Beef Fillet Rossini with Madeira Truffle Sauce

⏱ 75 min · Serves 2

The grand old classic, done properly: a thick-cut fillet steak on a crisp brioche crouton, crowned with seared foie gras and shaved black truffle, all under a glossy Madeira sauce. It's decadent, deeply savoury and surprisingly quick once your sauce is made — the sort of plate that silences a table.

Per serving: 1080 kcal · 58.0g protein · 24.0g carbs · 80.0g fat

Ingredients

• 2 x 200g beef fillet steaks, 4cm thick, at room temperature
• 2 slices brioche loaf, 1.5cm thick, cut into rounds the size of the steaks
• 2 x 60g slices raw duck foie gras (or 100g good chicken liver parfait as an alternative)
• 1 small black truffle (about 10g), or 2 tsp truffle paste plus a few drops truffle oil
• 150ml dry Madeira
• 300ml good beef or veal stock, well reduced and gelatinous
• 1 small shallot, finely diced
• 1 small garlic clove, crushed
• 1 sprig thyme
• 60g cold unsalted butter, diced
• 1 tbsp sunflower or grapeseed oil
• 1 tbsp clarified butter or ghee (for the brioche)
• 1 tsp sherry vinegar
• Flaky sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper
• Watercress, to serve

Method

1. Make the sauce: melt 10g of the butter in a small saucepan and sweat the shallot, garlic and thyme gently for 4–5 minutes until soft but not coloured.
2. Pour in the Madeira, raise the heat and reduce to a syrupy 2 tablespoons — this takes about 5 minutes and burns off the raw alcohol.
3. Add the stock and simmer steadily for 15–20 minutes until reduced by half and coating the back of a spoon. Strain through a fine sieve into a clean pan, discarding the solids. Set aside.
4. Trim the brioche rounds. Heat the clarified butter in a frying pan and fry them for about 1 minute each side until golden and crisp at the edges. Drain on kitchen paper and keep warm.
5. Season the steaks generously with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a heavy pan until just smoking, then sear the fillets for 2–3 minutes per side, plus 30 seconds on each edge, basting with 10g butter in the last minute. This gives medium-rare; use a probe and pull at 52°C.
6. Rest the steaks on a warm plate, loosely covered, for 6–8 minutes.
7. Wipe the pan clean and set over a high heat with no fat. Season the foie gras slices and sear for 40–50 seconds per side until deeply golden and just yielding. Lift onto kitchen paper immediately. (If using parfait, simply slice and let it soften at room temperature — do not cook.)
8. Finish the sauce: reheat gently, whisk in the remaining 40g cold butter a cube at a time off the heat until glossy, then add the sherry vinegar, half the grated truffle and any resting juices from the steaks. Taste and season.
9. Build: brioche crouton, steak on top, then the foie gras. Spoon the sauce around and over, shave the remaining truffle on top and finish with flaky salt and a small pile of watercress. Serve at once.