Roast Fillet of Beef

Origin: British      Period: Elizabethan

Original Recipe

Roast Fillet of Beef (The Accomplisht Cook)

Take a fillet which is the tenderest part of the beef, and lieth in the inner part of the surloyn, cut it as big as you can, broach it on a broach not too big, and be careful not to broach it through the best of the meat; roast it leisurely, and baste it with sweet butter, set a dish to save the gravy while it roasts, then prepare sauce for it of good store of parsley, with a few sweet herbs chopped small, the yolkes of three or four eggs, sometimes gross pepper minced amongst them with the peel of an orange, and a little onion; boil these together, and put in a little butter, vinegar, gravy, a spoonful of strong broth, and put it to the beef.

Modern Redaction

Ingredients:

1 kg beef fillet
4 tbsp molten butter (to baste the meat)
2 tbsp molten butter (for the sauce) 60g finely-chopped parsley
60g finely-chopped chives
¼ tsp thyme
¼ tsp savory
large pinch of ground black pepper
1 tsp salt
180ml beef stock
60ml red wine vinegar

2 egg yolks

Method:

Pre-heat the oven to 220°C. Place the fillet in a roasting dish, brush with molten butter and place in the oven and immediately turn the heat down to 180°C. Roast for 30 minutes, basting every five minutes with some of the remaining butter. At the end of the cooking time set the beef aside to rest in a warm place and make the sauce.

To create the sauce place all the remaining ingredients (except the egg) in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Immediately reduce the hea to a simmer and cook for 15 minutes. Remove 60ml of the sauce and in a bowl add this to the egg yolks, beating continuously as you add until it is properly blended. Return the egg mixture to the saucepan and cook, stirring continuously until the sauce begins to thicken. At this point stir the meat juices into the sauce and cook for a few minutes.

Take the sauce off the heat, slice the beef into 1 cm thick slices and arrange these on a warmed plate. Spoon the sauce over the meat and serve immediately.

Read: Recipe Articles and Reviews

More Elizabethan recipes...

More European recipes...

More main course recipes...

More recipes for Meat...

More Roasting recipes...

More recipes for Beef...

Are any of the terms used here unfamiliar, do you want to translate from British to American cookery terms? If so then this Glossary of US and UK Cookery Terms will help you.

Need to convert any units on this site?

As a guide 1 US cup of flour = 4 1/2 oz = 140g (this applies to breadcrumbs, ground almonds etc
1 US cup of butter/margarine or sugar = 7 oz = 200g

For temperature conversions (Celsius, gas mark, Farenheit) go to the Temperature conversion page.
For mass conversions (grammes, cups, spoons, ounces etc) go to the Mass/Weight conversion page.
For temperature conversions (litres, cups, spoons, fluid ounces etc) go to the Volume conversion page.
You can also see more cookery terms and meanings as well as ingredient descriptions at the Cooks' glossary