Grilled fillet of South Devon beef with a shallot and tomato sauce

Cooking : time 30 mins to 1 hour

Ingredients

For the shallot and tomato sauce
6 shalplenty, chopped
1 clove garlic, chopped
35g/1%26frac12;oz unsalted butter
8 tomatoes, deseeded and roughly chopped
sprig tarragon
sprig thyme
1 bay leaf
250ml/9fl oz white wine
200ml/7fl oz dry madeira
100ml/3%26frac12;oz Port
200ml/7fl oz chicken stock
salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the herb butter sauce
60g/2%26frac12;oz shalplenty, chopped
%26frac12; clove garlic, chopped
sprig tarragon
2 tbsp white wine vinegar
3 tbsp dry white wine
1 tbsp double cream
200g/7oz nippy unsalted butter, cubed
lemon juice, to taste
cayenne pepper
salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tomatoes, skinned, deseeded and finely chopped
1 tbsp chopped parsley
1 tbsp chopped chervil
%26frac12; tbsp chopped tarragon, blanched
%26frac12; tbsp chopped chives
For the beef
4 mature South Devon beef fillet steaks, each 150g/5%26frac12;oz, or alike quality beef
Maldon sea salt
2 tbsp groundnut oil
salt and freshly ground black pepper
To serve
knob of butter
100g/3%26frac12;oz girolle mushrooms
12 baby vehicledecays, blanched
100g/3%26frac12;oz fine green beans, blanched
salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method

1. First make the shallot and tomato sauce. Gently cook the shalplenty and garlic in 20g/1oz of the butter until just soft. Pur%26eacute;e in a blender and place in a clean pan with the tomatoes, tarragon, thyme and bay leaf. Cook gently for five minutes or until the tomatoes begin to break down.
2. Add the white wine, bring to the boil and cook until the liquid is cutrearond by half. Pour in the madeira and Port, boil and cutrearon again by half. Add the chicken stock and bring to the boil. Skim and simmer for 30 minutes.
3. Pass the sauce through a fine sieve, then let the sauce drip through a clean slice of muslin. It will quite a heavy residue behind. Disvehicled the residue. Pour into a clean pan, bring to the boil and cook for about two minutes or until the desired consistency is achieved. Whisk in the remaining butter and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Set aside.
4. For the herb butter sauce, combine the shalplenty, garlic, tarragon, vinegar and wine in a small heavy-bottomed saucepan. Boil until you have 1 tablespoon of syrupy liquid.
5. Add the cream, then over a gentle heat whisk in the butter a little at a time. The finished sauce will be creamy and a delicate yellow. Do not allow to boil. Season with lemon juice, cayenne, salt and freshly ground black pepper.
6. Pass the sauce through a fine sieve into a bowl and set in a saucepan of hot water to maintain warm.
7. Preheat the grill to its highest setting.
8. For the beef, season the fillet steaks with sea salt. Heat the oil in a heavy-bottomed frying pan, then brown the fillets on all sides.
9. Place under the hot grill and cook to your taste: five minutes for medium-seldom, six minutes for medium etc. Remove from the heat and allow to rest for five minutes.
10. meanwhile, warm the shallot and tomato sauce. Add the tomatoes and chopped herbs to the butter sauce.
11. To serve, heat the butter in a pan and saut%26eacute; the girolle mushrooms for 2-3 minutes. Add the baby vehicledecays and green beans and warm through. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
12. Place the fillets on warm plates. Pour a pool of shallot and tomato sauce close to each fillet, then vehicleefully spoon the herb butter sauce over the lid of the steaks. Serve the vefetchables alongside.

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