Pro Chef Reacts... To Gordon Ramsay's CHRISTMAS Beef Wellington!

[@ChefJamesMakinson]

I hope you guys enjoy this video! If you make it let me know how it turned out!

[@varoneantonio633]

dont you think it s too bloody or/and not been solified?

[@ChefJamesMakinson]

@@varoneantonio633 I prefer my steak medium to medium rare if you want it more well done then you just have to cook it longer

[@varoneantonio633]

@@ChefJamesMakinson ok but i was saying that in the video of gordom ramsey the preparation was floppy ( sorry for my bad english)

[@hannahpumpkins4359]

I used to live in the Florida Keys, and being on an island, we would have huge amounts of sushi of every kind you can imagine, scallops, pink shrimp, red shrimp, lobster, many kinds of cooked fish, a salad with hearts of palm, tropical fruits, plenty of rum, and usually breadfruit... Mmmm! I miss that!

[@southwest7977]

I’ve had Wellington but I don’t get the love. Maybe it’s my Neanderthal taste buds

[@farmalltomf]

I made this as Gordon explained it. I was amazed at how good it turned out. However, I should note that it took me half the day, as I was painstakingly careful throughout the whole process. While not picture perfect as in the video, it was VERY respectable for a first time. Nice narration of tips throughout! Well done James!

[@ChefJamesMakinson]

Thank you! I'm sure it did, it is a long process

[@marcpower4167]

That was like the one time I made it for my parents (which I alluded to in my other comment), I also made won ton soup (from scratch) and a cheesecake. I was in the kitchen all day, it was exhausting.

[@Dazzwidd]

You do it again and it'll be faster hehe

[@paulpach]

As Ramsy demonstrates in his video, you needed about 6 shots of espresso, an urgency to go to the bathroom, and a few lines of cocaine before you started cooking.

[@farmalltomf]

@@paulpach isn't that how all great chefs operate?!?!?! 😎😁

[@Hushoo]

Absolutely love these videos, they’re like the exact opposite of pretentious. Super humble, insightful, a grade-a example of what a react channel should be.

[@ChefJamesMakinson]

Glad you like them! Thank you!

[@sargehawk64]

Hey James love the videos! I worked at Hell's Kitchen in Las Vegas for three years and have prepared and cooked literally tens of thousands of Wellingtons as well as other stuff. For the duxelle we cooked it in red and white wine then blended it smooth and cooked off the extra moisture, it gives the duxelle so much flavor! It took like 12 hours to make. Also the red wine demi glace we made for the welly was the best! It took 3 days to make but absolutely worth it! Easily the best demi I've ever had by far. Keep it up with the videos I love the breakdowns they're very informative

[@ChefJamesMakinson]

Thank you so much! that does sounds very nice! haha yeah it can take a long time to make this!

[@sargehawk64]

@@80Jay71 so we would start with the beef stock by roasting bones and adding a little tomato paste and mire poix. Then after that is done we would take red wine with a little sugar and reduce until syrup and add it to the reducing stock. Then all of it gets reduced down until its thick and syrupy. You'll know you made it right when its black and shiny. SUPER delicious!

[@kfl611]

Now you made me hungry - I mean HANGRY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! gggggggggggrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

[@playbassken]

We really enjoyed ours earlier this year when we ate at Gordon Ramsay's Pub & Grill in Ceasars Palace. It was fantastic!

[@Yyz1971]

@@sargehawk64 Good stuff! When I was an apprentice on Jekyll Island, we had a jacketed steam kettle at our disposal. We would let it cook almost 24 hours until it looked like molasses!

[@BlazePentsky]

My grandfather was born in France, grandmother Switzerland, and my dad was born in Germany. I have no clue where the origins of this recipe came from at all haha, but I love what we do in my family. We do a *pork* wellington! A nice pork tenderloin trimmed, slits cut into the meat to poke garlic pieces deep into the meat (we cut them into little slivs), and seasoned. After half-cooking, we used a pie crust to roll the tenderloin in. Nowadays, I modified the recipe and use procuitto to protect the dough from getting soggy from the pork's juices, and I converted to using garlic powder more often since my mom's place usually doesn't have bulbs. (I make it at her house during the holidays). It comes out and tastes absolutely phenominal to me. The pie crust is well... crusty, while also having a bit of buttery sweetness to it, while the salty procuitto pairs so well with the pork. It literally sends me to heaven every time I make it. We pair it with mashed potatoes and a homemade salad with a homeade mix of dijon mustard, olive oil, and vinegar for dressing. I literally cannot find a meal that makes me happier than this. Family history, familiar taste, and your taste buds just go crazy!

[@steffenpanning2776]

This is also my idea for the first try. Cheaper meat for practice :)

[@RobRuckus65]

My favorite part about this video is seeing the look in your eyes and the slight emotional changes when you see Chef Ramsey do something that you really agree with. Im not a professional chef but I have done catering and I have cooked competitively mostly smoked/grilled foods and I get it you see someone do it the right way and you feel this happiness/ satisfaction.

[@deaconmikepray9793]

We usually host Thanksgiving here in the US. Turkey is the protein of choice. I usually brine them in a simple solution of water, salt and brown sugar the night before I cook them. I have also added a sage based seasoning in the past. For cooking, an herbed butter under the skin does the trick and is cooked to 165 Fahrenheit. Christmas is usually a hodgepodge of pot luck. Works out ok but ends up with everyone bringing something of their own design. This looks delicious and I will need to do this for the immediate family!

[@ChefJamesMakinson]

😉

[@bryanabbott6169]

My grandmother used to host large Christmas dinners with our extended family (cousins, family friends, etc.). We usually had a large turkey (or two depending on the size, and how many are able to visit), a large ham (with candied cherries pinned in the centre of the the pineapple slices with toothpicks, she used the pineapple juice to baste it), and sometimes a beef roast. Having a wider selection of meat made it easier, considering we had a lot of people over with differing tastes in food, and it allowed for mix and matching.

[@sine-nomine]

One of the most common Christmas Eve menus in Denmark is pork loin roast (with the fatty side roasted into pork rind) and roast duck. Gravy, diced red cabbage and potatoes three ways - peeled and boiled, peeled and caramelized in sugar on a frying pan and finally regular store bought chips/crisps (not french fries) used to scoop up gravy.

[@ChefJamesMakinson]

Sounds very good!

[@timothy4664]

I made beef wellington last weekend for my anniversary. It's my wife's favorite dish. My college roomate lives near a mushroom farm in Connecticut. He is trained as well and picked up fresh mushrooms for me. The duxelles was amazing. Totally made the dish so much better.

[@KallMeKG]

Where in CT is this mushroom farm? I’m in central CT and looking to make this for the first time and would love some fresh mushrooms.

[@FocD]

A typical Swedish Christmas dinner for me anyway is a combination of the following: pickled herring of different kinds, egg halves with shrimp salad on top, "pickled" salmon, Christmas ham, meatballs, sausages, potatoes, ribs, beetroot salad and more. Then after dinner typically would be Christmas porridge with cinnamon and milk.

[@SwiddyDiddy]

I made this for Christmas for my family 4 years ago for the first time. Following this exact video to a T. It was phenomenal, and my family loved it so much I’ve made it every year since on Christmas, and on my mothers birthday. I’ll be making it again this Sunday! My one suggestion to anyone in the US who is going to try to make this, his baking instructions are in Celsius! It didn’t even cross my mind when I first made it and I had to put it back in the oven multiple times before I figured it out. Look up the conversions for Celsius to Fahrenheit and use that instead. Would highly recommend!

[@221b-l3t]

Hehehe. Always do a reality check, convert it to the system you are familiar with and think for a second if that sounds plausible. Fahrenheit on US recipes got me once or twice but usually it's way too hot and you figure it out since most EU ovens go to max 250C and 90% of stuff is baked at 180-220C.

[@GrumpyOldFart2]

Lol. THANK you! I was thinking, 200°? That seems a bit low.

[@marksimpson2321]

I have never eaten or made Beef Wellington but this commentary adds to Ramsey's clip in a respectful, constructive, friendly and helpful way. Thank you! Happy Holidays!

[@ChefJamesMakinson]

Happy new year!

[@Annomander]

We here in the Netherlands like to do something called gourmetten with the family, which is a bit like raclette. Everybody gets a little pan and there is a heating element in the center of the table and people can put whatever they want to eat in their little pan and then cook it themselves.

[@ChefJamesMakinson]

sounds very tasty!

[@rhysjackson2597]

That reminds me of the Bulgarian sach, not a Christmas dish but whatever meats and veg are fresh on the day and served tableside sizzling. It's a beauty as yours sounds.

[@TrappedinSLC]

Oh! I forgot we've done raclette for Christmas dinner, too. My fiancé grew up visiting Switzerland in the winter so raclette is a required element sometime once it gets cold. :)

[@WaechterDerNacht]

Swiss guy here: Raclette is great all year round ;-)

[@Ztormrageheero]

Japan do that with bits of beef too. Forget the name, but it is very fun at restaurants

[@xi0]

I've made wellington using this recipe every year for Christmas for some time now. The first few times it was a bit rough but it's a bit less daunting as you get more experience each year. The wrapping is definitely the most headache-inducing part. Everything else is kind of a cakewalk by comparison. In any case the flavors are just incredible and definitely worth the labor, even if you're not a pro and it's far from perfect.

[@ieltswithben]

I'm British living in Chile. I have made this several times for my Chilean wife's friends and family and everyone has loved it. They appreciate good meat in South America.

[@HoMiNGHeaD]

A close friend of mine made beef wellington last christmas, it looked very close to ramsay's, and it tasted impeccably. absolute treat. he is a home cook btw. and done it for the first time aswell.

[@aragmarverilian8238]

Uncle Gordon knows his stuff :3 I'd love to see a traditional Spanish Christmas dish btw!

[@ChefJamesMakinson]

they have a lot for Christmas here!

[@mightymax2984]

@@ChefJamesMakinson fes una bona escudella home!

[@MrLivebynight]

@@ChefJamesMakinson You can say that again... Kind of glad we're doing christmas as my place this year, as the sheer amount of shellfish at my in-laws can be a bit much!

[@leeprice133]

@@MrLivebynight my in-laws are also Spanish (Galicia) and I absolutely agree with you there! I love shellfish, but I don't think I've ever seen so many cooked mussels in one place as when I visit 😂

[@HeronCoyote1234]

8:47. That’s how I wrap my chicken breasts and salmon fillets, then putting several in a freezer bag, rolling out the air, and freezing them! Cool! I’ve never seen it done before!

[@trailguy]

I made a wellington last summer with an old friend. We both love our beef R-MR, so I watched it closely. It was difficult because the pastry insulated the meat and caused it to take longer than the expected cooking time, just to get to 105, then it got to 130 very quickly, I didn’t expect that, even though it makes sense in hindsight. I’ve watched several videos on Wellington making and this has never been addressed.

[@s2k442]

Yep same here. If I had followed the temp and baking time it would have been rare. Maybe mine was thicker but I used a thermometer and it came out perfect

[@SpringN282]

2 great chefs in 1 video! Couldn’t ask for anything better! Keep up the great content!

[@ChefJamesMakinson]

thank you!

[@thejunglekitchen]

I love this. I almost died laughing about your English Mustard story- My husband (who is from the US) did basically the same thing the first time we went to see my family in the UK. Hysterical. Great cling film tips (from you, not from Gordon) and thank you so much for mentioning the temperature of the room when it comes to the pastry! As someone who currently lives in the tropics, I cannot tell you how frustrated I get by recipes that include the phrase "leave at room temperature"! After many disasters- I usually refrigerate everything including my cutting board and utensils, before working with any dough, especially puff pastry.

[@ChefJamesMakinson]

I know what you mean, here in the summer it can be hard to make a meringue pie. butter eggs and dairy are so much easier to work with in the north! haha 😂

[@angelachouinard4581]

Various relatives on mom's side retired to Florida and suddenly couldn't make piecrust much less puff pastry. I laughed, but I showed them. Dad's side is French. Granma taught me about keeping things cold.

[@afelias]

For Christmas we tend to order lechon (baboy). I dunno if it's common in the Philippines, but in the part of Davao that my dad's from lechon tends to be the go-to celebration center dish. Our family orders pritchon (some servings of lechon with a mini-pita-wrap and sauces) and combines it with stuff. Another Filipino celebration food is pasta or noodles (especially for birthdays and New Year) because long noodles, long life.

[@byteme9718]

It's bad news being a pig in the Philippines, especially during celebrations.

[@DrFrige]

Been about a week since I found your videos and I keep going from one to another to another. I worked in the restaurant industry and I have to say you are VERY fair when you critique and your "tips" you interject are spot on as well. Keep up the great work!

[@ChefJamesMakinson]

Thank you so much!

[@TheThadel]

I really enjoy your videos. I love to see different views and aspects to cooking from professionals and amateurs alike. You have a very calm, critical but yet empathetic approach which I like. In Finland, where I'm from, people enjoy Christmas Ham traditionally coated with mustard and cloves. It is served with a sauce made with pork fat from the ham and with side of many traditional sweet casseroles made from rutabaga, carrots, potatoes and nowadays sometimes sweet potatoes. Cold smoked fish and Grav-fish (salmon or types of white fish) are also served.

[@ChefJamesMakinson]

Thank you! I would love to visit Finland one day!

[@cygnuspmc]

we had a Beef Wellington for New Years - my wife killed it - we skipped the mustard brush, used a mix of duck and pork livers and truffle mousse - kind of like a rillette, instead of mushrooms (which she normally uses), adjusting the salt to account for the prosciutto and mousse saltiness - she also went the extra mile to make sure everything was cool going into the oven to ensure the bottom didn't get soggy. It came out beautiful with a cool red center, just between medium rare and rare. We also had a langoustine macaroni and cheese and for veg it was young asparagus. For those at the table that didn't like the mousse flavor, we did simple bacon wrapped filets with another smaller tenderloin. 2018 Sangiovese to pair. Lovely meal, and the langoustine mac and cheese is absolutely killer with anyone that doesn't eat red meat. Recommend trying it out if you haven't already.

[@keithspencer4554]

This is my go-to Beef Wellington recipe. I’ve done this 3 or 4 times now and one was a less good (duxelle too wet) and it’s awesome. A real crowd pleaser. I’m no pro but when I’ve looked at other versions they’ve never worked as well. I’ve got good consistency out of this one. I do it at Christmas all the time now and it’s great because I can prepare it the night before. For an amateur like me this is easily, in my view, the best beef Wellington recipe out there. Thanks for the video and some of the little tips.

[@catarina7]

Been living with my husband in Norway for 2 years now. This will be my third Christmas here. We typically have pinnekjøtt or ribbe. Pinnekjøtt (stick meat) is lamb ribs. At first I wasn't sold on the flavor of this because of it being either smoked or brined, but it just has one of those flavors that is memorable around this time of year. Ribbe which is basically just pork belly with all of the fat intact. That is usually cooked in the oven atop something, fat side up so that the juices run down and it becomes crispy. It reminded me of porcetta but Norwegians here typically don't use a lot of seasonings. Salt and pepper is used on the fat.

[@joshrathbun1616]

I love how detailed you are and really try to help teach the community rather than just react.

[@dantemorley-montes7752]

Our family is getting sick of Turkey for Thanksgiving. My dad and I made two beef wellingtons (because we had a long cut) this year instead. The recipe came out really good. There were some minor faults though. I seared the beef too long which made the wellington more well done than I would have liked. Another mistake was baking both wellingtons together (at different sizes) which meant the smaller one had little to no rareness in the middle (although still tender!) while the bigger one had a better medium to medium rare finish. We also changed the mushroom spread by going more for a shallot, garlic and thyme flavor over a chestnut mixture. My dad made two sauces, a peppercorn and mushroom gravy. The peppercorn sauce was a great addition to the wellington. It was a bit scary making for a first time but it is amazing dish that I would feel much more comfortable making again. I highly recommend this recipe.

[@ChefJamesMakinson]

Thank you for explaining! :)

[@cortneywonder639]

I followed the recipe last year for a dinner party with friends. I'm no chef and this was the first time I ever made it. Mine took longer to bake because my cut of beef was about twice as large as the one shown in the video, so we ate a little later than I would have liked. But the beef wellington turn out great and everyone really enjoyed it. I'm going to try to make it again, but this time using a similar size cut of tenderloin.

[@timnoskill]

I love the childlike joy on your face as you react to the video. Your passion for cooking is clear in your appreciation for Gordon’s skill

[@ilovemangobingsu]

Gordon made a cooking demo of Wellington in Master Chef US before but I think he used Dijon mustard there. Gordon's Wellington is actually popular because it's one of his best recipes. But here in the Philippines, we usually prepare ham or hamon de bola and we pair it with cheese or keso de bola. Another popular dish that we serve during christmas dinner is Lechon or roasted pig. It's refreshing to watch something like this. Something for the holidays. Thanks for the informative reaction video. I enjoyed watching it. 🥰

[@TheCurler66]

Classic at home in my family in Switzerland is the Fondue Chinoise No cheese for once but various meats in a delicious vegetable soup that my mom makes herself Thats how it was for as long as I can remember at December 24th with my grandparents

[@devilpudding8613]

I loved that Video! Since my grandmas passing we didnt go to her house for christmas dinners anymore, and as i started to love cooking at home i got into my grannys shoes and invited my family for dinner. This year it will be the 3rd year i am making this recipe (with some changes i prefered haha) and it turned out to be amazing! I loved the chestnuts and i used chanterelles and kräuterseitlinge (whats that in english, i dont know) as they are availeable around this time in germany

[@ChefJamesMakinson]

I'm sorry for your loss, I lost my father last year. They are King trumpet mushrooms! :)

[@Richard482]

I'm sure your grandma would be proud.

[@Belnick6666]

Here we have "Christmas Table" which vary from home to home, but most people have "Christmas ham", prince sausage, meatballs and pickled herring in different flavors, like onion, mustard and matjes. Boiled eggs cut in half is also very common and ofc Christmas bread, which vary from home to home. Mustards is also essential, both coarse mustard and normal. In our house we also have ribs, but it is essentially a big smörgåsbord where we pick what we want to eat

[@lobsterfork]

I have followed this recipe three times. Each time I rewatch gordons video to remember what to do. I just realized while watching this review that he wraps everything separately from the puff pastry, then wraps it again with the pastry. I was doing all of this in 1 step.

[@pilates68]

My late mother always cooked roast goose . Absolutely amazing Christmas dinner !!! She served counter point to the thanksgiving meal with apple sauce replacing cranberry and long grain and wild rice replacing mashed potatoes. Additionally sliced apple was added to the stuffing which was not added at thanksgiving. She would save empty coffee cans (they were metal back then) months in advance for the goose fat ( she did two at a time) . Not as much meat yields as turkey so two geese were necessary for the number of guests. The dark meat of water fowl marries so well with the sweetness of apple. Her Irish family recipe also called for a unique rye bread stuffing with sausage and sage and all the rest, but she added apple at Christmas. Roast goose with apple sauce and roast turkey with cranberry sauce. Sublime deliciousness !!! Amazing memories!!!

[@anthonybeervor2265]

We eat the dish "pinnekjøtt" for Christmas eve. It's perhaps the second most common Christmas dish in Norway, behind pork ribs. It consists of salt-cured mutton ribs, steamed using potatoes at the bottom (traditionally they used wooden sticks). It is served with a mash made of rutabagas. The salt cure shrinks the meat so it has an extremely intense flavor. The leftovers are perfect to make into a shepherd's pie or a soup.

[@ChefJamesMakinson]

Im sure it is very flavorful!

[@alexanderpurkis3508]

Just read an article about how the Grandiosa pizza isn't the most common Christmas food in Norway. My world is shattered.

[@anthonybeervor2265]

@@alexanderpurkis3508 Actually that is an urban legend that originated in the early 1990s due to a misquote by a journalist that may or may not have been intentional.

[@duxd1452]

We always eat hachée during Christmas dinners, a Dutch beef and onion stew, served with potatoes and red cabbage. It's a typical Dutch dish, although it's not usually associated with Christmas. That's just a family tradition commemorating our grandmother who used to make it for us during special occasions.

[@ChefJamesMakinson]

Interesting!

[@jonathanbowen3640]

I had Ramseys beef wellington last weekend at one of his restaurants. It's good. A lot lighter and softer than expected. As expected the beef was perfectly cooked. Nice mushroom flavour and the Jus was great. Overall very nice. Like high end comfort food. Recommended. It did lack pepper however I did notice that.

[@Breetai_SDF-1]

Christmas lunch spread for me and my family is usually cold cuts (turkey ham chicken & pork), seafood (prawns, Moreton bay bugs etc), pineapple fried rice, beef BBQ sausages, rissoles, potato salad. And pavlova, lemon meringue pie, chocolate mousse, Christmas pudding for dessert. Christmas here in Australia is in the summer.

[@H4nsWurst666]

I made this for last years christmas with some pommes duchesse, root vegetables and a nice sauce. It was really good and everybody loved it! It may be a little challenging but if you stick to the recipe you, will do fine.

[@gennarojrdinapoli3399]

We in Naples are used to having a fish dinner on 24 December in which pilastri are octopus salad, vermicelli with clams, cauliflower 'reinforcement' salad, fried cod and fried capitone. For Christmas lunch, on the other hand, we prepare a meat broth, at my house it has always been a mixture of chicken and beef, with which to prepare a bitter herb soup with lard: borage, chicory and escarole. Less traditional is the alternative for 'the children': tortellini in broth, which has little to do with Naples. The boiled meat is then served with a side of boiled escarole and seasoned with garlic, oil, sultanas and pine nuts. Plus the cauliflower-based reinforcement salad, which will be repeated until New Year's Eve.

[@benf6822]

We're a meat free household but I take these classic recipes and adjust them so that they're suitable. For something like this I would make a lentil roast and hit it with beetroot to get that irony flavour but all the other steps can be followed pretty much spot on.

[@SolsticioHardcore]

we usually make some kind of turkey breast and "carne mechada" that is a braised meat dish from chile with mushroom white sauce, potatoes and lots of different salads this year my mom made roasted pork ribs or "costillar" as we call it in chile and it was so soft that it melted in your mouth and the bones came out clean

[@_bats_]

Last year I watched this exact video and seriously considered doing it for my Christmas dinner with friends, but was honestly a bit intimidated by it so decided not to go for the attempt. Instead, I roasted a leg of lamb with garlic and rosemary (and made a delicious lamb gravy from the drippings), served with herby twice-roasted potatoes (actually following a Jamie Oliver recipe that turned out extremely well), a decadent baked mac-and-cheese with gruyere, vintage white cheddar, and gouda, and a nice salad. This was the first-ever Christmas dinner for my friends and I think it was a success!

[@craig8197]

I say give it a shot. Beef Wellington doesn't have to be perfect. Tenderloin is very forgiving and store bought puff pastry is still very good. The flavors are amazing. I've made it a half dozen times. Even the less awesome ones still tasted amazing.

[@_bats_]

@@craig8197 that's encouraging, thanks!

[@NosyHausfrau]

Great video! I make this every year for my son's birthday, Dec 26th and its a family favorite. I use dijon and only 2 chestnuts. I also use very little pepper for the searing phase. I have been served overly peppered cuts of meat and it really ruins it for me. Thyme makes the duxelles for me. Wider plastic wrap is a must too. I don't use the crepe either. If the Prosciutto is tight enough the seal holds. I am so glad it wasn't just me with the metal spoon scraping the nonstick pan.

[@amanacatandhisdog8836]

He really did a great job chef Ramsey and you did a great job reacting and commenting.

[@Gawanji]

This year is the second time I made this Gordon version of Beef Wellington - I didn’t include the chestnuts but it still came out incredible! 2.25lb beef Wellington coming on around $95 for everything - took 2 young men (my son and his friend - since I’m vegan) to polish it off! lol! I love making this and seeing those who eat it just go nuts over it!

[@oldcat7]

The past few years for Christmas I've made a sausage and apple stuffing. Extremely easy and one hundred times better than any boxed stuffing you can find.

[@catherinedavidson7145]

We usually have a capon, with spiced red cabbage, Brussels sprouts, roast parsnips (Delia Smith has a lovely recipe in her "Christmas" book), plus roast potatoes and stuffing. The debate this year is whether to have profiteroles or sticky toffee pudding. Still struggling to find a delicious main course for my vegetarian. I've tried so many things...

[@andyfreeman7057]

I've been told to preheat the baking tray before baking the Wellington, that way you don't get a soggy bottom. It still looked amazing though

[@R0bV3r]

I'm no chef, but made BWs multiple times. Getting the bottom right is the most difficult part of the whole process. This is a great tip for getting it right!

[@miguel_leal]

Hey! Loved the video! I'm a pro Cater and I serve Wellingtons with a bit of a Portuguese twist. Anyway, to simplify things I implemented right from the beginning the sous vide method for almost everything, since its a waste of staff time to be worried about cooking temps and meat points in a services were are sooooo many things to do and prepare... for anyone who likes to cook at home and don't want to be concerned about the meat points, I recommend trying a sous vide stick. Its really easy, just do everything as Chef Gordon R. said but after searing the meat, stick it in a bag and sous vide it for a couple of hours, the final results are always amazing since the meat gets cooked evenly all the way through. For the final bake, 220ºC until golden and you just need to make sure that the inside is warm ~40ºC.

[@PaddyJoeCooking]

My mouth is watering, excellent reaction once again Chef!!!!

[@duncandisorderly822]

I am not an experienced chef - just someone willing to experiment and try different recipes. I cooked a Beef Wellington for Christmas Dinner last year following this Gordon Ramsay KZbin video. The only difference being I left out the chestnuts, as I couldn’t get them. That said, I was amazed at how well the Beef Wellington turned out - it was the best and most memorable meal I have had over the last 12 months. This year I am visiting my 85 year old Dad for Christmas, as otherwise it will be his first on his own. I am again planning to cook a Beef Wellington following this recipe - I even have the chestnuts this year. If it’s half as good as last year I will be pleased.

[@ChefJamesMakinson]

I hope you guys have a Merry Christmas!

[@Nirahfell]

It's become a tradition in my family to have a slight variation (using wild mushrooms and no chestnuts) of this recipe for Christmas Eve dinner. My brother makes it and we usually have a lot more than needed for four people, but not much makes it to the next day 😁 (it also tastes lovely cold the next day, btw)

[@JohnSmith-wh2ob]

My family always does thanksgiving with a turkey ranging anywhere from 30-37 pound every year and we only have 5-6 people never hurts to make more than needed 😂

[@anniebeez]

I made this a couple years ago and it came out brilliantly I also pared it with the red wine demi glace, which personally I did not enjoy but my girlfriend certainly did haha. I don't really like wine so not a surprise. My only gripe is how expensive beef is currently. Also my biggest tip to make it is holy crap make sure your duxelle has cooked out all of it's moisture it is COMPLETELY pivotal to the success of the dish. You can always tell when the duxelle is done cooking because the sound of it in the pan will change! Instead of sounding like it is boiling it will start to sound like it is frying once you hear that sound personally I cook it for another minute it adds a nice flavor and take it off and lay it flat.

[@qwerfa]

I made the recipe a couple of years ago, and it turned really well. The impression I got of it was that it wasn't actually that hard to get good results as long as you're preparing it with care. Also, both you and Ramsay emphasized it : Cook the moisture out of the duxelle. I was worried mine would be too dry and I ended up making the inside of the puff pastry a bit soggy by not cooking the duxelle long enough. This being said, I also prepared it the night before and it was still delicious, so It's actually a good recipe in my opinion if you don't want to cook too much on Christmas day, as the only thing you really need to do is put it in the oven. As for our traditional Christmas dinner, my father's side of the family is very much "turkey or bust", but on my mother's side we tend to vary a bit. Common ones include a empanadas with lots of small side dishes, Ham, veal blanquette, or a rack of lamb.

[@ChefJamesMakinson]

Yeah it can make it very soggy if you don't cook the moisture out of a mushrooms. And you're right if you do all the prep work which is the majority of it and the only thing you have to do in the next day is to put it in the oven.

[@SimoExMachina2]

In Finland some of the typical dishes for Christmas Eve include ham, often with a mustard dressing, casseroles made from potato, carrots or rutabaga, "rosolli" which is salad made from cubed potatoes, apples and beetroot, forrest mushroom salad in smetama (my grandmother's recipe is pure heaven on a plate), often fish in various forms (smoked salmon, pickled herring, lutefisk) and salad as a starter. Rice porridge with couple of almonds to bring good luck to those whose portion has it, is the traditional lunch for Christmas Eve and the more fabulous banquet is the main focus as the dinner.

[@VOICEFORFREEDOM1776]

I love how he said “it’s a Chefy thing” I was a cook and I totally get what he meant 😂

[@Caribbeanlifebill]

James, I have recently discovered your KZbin videos. You’re doing a great job, please keep it up. To answer your question, for the last four years, I have cook for my close friends for Christmas. It’s not your traditional Christmas meal, I pick a country each year and research what would be their common meal. This year was Mexico, last year was Russia and the year before that was Italy. It’s fun for everyone, we have a great time.

[@ChefJamesMakinson]

Thank you so much! Sounds like you move a lot! haha

[@robincoope5352]

I've made both Ramsay's version and the Julia Child Brioche version. The latter makes a harder crust and is more like cutting into a football. Both were successful but I'd definitely make the Ramsay version again as it came out extremely well. (I also made it after I did the Child version so I had practice). If you do this at home and get even close to what Ramsay makes in the video, your guests will think you are a home cooking god. It was good to re-watch the video and note that Ramsay does properly emphasize probably the key point for home cooks; getting the duxelles cooked down dry enough. The first time you do this it's a bit of a surprise because the water seems to keep coming and coming, but it eventually dries down if you're patient. That and not overcooking the beef are probably the two most important things in this recipe. NB I made the sauce from Mastering the Art of French Cooking, for both the Child and Ramsay versions, which is great.

[@ChefJamesMakinson]

Cutting into a football! 😂

[@robincoope5352]

@@ChefJamesMakinson You can see at 14:40 where the intricately decorated crust, which I'm assuming is brioche there, has delaminated from the prosciutto layer across the top. I saw that as well, it's almost like the brioche is air sealed so expands like a balloon with the heat.

[@kuantize]

For those of us in Spain. Be careful if you use jamón serrano or jamón de pais. It is much more saltier than parma ham so you will need to adjust your seasoning of the meat and duxelle accordingly otherwise everything will have too much salt.

[@44lgarden]

We don't have turkey anymore for Christmas but have a maple glazed spiral ham with mashed potatoes and Brussel sprouts for Christmas but being Canadian with a French Canadian background we have Tourtiere, Scallop potatoes au gratin and Maple baked beans for Christmas Eve. Family just loves this every year. The beef Wellington does look great though so may look to make that for New Year's day

[@kirst4666]

I’d love to cook this when I get the chance. When I was younger my Mum would cook a ham and tongue for cold cuts and a turkey, capon or goose on Christmas Day depending on the numbers coming. I really miss her home pressed tongue, well worth the time cooking; peeling and pressing. Her ham took a few days to cook too but was sublime. Grandma made our Christmas pudding months ahead and baked a silver sixpence in it. Dad would whip up a sweet white sauce to go with it as well as home made brandy butter. There’d be an iced fruit cake made in October to be fed over a few weeks, eaten with cheese. Paper chains for decorating the house too. Nowadays I only cook for a few and cater for food intolerances and vegetarians. It’s a challenge I love. But they don’t want fruit cake and the pudding is bought 😟🙄 This year it’s a turkey crown, a nut roast and a lot of veggies. Perhaps I’ll get to do a beef wellington next year 😉

[@Bron32]

In Australia it is popular to have prawns as part of the Christmas meal. I’m not sure about other families but ours would normally have the lunch on Christmas Day as the main ‘Christmas meal’. Because Christmas is in the summer in Aus it can get extremely hot, and so often prawns, and ham and some other cold meats would be served with maybe a smaller roast lamb, or maybe chicken or beef. Every family is different though

[@gabrielcarrasco9078]

Yeah. We typically have a gumbo, egg rolls. We're Vietnamese and Creole.

[@MidoriMushrooms]

tradition in my family is that my mother makes devilled eggs (she's taught me how to do it as well so sometimes I do it or I help her), and the morning-of, my grandmother and I slice sharp cheddar while my mother peels potatoes or 2 of us peel potatoes and 1 person slices sharp cheddar, and we make scalloped potatoes with alternating potato and cheese slice layers. We also typically just order shrimp because nobody knows how to cook seafood and we're afraid of poisoning the guests. Sometimes people bring cookies they baked but usually we also order cheesecake. Whether or not we eat ham is a toss-up, depends on how expensive it is that year and who's coming. It hasn't been worth it since my grandpappy passed away... Anyway aside from devilled eggs and potatoes I guess we mostly just buy food or we'll order raw vegetables and french onion dip because everyone likes that haha.

[@leonwlodarczyk2328]

Great video as always James! I live in the UK, but my family is Polish, so we have our christmas meal on christmas eve - Traditionally it's supposed to consists of 12 different meatless dishes, but since there's only 4 of us at the dinner table we gave up on the idea and we stick to 4 main dishes :D We normally have beetroot borscht with cabbage and mushroom filled dumplings, followed by square-shaped pasta with a poppy seed, honey and raisin sort of paste, then a sour rye soup, and finally a breaded, fried fish which traditionally is supposed to be carp, but it's quite hard to get for us so we usually substitute it for cod :)

[@ChefJamesMakinson]

Thank you very much! We tend to have it here in Spain on Christmas Day in the US it was more Christmas Eve and maybe Christmas day as well. But there is always a lot of food to eat! :)

[@axiuzz7351]

Even the dog was disappointed when Gordon used a metal spoon on the non-stick tray

[@johnwertz7564]

Our family always makes Italian for Christmas, after Thanksgiving we get tired of turkey and ham. Ricotta stuffed shells, fried mushrooms, and stuffed bacon wrapped jalapenos. Not traditional but always look forward to this meal :)

[@Texmechs]

We make this recipe every year for Christmas. I want to add that we have to special order this cut of meat. It's hard to find without going to a butcher. It's also very expensive. I also like to bake a little circle of puff pastry on its own and put it under the wellington before serving. Even a perfect wellington gets soggy in like 4 seconds flat so I like that little extra piece of pastry when plating.

[@chinozerus667]

We used to cook, but as we kept inviting more and more people we opted into the raclette approach. A table full of things to throw onto the grill and a mountain of raclette cheese. Everyone can create their own little meals, bring their own favourite ingredients and there's no time limit really. Usually the raclette grills (yes multiple) don't get put away until way into the first week of January. And if someone wants to cook something elaborate it's easily integrated. And of course a whole lot of red wine.

[@ChefJamesMakinson]

Wine makes it better! :)

[@AncientWandering]

This year was Grapefruit Chicken. Whole Chicken set overnight in a gallon Ziplock baggie with two cans of Steigl Grapefruit Radler, garlic, paprika, bay leaf and black pepper. Spatchcock and roast at 350 Fahrenheit. Reduce the marinade and drippings and use as a glaze and sauce. I usually use the Lemon Radler but couldn't find it this year. It was a great substitution.

[@JustTony72]

Ohhhh one of my favourites. Good mate and i decided to try it a couple years ago. Lost count of how many times we watched Ramsey videos before we found the courage to try it. A Indian and a Chinese decent spending hours making this. Truely a dish that brings people together. 😂

[@ChefJamesMakinson]

agreed! :)

[@MrRavi3883]

Hi James, I'm a Malaysian Indian and our family christmas meal (which we cater for 200++ pax each year) consists of Biryani Rice, Chicken Curry, Mutton Ghee Roast, Dalcha (with/without mutton bone marrow), Prawn sambal, my mum's famous deep-fried brinjal sambal, mix vege stir fry, 2 - 4 Roast Chickens/Turkeys, and an assortments of cakes, jellies and cookies. Yup it's quite a feast!! 🤣. Hope you have a happy holidays with your family, and I'm sure your beef wellington will turn out great! Cheers, Ravi

[@gandalf8216]

Julskinka (Ham that is breaded and seasoned with mustard), flatbread we call tunnbröd, a lot of gravlax on top of said flatbread, honey-glazed thick ribs and meatballs is what usually pick from a much larger svenskt julbord (Swedish Christmas buffet).

[@hideand-seekii2225]

I appreciate the explanations throughout the video. First time I tried to make Beef Wellington, long ago, it was a pile of dog dung. I made it again for just the second time yesterday and, thanks to your walk through of this video, I was able to make a good beef wellington, I would say it came at a near 90% match to the one in this video.

[@karieltheone]

Normally for Christmas I cook "pollo al champinion". I sear chicken breast in a cast iron skillet, then a put them in a dutch oven and cook them in heavy whipping cream with champinion mushrooms, small squares of cooked ham, garlic, and onion. Boil it for like an hour until the chicken is super tender. Serve it with a side of Noisette potatoes and spinach salad. For dessert i do what we call "Don Pedro" which is basically vanilla ice cream with a splash of scotch whiskey with Chantilly cream on top, to sprinkled with chopped nuts. And yes, I tried the Beef Wellington following Ramsey's video, it turn out great. That dish is one of those that looks super intimidating but if you prepare and plan for it is pretty easy.

[@liesalllies]

We don't have a tradition for Christmas dinner exactly, we just make a huge spread of complex dishes that would normally be too much work to make regularly. We do have a Christmas morning tradition though and that is walnut and oat pancakes with blueberry compote.

[@necrosiskoc9617]

Very nice video, we generally do Turkey for Thanksgiving, a roast for Christmas, and a ham for Easter. Live in Central Indiana, USA for locational context...

[@casaroli]

I made this recipe on my first and only Wellington. Unfortunately, the pastry got a little soggy underneath. But I got the meat to a nice medium rare. It’s been 6 years. I’ll try it again someday.

[@tomascaldr2078]

We usually have carp/schnittzel and wine sausage with potato salad. It is traditional czech food. And we also have mushroom stuffing

[@deerhunter7966]

TX resident here. For Thanksgiving, we make Turkey and ham (depending on guest count). For Christmas, either a prime rib or ham. New years, Carnitas or Al Pastor tacos. July 4th, traditional American burgers and hot dogs (homemade), or beef and chicken fajita tacos.

[@22darius22]

Southern California. For Thanksgiving we have Turkey and ham. I've started deep frying my turkey as it is a huge time saver. For Christmas we generally do a rib roast.

[@keithsanborn8508]

Love your footnotes. Ramsay's enthusiasm is infectious, but he sometimes leaves out certain details, or goes quickly and lightly over them. He's not giving it all away. And your comments help to clarify how to actually do this and what to watch out for. My mother used to make beef wellington for christmas eve with oyster stew. Her big blow-out of the year.

[@Switzerleando]

I've lived in several countries across Europe and I'm from Venezuela, so at X-mas time I usually cook a mix and match of traditional dishes from these places, my irish bf loves also Venezuelan christmas food so it's easy to please the crowd. Something that never can't be missing is Pan de Jamón (it's a pastry with ham filling and raisins/olives) and my bf cooks a ham, and if I have friends closed by we will gather to make hallacas (it's like a tamal with a wrapping of plantain leaves, very laborious), and depending on the mood we sometimes make: viennese goulash, coq au vin, onion soup, turkey or even just fondue, not all at the same time of course. Mind you for us x-mas time it's around two weeks of eating and eating every day.

[@hasumedic]

I followed this recipe (from the book) a few years ago. The meat turned out perfect in the middle section but a bit over on the ends. Definitely the most tricky part was the rolling to keep the duxelle evenly distributed! Nice touch showcasing catalan tiós ;)

[@ChefJamesMakinson]

I had to put something in there for Christmas! You're the first one to notice and mention it. 😉

[@FranciscoVelez31]

Puerto Rican here. Christmas here means roasted lechón, rice with pigeon peas (arroz con gandules), potato salad, pasteles (kind of a Puerto Rican tamal made with a green banana mezcla rather than corn), and morcilla (which here is traditionally made with rice and the pig’s blood, encased in the pig’s VERY WELL WASHED intestines. Absolutely delicious. To wash it down, coquito (Puerto Rican version of eggnog) and pitorro (Puerto Rican moonshine) No calorie counting during Christmas down here.

[@bencasey3150]

My family mix it up. For Xmas day Sometimes roast chicken, Turkey, lamb or beef. Prawn cocktail heads the starters every year. Boxing Day finger buffet.

[@SergioGalmeyerResende]

In Portugal we eat Boiled Codfish or Boiled Octopus (depending on the region) with boiled potatoes, carrots, boiled egg, boiled chickpeas, and cabbage, at Christmas Eve. In Christmas Day we usually eat Turkey, or Piglet. Wellington is also one of my favourites, Gordon make it look easier ;-) Did you know this was created by General Wellington's servant during the French invasion in Portugal (1807), because Wellington loved meat and want something different to eat ;-) ? Happy New Year to you Chef!

[@ChefJamesMakinson]

Happy New Year! its interesting about the Octopus, my girlfriend has some relatives in Galicia and they love their pulpo! haha yes, I knew when it was created. In celebration of the first Duke of Wellington's victory (Arthur Wellesley) at the Battle of Waterloo on June 18, 1815. but the French say it was invented by them and re-named my other English as well.

[@SergioGalmeyerResende]

@@ChefJamesMakinson Happy New Year for you and your family too. Galicia is very similar to Portugal, “Galego” is very similar to Portuguese, so we have some shared traditions as well, and Octupus is eaten usually more T the North of Portugal, near Galicia. Indeed I saw some French Wellington recipes, and they did it with spinach and without mustard. Different from the British version 😉 Cheers.

[@fredsmith5782]

Hey chef, coming from a immigrant family background like mine technically we didn’t do a Christmas dinner until my dad decided it was a good excuse to gather the whole family together. We had a combination of Chinese and western cuisine. Usually a roasted turkey, turkey soup, fried noodles, stir fry veggies, Chinese roast pork, just to name a few things.

[@ChefJamesMakinson]

Thank you for letting me know! :)

[@RS-zp1we]

I really appreciate your videos. I'm out of the kitchen for a while now, but watching your videos helps me relive the good moments. So far you are pretty unique in showing people how a chef actually thinks. To answer your question: my family loves to come together and all cook 1 or 2 dishes. It's a bit of a logistical nightmare but all the more fun. This year will be a herb-crusted rack of lamb and something else I haven't decided yet. Enjoy your holidays and keep up the good work.

[@ChefJamesMakinson]

Thank you very much! Happy holidays!

[@yura37]

we always get 2-3 turkeys during thanksgiving because the prices are so dirt cheap. while the thanksgiving turkey we do whole, with stuffing and brine and wine injection (basically the works), for christmas we do turkey but simpler. break it down, marinade for a day, and slow cook in the oven @ 200-250F until ~150F internal. They come out tasting like completely different foods and always delicious.

[@aidanbyrne8267]

My parents always make turkey for Christmas dinner, but new years day I go all out: Beef wellington with Potato dauphinoise and orange glazed heritage carrots. I look forward to new years day more than Christmas 😁

[@Divinegaming20]

I'm from Denmark. We have roast duck and pork roast with crackling every year, red cabbage, fried sugar potatoes, white boiled potatoes, gravy and crisps. Happy holidays.

[@angeliqueazul8670]

Thanks so much for the lovely video, Chef James! :) I do not eat meat, so I won't be cooking any for Christmas. This year will be the first time I am spending Christmas just with my boyfriend. I love all the Christmas vegetables and will definitely be making some roasted Brussel sprouts (very traditional veg here in Ireland where we're living) and red cabbage. My mum taught me how to make perfect red cabbage - using salt, vinegar, apples and sugar. Store-bought is always too much on the sweet side but if you make it from scratch and you season it well, you can achieve the perfect balance between acidic/sour and sweet. It is a lot of work but absolutely worth it!

[@angeliqueazul8670]

PS. Forgot to say that I am German, the red cabbage is a traditional German dish we eat during the winter - and especially for the holidays because it is so much work to make. It goes wonderfully with meat and gravy as well ;)

[@ChefJamesMakinson]

they eat a lot of veggies here too and sometimes fish for the holidays. Happy Holidays! :)

[@angeliqueazul8670]

@@ChefJamesMakinson Happy Holidays! :)

[@Sr19769p]

Hi James. Really enjoyed the vid, dude. Beef Wellington is one of my Death Row dishes but frankly it's a bit of a labour of love after a 70hr week in the kitchen and so much else going on at home at Xmas! We normally just have a roasted turkey w/homemade gravy, roasted veg (parsnips & carrots w/ground ginger & honey), potatoes roasted in goose fat, and...dare I say it...bread sauce infused with clove-studded onions and a scratch of nutmeg. We once had a French pastry chef. In the middle of service, he grabbed himself a quick ham roll for fuel and absolutely slathered it in Colman's English Mustard assuming it had the same potency as Dijon. We stood back waiting for the reaction, but the joke was on us; he went back 1min later and smeared even more on it: respect!

[@ChefJamesMakinson]

Thank you! Haha seriously!? I like spicy food but that caught me off guard and I've used English mustard before but I wasn't expecting it to be like Dijon, liquid. Haha 😂

[@Sr19769p]

@@ChefJamesMakinson Yeah, seriously! Keep up the great posts, man, and have a great day 👍.

[@vizmetro]

Great video! I’ve just started making beef wellington for the first time for Christmas Eve and your advice here is gold. Thank you 🙏🏼

[@ChefJamesMakinson]

Fantastic!

[@vizmetro]

Success! The beef went down a treat, the guests love it! Slightly soggy at the bottom and I would’ve preferred the meat slightly rarer so some room for improvement

[@ChefJamesMakinson]

@@vizmetro I'm very happy to hear that!!! :)

[@howardbartlett3026]

Back in the 1980's starting at 15 when I worked at a country club specializing in French cuisine we called this large tableside version Boeuf en Croute. Individual portions were called Beef Wellington. Regardless both were served with a true demi glace, choice of soups, starch ( I also made the Yorkshire Puddings, Dauphine and Duchess Potatoes), vegetables, salad (either House or tableside Caesar salad which I sometimes made a bunch of both), fresh baked bread, sorbets and choice of desserts. My French trained Chef Ken would also add Foie Gras pate to some for those that asked for it (though not me......EVER).

[@ChefJamesMakinson]

Very nice, sounds like they served excellent food!

[@howardbartlett3026]

@@ChefJamesMakinson Thank you I tried hard as we all did, especially my Chefs. At 17 my Head Chef went elsewhere and I went over to our only local 5 star Japanese restaurant. Before giving up on low pay and long hours to join Grumman Aerospace. They trained us from front to back to work on F-14 Tomcats. I still got to cook on an aircraft carrier on occasion when we were short handed (which was often especially during holidays).