Beef Eye Fillet with Creamy Polenta, Red Wine Jus and Caramelised Pears

Ingredients

• 1 pack Silver Fern Farms Beef Eye Fillet Steaks

Caramelised pears:

• 2 small pears, peeled and cut into quarters
• 25g butter
• 2 tsp brown sugar
• 4 sprigs thyme

Red wine jus:

• 1 shallot, finely chopped
• ½ cup red wine
• 1 sprig rosemary
• 1 bay leaf
• ¾ cup beef stock
• 2 tsp butter
• Pinch sugar

Creamy polenta:

• 1½ cups milk
• 1¼ cups water
• ½ cup instant polenta
• 30g butter, chopped
• 40g grated parmesan

To serve:

• Rocket leaves and extra thyme sprigs

Method

To prepare the caramelised pears, put pear quarters into a small fry pan with the butter, brown sugar, 2 Tbsp water and thyme. Bring to a boil then cook over med-low heat for 10 - 15 mins until the pears are soft and caramelised. Add more water if necessary. Season to taste with salt and pepper then set aside.

To prepare the jus, heat oil in a small fry pan over med-low heat. Add shallots and cook for 3 - 4 mins until the shallots are golden. Add wine, rosemary and bay leaf and cook until reduced by half. Add the stock and continue to cook until reduced by half again then strain, discarding the shallots and herbs. Return jus to the pan and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and whisk in the butter, add sugar and season with salt and pepper to taste. Keep warm.

Meanwhile, remove Silver Fern Farms Beef Eye Fillet Steaks from the fridge and packaging and allow to bloom at room temperature for 10 mins. Coat with oil and season with salt and pepper.

Heat a BBQ or grill pan to med-high heat. Cook beef for 3 - 4 mins on each side for med-rare. Remove from heat, cover loosely, and allow to rest for 5 mins before carving across the grain.

While the beef is resting, prepare the polenta. Combine milk and water in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over med heat, then pour in the polenta in a slow, steady stream, stirring constantly. Reduce heat to med-low, use a balloon whisk to whisk polenta vigorously for 2 mins or until thickened. Stir in butter and parmesan and season to taste with salt and pepper.

To serve, place a large dollop of polenta onto each plate, top with sliced beef, roasted pears and a handful of rocket leaves. Drizzle jus over the beef. Garnish with extra thyme sprigs.