Aldo Zilli's sophisticated beef dish with a selection of vegetables is perfect for a dinner party
Ingredients
Before you start...
The meat in this recipe should be marinated for 30 minutes before cooking.
- 4x 200 g7 oz beef fillet
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1 tbsp rosemary, finely chopped
- 1 leek, finely sliced
- 200 g7 oz kale
- 200 g7 oz spinach
- 25 g1 oz butter
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Sea salt and black pepper
For the potatoes:
- 8 medium potatoes
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- 8 garlic cloves
- rosemary, chopped
For the courgettes:
- 2 courgettes
- 200 ml7 fl oz milk
- 30 g1 oz cornflour
- 70 g2½ oz self-raising flour
- Vegetable oil, for deep-frying
For the sauce:
- 100 ml3½ fl oz red wine
- 250 ml8¾ fl oz beef stock
- 1 sprig of thyme
- 25 g1 oz butter
Method: How to make Fillet of beef with kale, spinach and garlic roast potatoes
Preheat your oven to 200C/Gas 6.
First marinate your steaks in the garlic, rosemary, 2 tablespoons olive oil and some seasoning. Set aside for 30 minutes.
Next peel your potatoes and cut each into about four even size wedges. Boil these in salted water for about 10 minutes, then drain. Return them to the pan, put the lid on and shake vigorously to roughen the edges of the potatoes. Meanwhile, pour the olive oil into a roasting tray and put the tray in the oven – you want the oil to get really hot before adding the potatoes.
Squash each clove of garlic with the flat side of a knife, keeping the peel on each clove but releasing the flavour a little. Once the oil is shimmering with heat, carefully remove the baking tray from the oven. Spoon the par-boiled potatoes into the tray along with the garlic and rosemary, stir everything around to coat it in oil and season with salt. Return the tray to the oven and roast the potatoes for 45 minutes, or until golden and crunchy.
To make the sauce, pour the wine into a small pan and set over a high heat. Allow the wine to reduce down until almost nothing remains, then pour in the beef stock and thyme. Allow this to reduce down gently until you have a sauce consistency, then just before serving whisk in the butter to achieve a glossy jus.
In a separate pan, heat a little olive oil. Add the sliced leeks, season well and cook gently until completely tender. Meanwhile, de-stalk the kale and spinach and bring a large pan of salted water to the boil. Blanch the kale until soft, then blanch the spinach (which will take a little less time than the kale). Drain both and add to the softened leeks with a small knob of butter.
Slice the courgettes thinly and place in the milk to soak. Mix the flour and cornflour together and season well. Dip batches of the courgette in the flour before deep-frying until crisp and golden. (For deep-frying, your oil should be at 180C/Gas 4).
To finish the dish, heat a griddle pan until very hot. Add your fillets to the griddle pan and cook for 3-4 minutes each side, or to your liking. Set aside to rest while you plate up the rest of the dish. Serve the steaks with extra jus on the side.
