brush with a little extra beaten egg to add a shine to the pastry.
- Allow to rest for 10-15 minutes before serving.
