Ultimate Vegan 'Beef' Wellington
This is the one we bring out when we really want to impress. The Ultimate Vegan Beef Wellington is proper showstopper territory; golden, flaky pastry wrapped around a rich, savoury filling with a deeply umami mushroom duxelles that honestly blows people away every single time. It looks like you've spent days on it, but once you get your head around the steps, it all comes together beautifully. The layers of flavour here, from the earthy chestnuts to the herby thyme, make every slice genuinely stunning. If you're looking for a centrepiece that'll have everyone around the table completely speechless, this is the one.
Before You Start
- Food processor
- Cling film
- Large frying pan
- Baking tray
- Plant-based burger patties chilled & ready to merge
- Mushroom duxelles made & cooled
- Fillet wrapped & chilled for 15 minutes minimum
- Pastry-wrapped wellington chilled for 10 minutes (or overnight)
- Preheat oven to 200°C
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 900g meaty plant-based burgers - 4 packs
- English mustard to brush
- Salt & pepper to taste
- 650g chestnut mushrooms
- 100g cooked chestnuts
- 1 garlic clove
- 2 thyme sprigs
- 500g ready-made puff pastry
- plain flour to dust
- hazelnut milk to brush
Method
For the meaty filling
- Merge the plant-based burger patties into a thick sausage shape to make a fillet, wrap in cling film and place in the fridge to firm up
For the duxelles
- Clean, trim the stalks and halve the mushrooms
- Peel and chop the garlic
- Pick the thyme leaves
- Add the mushrooms, garlic, chestnuts and pinch of salt to a food processor, and blend to a paste
- Add the mushroom paste and a few picked thyme leaves to a dry frying pan and cook over high heat, stirring every now and then until dried out (otherwise the pastry will get soggy)
- Spread the mushroom paste out on a plate and cool
Cook the meaty filling
- Heat olive oil in a large frying pan over a high heat, remove the cling film from the fillet and sear the outside all over until evenly browned
- Transfer to a plate and brush all over with mustard, then set aside
Wrap the fillet
- Roll out another large piece of cling film and spread the mushroom mix on top
- Lay the fillet at the edge of the mushroom layer
- Tightly roll over the fillet into a sausage shape
- Twist the ends of the cling film so it holds tightly together, then refrigerate for 15 minutes to firm up
Assemble the wellington
- Roll out the pastry on a floured surface into a large rectangle, roughly the thickness of a £1 coin
- Unwrap the fillet from the cling film and place on the edge of the pastry
- Make sure you have a large enough rectangle to wrap the fillet up and trim off the excess pastry
- Roll the pastry around the fillet and then press the edges to seal, then pinch the pastry at the ends to seal and trim off any excess
- Wrap the wellington tightly in cling film and chill for another 10 minutes, or overnight if you’re super organised!
Bake the wellington
- Remove the cling film and decorate the pastry with the off-cuts if you like
- Glaze the wellington all over with hazelnut milk
- Place on a baking tray, bake for about 45 minutes, serve with sides of roast veggies and delicious gravy
Tips & Variations
- Chill the filling properly: We know it's tempting to rush, but letting the shaped fillet firm up in the fridge makes a massive difference to the final result. Give it at least 30 minutes and you'll thank yourself later.
- Get your duxelles really dry: Cook the mushroom paste down until there's no moisture left in the pan. If it looks a little dry, that's exactly what you want. Wet duxelles equals soggy pastry and nobody wants that.
- Score the pastry lightly: Before it goes in the oven, a light score on top and a good brush of plant-based milk or melted vegan butter gives you that gorgeous deep golden colour. Henry always adds a tiny pinch of flaky salt on top too.
Why This Works
The trick here is the duxelles. Blending the mushrooms, garlic and chestnuts into a paste and cooking out all that moisture is what stops your pastry going soggy, and it concentrates the flavour into something really deep and almost meaty. Wrapping the filling tight in cling film first and letting it firm up in the fridge is the other big one; it holds everything together so you get those gorgeous clean slices when you cut it open. Trust us on this, don't skip those steps.