If you have decided to spend Christmas at home this year, you should decide on the Christmas menu in advance. When choosing dishes, it's best to consider your guests' preferences and adapt the dishes accordingly. For example, if you have invited vegans to the holiday, then vegan dishes simply cannot be missing from the Christmas menu. However, that doesn't mean that you should avoid meat completely. Exactly the opposite. Meat is usually an essential part of Christmas dinner and makes the perfect choice for the main course. For example, you can prepare a Christmas roast of goose, duck, beef, game or another meat of your choice. In this post we have collected some recipes for beef fillet for Christmas that will transform the main course into a real treat. You can find out which side dishes go best with it and a few helpful cooking tips in the article.
A classic for Christmas: beef fillet as a main course
If you don't want to prepare poultry or game for Christmas this year, you can opt for a juicy beef fillet with a suitable side dish instead. The tenderloin is the most tender cut of beef and when prepared correctly, the beef tenderloin tastes wonderful at Christmas. It can be fried or cooked in the oven, with the low temperature of the meat doing the trick. But meat alone is not a real main course at the Christmas table. Various side dishes and a creamy sauce round off this classic dish at Christmas.
Tips and tricks
When purchasing the beef fillet for Christmas, you should pay attention to good quality if you choose one correctlydelicious main course for the Christmas menuwant to prepare. The quality is usually reflected in the taste; the meat becomes more aromatic and tastes much more intense. You can recognize a good fillet by its price and appearance. It should be dark red and ideally have a thin marbling.
In order for the meat to be really tender, it should definitely be “medium rare” or at least “medium”. If it is cooked all the way through, the fillet will become a little dry and lose its delicate taste. The perfectly cooked fillet should be juicy, rosy and aromatic, but definitely not bloody. This result can only be achieved with the right temperature. The appropriate core temperature for pink meat is 55-58 degrees. This can either be estimated with a lot of experience, or the easiest way to measure it is with a thermometer.
If you want to roast the beef fillet whole for Christmas, you should first tie it tightly and only then cook it. Otherwise there is a risk that the meat will lose its shape. It is best to use kitchen twine for this, as other twines contain plastic and can melt when frying.
To preserve the flavor in the meat, you should allow the fillet to rest for a few minutes after frying. This way the meat relaxes and the juices are distributed evenly. Cover the beef fillet in one piece with some aluminum foil and let it rest for about 10-15 minutes. This means the fillet remains particularly juicy even after cutting.
Recipe with prosciutto and horseradish
Here we present a sophisticated recipe for Christmas beef fillet that will definitely impress your guests. The fillet is wrapped in prosciutto ham, creating a delicious crust on the outsidejuicy meatwithin.
Ingredients:
50 g Butter
900 g beef fillet
400g shallots, halved and thinly sliced
3 tbsp horseradish sauce
200 ml red wine
700 ml beef stock
1 tbsp corn flour
1 Tbsp carob jelly
10 slices of prosciutto
4 tbsp finely chopped parsley
1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
Salt and pepper
Preparation:
1. First wash the meat, pat dry, skin if necessary and tie with kitchen twine. Heat the butter in a large pan and fry the meat on all sides until browned, about 5 minutes. Remove the meat from the pan, remove the kitchen twine and let it rest.
2. In the same pan, add the shallots and fry until golden brown. Turn off the heat and place 2/3 of the shallots in a bowl. Add the horseradish sauce and some black pepper and puree roughly with a hand blender.
3. In the meantime, pour the red wine and stock into the pan with the remaining shallots. Mix the corn flour with 3 tablespoons of water and add it together with the currant jelly. Place over medium heat and stir until thickened. Now season to taste and simmer for about 5 minutes until the consistency of a sauce is reached. Allow to cool and refrigerate before serving.
4. Now, place 8 slices of prosciutto ham in two overlapping rows and spread the horseradish mixture on top. Then sprinkle the herbs over it and place the beef fillet on top. Wrap the meat with the prosciutto and refrigerate before baking.
5. Remove the fillet from the refrigerator about 30 minutes before cooking. Preheat the oven to 220 degrees fan. Then place the meat on a baking tray lined with baking paper and cook in the oven for about 30-40 minutes. Use the thermometer to check whether the correct temperature has been reached and then remove the beef fillet from the oven at Christmas. Let it rest for about 10-15 minutes and then cut into equal slices with a sharp knife. Serve the beef fillet with the red wine sauce as a main course.
Which side dishes go with it?
In the previous section we presented a delicious recipe for beef fillet in one piece, which is relatively easy to prepare and goes perfectly with the holiday menu. A delicious crust can be achieved not only with prosciutto and horseradish, but also with herbs such as rosemary, sage, thyme and chervil, or, for example, with puff pastry. Of course, when preparing, you can also cut the fillet into slices first and only then cook it. However, if you are preparing a meal for several guests, it is quicker to use the whole fillet. But to make your festive roast taste even more delicious, you should have onesuitable supplementprepare for it. But which vegetables actually go well with beef fillet?
Tuber vegetables are simply wonderful as a side dish. You can decide for yourself whether potatoes, carrots or parsnips or even mix them. They can be baked in the oven, glazed, cooked in the grill pan or served as puree.
Other side dishes that harmonize perfectly with the taste of the beef fillet include Brussels sprouts, green beans, peas, spinach, broccoli and mushrooms. The only important thing is that the sauce, the side dish and the meat go well together in terms of taste. A few recipes follow.
Garlic fried potatoes with parmesan for beef fillet
A potato side dish is the tried and tested classic with beef fillet. Whether traditional as fried potatoes, baked potatoes and mashed potatoes, or more sophisticated in the form of duchess potatoes or potato gratin - the variations for a potato side dish are almost endless. The potatoes can be wonderfully refined with various spices and herbs, such as rosemary, garlic, truffles, etc. Sweet potatoes are also a good alternative to the classic. Below you will find a rather classic but incredibly delicious recipe for fried potatoes with garlic and parmesan, which go perfectly with beef fillet at Christmas.
Ingredients:
2kg potatoes
2 tbsp olive oil
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 bunch fresh parsley, chopped
Freshly grated Parmesan
Salt and pepper
Preparation:
1. Bring water to the boil in a pot and add salt. Roughly dice the potatoes, throw them into the boiling water and cook for about 5 minutes. Then strain the potatoes and shake vigorously so that the edges become uneven.
2. Add some oil to a pan and heat it up. Once the oil is hot, add the potatoes and fry evenly until golden brown. Just before the potatoes are cooked, add the garlic and Parmesan and season with salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle with fresh parsley when serving.
Mushrooms with butter and balsamic from the pan
While potatoes are a classic choice, if you want to spice things up a bit, you can make a side dish. The following recipe may seem a little complicated at first glance, but it takes just under 15 minutes to prepare.
Ingredients:
1 tbsp olive oil
1 large shallot, peeled and finely diced
3 tablespoons butter, divided
500g white mushrooms, sliced
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh rosemary or thyme leaves
2 EL Balsamic Essig
1 1/2 tbsp light brown sugar
1 tablespoon soy sauce or Worcestershire sauce
3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped or grated
Preparation:
1. Heat the oil in a large skillet over high heat. Add the shallots and saute for 2-3 minutes until they begin to soften and brown around the edges. Add 2 tablespoons of the butter and stir until the butter is melted. Add mushrooms, salt, pepper and rosemary or thyme and stir well. Cook, stirring frequently, for 3-4 minutes, until the mushrooms turn a rich brown color around the edges and some sides and release their juices.
2. Reduce heat and add vinegar, sugar, soy sauce and garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms are soft and tender and the volume of the liquid decreases significantly, thickens and coats the mushrooms, 6-8 minutes.
3. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon butter, stirring constantly to allow the butter to fully melt and coat the mushrooms, until glossy and the sauce is slightly lighter, about 1 minute. Serve immediately or reheat before serving if necessary.
Crunchy green beans as a side dish
If you would like to add a fresh touch to your Christmas main course, you can prepare a vegetable side dish, for example from broccoli or green beans. These vegetables only need a short processing time and give the meal a fresh kick. You would definitely like the following recipe for green beans with bacon because it is quick and easy to prepare - perfect for the Christmas menu.
Ingredients:
1kg green beans
200 g bacon, diced
1 THE BUTTER
3 cloves of garlic, minced
3 tbsp Parmesan, grated
Salt and pepper to taste
Preparation:
1. First cut off the ends of the green beans and cut them into 5 cm pieces. Bring water to a boil in a large pot and add the green beans. Cook for 5-8 minutes, drain and place in an ice bath.
2. In a medium pan, fry the bacon until crispy. Remove from the pan with a slotted spoon and allow the fat to drain. Add butter and garlic to the pan and fry until tender. Add the bacon, green beans, and Parmesan cheese to the skillet and cook until heated through. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
If you want to serve an elegant but not too complicated meal for Christmas, you can prepare stuffed beef fillet. This makes the Christmas table look even more beautiful and you would certainly amaze your guests. Below you will find a recipe for Christmas stuffed beef fillet with spinach and mushrooms.
Ingredients:
2 1/2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
3 smoked bacon slices, finely chopped
2 finely chopped shallots
250 g mushrooms, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
125 ml beef broth, divided
1 bag of baby spinach (approx. 200 g), roughly chopped
1.5 kg beef fillet, skinned
1 tsp salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Preparation:
1. Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil to the pan and add the bacon. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the shallots, cook and stir for another 2 minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook for about 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Increase the heat to medium-high. Add garlic, sauté for 30 seconds. Stir in 125 milliliters of beef broth and cook until the liquid has almost evaporated, stirring occasionally (about 8 minutes). Add the spinach and cook for 1 minute or until the spinach wilts.
2. Preheat the oven to 180°C. Cut the meat lengthwise, place between 2 sheets of cling film and pound with a meat mallet to an even thickness of approx. 1 cm.
3. Brush beef with 1 1/2 teaspoons olive oil and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Spread the spinach-mushroom mixture evenly over the beef, leaving about 1 centimeter around the edge. Roll up the beef fillet again and tie it with kitchen twine. Brush all sides evenly with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and sprinkle with a little salt and pepper.
4. Place the beef on a baking sheet. Roast at 180°C for 30 minutes. Increase the oven temperature to 230°C and roast for another 25 minutes or until a meat thermometer registers 55°C. Let rest for 15 minutes and then slice crosswise. Serve with a suitable side dish and sauce.
