Budget Battle - Beef Wellington - £2.50 a Portion

For the meat filling

Fold together the beef, sausage meat, gravy granules and a generous pinch of salt and pepper (with any herbs harvested from the allotment / garden / foraged). Beat the mix well to get a homogenous beef sausage mixture. Lightly oil a double layer of cling film and tip on the mixture, form into a thick sausage shape and use the cling film to tightly wrap the sausage up. Chill in the freezer for 20 minutes.

For the pâté

Heat the oil in a large frying pan over a high heat. Chop the bacon then add it to the pan and fry it until it is golden and crisp. Meanwhile, finely dice the onion and mince the garlic. Add these to the pan along with a very generous grind of black pepper. Cook for 3-4 minutes until lightly golden. 

Slice the mushrooms and then add them to the pan along with a pinch of salt and sauté until starting to soften and colour lightly. (Add in with any herbs harvested from the allotment / garden / foraged)

Add in the chicken livers, mustard and gravy granules, then stir well to combine. Cook for 5-6 minutes until the pan is dry and the livers have coloured well. 

Tip the entire pan into the bowl of a food processor and blitz until smooth, before tasting and adjusting the seasoning. Tip the mixture onto a large tray, spread out and cool quickly in the freezer.

For the “pancakes”

Remove the crusts from 6 slices of bread and keep the rest to one side. Lay the bread slices over a clean work surface, overlapping their edges so that you end up with one rectangle of bread. Use a rolling pin to flatten out the rectangle fully. The bread slices should bond together slightly. Use your fingers if needed to compress the slices.

To build and cook

Preheat the oven to 230℃. Place a heavy tray in the oven.

Lay the puff pastry out on a large sheet of baking paper. Lay the bread rectangle over the pastry, ensuring there is a 2.5cm gap all the way around (You will have to trim the slices) Spread the cooled pate over the bread into an even 0.5 cm layer. Remove the cling film from the chilled beef mixture and place in the middle of the pate rectangle.

Use the baking paper to lift the pastry and wrap it, and the bread and pate, over the meat mixture to form a wellington shape. Seal the pastry all the way round and trim off the excess. Lift the entire wellington on the pre-heated tray in the oven and bake for 20 minutes until the pastry is golden brown all over. Reduce the heat to 180℃ and continue to cook for a further 25 minutes until the filling is piping hot throughout. Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 15 minutes.

For the gravy

Place a large frying pan over a high heat. Remove the sausage meat from the casing and tip into the pan. Fry, stirring occasionally for 5 minutes until crispy and golden all over.

Finely chop the garlic and then add it to the pan and cook for 30 seconds before adding the oxtail soup and gravy granules. Whisk to a simmer and then reduce the heat to low once the gravy has thickened.

For the choucroute

Heat the oil in a large casserole pan over a high heat. Chop the bacon and fry it in the oil until crisp. Peel and shred the carrot and add it to the pan, season and continue to cook for 5 minutes.

Shred the cabbage and add it to the pan along with the mustard and a splash of water and stir well. Cover the pan and allow the cabbage to wilt. Taste and adjust the seasoning.

To serve

Serve excess pate with fried bread croutes and mustard as a starter.

Carve the wellington and serve alongside the choucroute and gravy.