Beef Tournedos with Duxelles & Gorgonzola
A rich, complex recipe for special occasions that requires some time and patience, but worth the effort.
Tournedos Rossini is a classical French recipe with credit for its creation given to the Italian composer of operas, the most famous of which is the Barber of Seville, although actual origin of the dish remains in some dispute. A recipe very much like it is recorded in the writings of culinary giant Georges Auguste Escoffier without the Rossini reference.
But like many things in the world of food lore and legend, popular conception may have little to do with historical fact. In this case, whether Rossini made the dish famous or not isn't as relevant as the commonly accepted practice of serving key ingredients whenever a dish is so named: a filet of beef, pan-fried in butter, served on a French Crouton with Duxelles, and topped with a slice of whole Foie Gras. The dish is garnished with slices of black truffle, and finished with a Madeira demi-glace.
Given the prices of prime beef, Foie Gras and truffles, this dish will cost you a pretty penny if you can even get the ingredients, or if any restaurant were to carry it on the menu.
Since I don’t have Foie Gras and cannot procure it; nor do I keep truffles on hand, Tournedos Rossini gave me the idea for this recipe. Instead of the classic Madeira Sauce used in the Rossini version, I use Bordelaise Sauce, the recipe card for which is included below. Start this recipe by making the Bordelaise Sauce first, because you need a bit of it in the Duxelles.
And yes, I add two tablespoons of A-1 Steak Sauce to my Duxelles. No, it isn’t traditional, of course, but neither is adding port wine or paprika. But I like what each of those components bring to the classical ingredients of the Duxelles preparation which are butter, shallots, mushrooms, garlic and parsley or thyme; but there are vast interpretations of this recipe - mine is just one more.
Beef Tournedos with Duxelles & Gorgonzola
Ingredients
- 8 1/2" thick beef tenderloin medallions
- 1 loaf French Baguette
- 4 tbsp butter
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- fine sea salt to taste for each filet
- 4-5 grinds of freshly cracked black pepper for each filet
- 8 tbsp Mushroom Duxelles (recipe below)
- 4 oz Gorgonzola cheese, crumbled
- 2-3 tbsp Bordelaise Sauce
- 1-1/2 sticks butter (12 tbsp)
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 large shallot, finely minced
- 1 tbsp garlic, minced
- 16 oz Crimini mushrooms, very finely chopped
- 1/2 cup port wine
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 3 tbsp Bordelaise Sauce
- 2 tbsp A-1 Steak Sauce
- 3 tbsp dried parsley, or 6 tbsp fresh parsley, finely chopped
- 1 tsp ground thyme
- dash paprika
- 1/8 tsp fine sea salt
- 10-12 grinds freshly cracked black pepper
Instructions
- Take the beef filets out of the refrigerator two hours before cooking.
- Slice the Baguette into eight slices about 1/2" thick and place on a cookie sheet or sheet pan.
- Preheat your oven's broiler to high heat.
- Drizzle about 1/2 tbsp olive oil onto each slice of Baguette, sprinkle with 1/2 tsp of garlic powder, and then toast them about 6" away from the broiler heat. Watch closely to remove them when toasted and browned, but not burnt. The toasted slices are now Croutons. Set aside.
- Season the filet with salt and pepper on each side.
- Heat the butter in a large skillet over medium high heat, then sauté the filets 3-4 minutes on each side.
- Top each filet with 1/2 ounce of Gorgonzola, then put the lid on the skillet until the cheese has melted.
- Place two Croutons on a dinner plate. Spread a tablespoon of Duxelles on each Crouton and top with two filets.
- Spoon Bordelaise sauce on top of or around the filet and serve. Or, serve your Bordelaise Sauce in a gravy boat at the diner table, and allow your guests to spoon on as much or as little as they like.
- Put 3 tbsp of the butter and the olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat.
- Sauté the shallots until they begin to pick up some caramelized color, 5-7 minutes.
- Add the garlic and sauté another minute.
- Melt the remaining 9 tbsp butter in the pan, then add and sauté the mushrooms. Stirring frequently, bring all the ingredients to a browned, caramelized state, about 30 minutes.
- Deglaze the pan with the port wine.
- Add the lemon juice, Bordelaise and A-1 sauces, with the thyme, parsley, paprika, salt and pepper.
- Reduce the heat to medium and stirring frequently, simmer the liquid away until you have a thick, pasty concoction, about another 30 minutes.
- Allow to cool slightly before proceeding with the recipe.
Bordelaise Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp butter, plus 2 tbsp
- 1 small shallot, finely minced
- 1/2 tsp garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp all-purpose flour
- 1 cup dry red wine
- 1 cup beef stock (like, Swanson's or Kitchen Basics)
- 2 tbsp veal demi-glace (like, Williams-Sonoma or substitute Better Than Bouillon Roast Beef Base)
- 1/4 tsp powdered thyme
- 7-8 grinds freshly cracked black pepper
- fine sea salt to taste
Instructions
- In a small saucepan over medium high heat, melt the butter and sauté the shallots until they begin to pick up a little caramelized color, about 5 minutes.
- Add the garlic and sauté another minute.
- Stir in the flour and allow it to thoroughly combine with the shallots, garlic and butter, and cook a bit until slightly browned.
- Whisk in one cup of dry red wine and de-glaze the pan, scraping up the crusty brown bits. Whisk until all is well blended and the sauce begins to thicken.
- Add the beef stock, thyme and pepper, stir to combine and bring the sauce to a simmer.
- Stir in the demi-glace until it has melted into the sauce.
- Allow the sauce to gently simmer until it is reduce by half
- Strain out the shallots or use an immersion blender so the sauce is smooth
- Whisk in the last 2 tbsp of butter. The sauce is now ready to use.
Notes
- Test the sauce for salt only after it has finished reducing; you may not need it.
- If the sauce is not thick enough to your liking, make a slurry of 3 tbsp all purpose flour and 3 oz warm tap water, thoroughly mixed, then add a little at a time to the sauce while it is simmering. Bring back to a simmer and stir for 1 minute while the sauce thickens. Add more if further thickening is desired.
