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Cooking a larger size of Fillet of Beef in Pastry with Wild Mushrooms and Red Wine Sauce

Asked on 21 Dec 2018 by Tigger

Fillet of beef in pastry with wild mushrooms and red wine sauce:

Could you please tell me how to adjust the cooking times for different weights of fillet beef.
I've used this recipe very successfully several times with the 800g in the recipe but this year I have a larger piece (1.4kg) and am nervous about the correct length of time to leave it in the oven. Maybe I also need to reduce the temperature part-way through to avoid burning the pastry? At the moment I use 210 centigrade as its a fan oven. Am cooking this on Christmas Eve so would really appreciate an answer before then!
With thanks
Tigger

Lindsey, Food Editor replied

Hello Tigger,

This is a difficult question because we do not have anything tested for larger pieces of beef.

Faced with the same situation if I wanted to serve it rare I would brown the beef for longer in the frying pan and if I wanted to serve it medium or well done I would brown the beef and then roast it for 10 – 15 minutes before cooling and wrapping in the pastry. This way the timings to cook in the pastry stay the same.

To be absolutely sure a probe thermometer is really helpful.

Best wishes

Lindsey