When I think of Hungarian food, the dish that comes to mind is goulash (gulyás). It’s a simple but very tasty and comforting dish, where beef is cooked slowly with onions and lots of paprika until tender and almost melt-in-your-mouth. The consistency is somewhere in between a stew and a soup, with slightly sweet and smokey flavours, and it’s typically served with Hungarian egg dumplings.
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Over a drink last weekend, a friend was talking about his typical dinners in Singapore. Food courts, takeaways, and occasionally a couple packets of instant noodles - it seemed like a home cooked meal was well overdue. After a few more drinks, Nick kindly volunteered me to cook Beef Wellington for six at our place the following night. Beef Wellington is a classic British dish, often served during festive occasions, and recently popularised by Gordon Ramsay.
It goes without saying that a good quality piece of beef fillet is essential. The meat is coated in duxelles (finely chopped sautéed mushrooms) and pâté de foie (liver pâté), wrapped in puff pastry to keep in the juices, and baked until golden. It may look like a giant sausage roll but the rich, earthy duxelles make it special. Cutting into a Beef Wellington is always a nervous affair. It’s easy to under or over cook this dish, but when cooked right, it’s impressive looking and very, very tasty.
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