Beef Tartare and Potted Beef Recipe

This stunning beef rump starter uses this beautiful cut for two different preparations – a classic beef tartare and delicious potted beef recipe. Paul serves the dish with his spin on gentleman's relish – to save time you can use a good-quality brown sauce instead if preferred. The relish makes more than is needed for this recipe, but it can be stored in sterilised jars and kept for a host of other dishes.

Ingredients

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Metric

Imperial

Potted beef

500g of beef rump
750ml of red wine
3 carrots, peeled and cut into 4 pieces
1 garlic clove
2 onions, peeled and halved
1 sprig of thyme
1l beef stock
75g of shallots, finely diced
25ml of sherry vinegar
sunflower oil
salt
pepper

Gentleman's relish

4kg plums
500ml of white wine vinegar
500g of pitted prunes
350g of soft brown sugar
100ml of Worcestershire sauce
5 onions, chopped
10 Granny Smith apples, cored and chopped (no need to peel)
10 red plums, stoned and chopped
15 anchovy fillets
5 tbsp of English mustard
3 tbsp of ground mixed spice
250ml of tamarind paste
250ml of water
200ml of fresh orange juice
2 garlic cloves
1 tsp ground white pepper

Dripping

500g of beef fat, minced
100ml of water
thyme
10g of salt

Confit egg yolks

6 eggs

Sauce gribiche for the tartare

1 egg, hard-boiled for 10 minutes then grated
37g of cornichons, finely chopped
30g of lilliput capers
10g of parsley, chopped
5g of tarragon, chopped
10g of chives, chopped
salt
pepper

Beef tartare

200g of beef rump, trimmed of fat and sinew
20g of banana shallot, finely diced
Tabasco, 2–3 drops

To serve

sourdough bread, toasted
wood sorrel

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Water bath
Liquidiser
Piping bags (2)
5cm round mould

To begin, prepare the beef rump for the potted beef. Add the rump to a large container and add the wine, vegetables (not including the diced shallots) and thyme to cover. Leave to marinate for 24 hours

500g of beef rump
1 sprig of thyme
750ml of red wine
3 carrots, peeled and cut into 4 pieces
2 onions, peeled and halved
1 garlic clove

The night before serving, cut the plum tomatoes for the gentleman's relish in half. Spread applewood chips in a deep flameproof baking tray and place over a high flame, allowing the chips to smoke and catch fire. As soon as the chips catch, smother with a lid to extinguish and top with a wire rack that fits inside the tray

4kg plums

Place the tomato halves on the rack and seal the entire tray with tin foil to create a smoke box. At this point, remove from the heat and leave the tomatoes covered for a few hours to infuse. Transfer to a container with a sealable lid and place in the fridge overnight

The next day, place the tomatoes in a heavy-based pan along with the rest of the ingredients. Cook for 2–3 hours over a medium heat until the liquid has reduced by 3/4

1 tsp ground white pepper
500ml of white wine vinegar
500g of pitted prunes
350g of soft brown sugar
100ml of Worcestershire sauce
5 onions, chopped
10 Granny Smith apples, cored and chopped (no need to peel)
10 red plums, stoned and chopped
15 anchovy fillets
5 tbsp of English mustard
3 tbsp of ground mixed spice
250ml of tamarind paste
250ml of water
200ml of fresh orange juice
2 garlic cloves

Drain the beef rump from the marinade and reserve the wine and vegetables separately

Place a large pan over a medium-high heat with a dash of oil and add the beef. Colour all over until nicely caramelised then remove from the pan and add the vegetables. Brown the vegetables nicely then transfer to a large saucepan, along with the beef

sunflower oil

Add the wine to the pan and reduce by half. Transfer to the saucepan with the beef and vegetables, add the stock and top the pan with a lid. Cook over a low heat for 3–4 hours until the beef is tender and breaking apart

1l beef stock

Meanwhile, place the eggs for the confit egg yolks in a waterbath preheated to 62°C and cook for 2 hours

6 eggs

Add the finely diced shallots for the beef to a small pan and submerge in oil. Confit very slowly over a low heat until the shallots are soft and caramelised. Drain and set aside

75g of shallots, finely diced
sunflower oil

When the beef is ready, remove the meat from the pan and flake into a mixing bowl. Pass the cooking liquid through a sieve into a clean pan and reduce the liquid until thick and rich. Add to the meat, season with salt and pepper and stir through. Season with sherry vinegar and the confit shallots

25ml of sherry vinegar
pepper
salt

Once all mixed and tasting good, transfer to small pots and even out the top. Place in the fridge to set before capping with the beef dripping

Transfer the gentleman's relish to a liquidiser, blend until smooth then pass through a fine sieve. Transfer to sterilised jars and keep in the fridge

To finish the confit egg yolk, peel each egg and blend the yolks in a liquidiser until smooth. Pass through a fine sieve and transfer to piping bags or squeezy bottles

To prepare the dripping to cap the potted beef, add the fat, water and thyme to a pan and place over a low heat. Allow the fat to slowly render

10g of salt
500g of beef fat, minced
100ml of water
thyme

Once all of the fat has been released, pass through a fine sieve and season with salt. Pour over the set rump pots (it’s crucial that the beef is cold and set before topping with the fat). Chill in the fridge to set, then remove prior to serving to allow the fat to soften slightly

To make the gribiche for the tartare, simply stir together all of the ingredients

pepper
1 egg, hard-boiled for 10 minutes then grated
37g of cornichons, finely chopped
30g of lilliput capers
10g of parsley, chopped
5g of tarragon, chopped
10g of chives, chopped
salt

Finely slice then dice the beef rump for the tartare and add to a bowl. Add the shallots and gribiche, then a few drops of Tabasco to taste for a kick of heat

Tabasco, 2–3 drops
200g of beef rump, trimmed of fat and sinew
20g of banana shallot, finely diced

To serve, place the ring mould on a plate and add a portion of beef tartare. Remove the ring and pipe a round of egg yolk on top before repeating with the other plates

Add a dish of the potted beef to the plate and pipe on some gentleman's relish. Finish with slices of sourdough toast and wood sorrel leaves

wood sorrel
sourdough bread, toasted

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Paul Welburn

Paul Welburn has years of Michelin-star cooking behind him, holding a star for five years at restaurant W1.

Beef tartare, potted beef with dripping and sourdough toast

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