Gordon Ramsay’s turkey wellington recipe coats turkey breast in his herb butter (tarragon, parsley and thyme), wraps it in a mushroom and bacon stuffing with Parma ham, then bakes it inside puff pastry at 200°C (400°F) for 30 to 35 minutes. It’s the Christmas alternative to beef wellington, using his turkey flavour profile from Sunday Lunch.
Ramsay doesn’t publish a turkey wellington in any of his cookbooks, but his turkey herb butter comes straight from Sunday Lunch, where he mixes parsley, tarragon and thyme into softened butter and pipes it under the skin. His mushroom and bacon stuffing comes from Great British Pub Food, where he pairs chestnut mushrooms with smoked bacon, onion and herbs as a Christmas turkey stuffing. Both techniques work perfectly inside a wellington.
The filling is what separates this from the chicken version on the site. Turkey breast is leaner and blander than chicken, so it needs more flavour going in. The herb butter melts into the meat during baking, while the smoky bacon in the stuffing adds richness that plain mushroom duxelle can’t match.
Gordon Ramsay Turkey Wellington
Course: MainCuisine: BritishDifficulty: Intermediate4
25
minutes35
minutes480
kcal1 hr
(plus chilling)Intermediate
Turkey breast rubbed with Ramsay’s herb butter and wrapped in mushroom-bacon stuffing, Parma ham and puff pastry, combining techniques from Sunday Lunch and Great British Pub Food.
Ingredients
- For the turkey:
2 turkey breast steaks, about 300g (10 oz) each
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tbsp olive oil
- For the herb butter:
30g (1 oz) butter, softened
1 tbsp fresh tarragon, chopped
1 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
1 tsp thyme leaves
- For the stuffing:
200g (7 oz) chestnut mushrooms, finely chopped
2 smoked bacon rashers, finely diced
½ onion, peeled and finely diced
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1 thyme sprig, leaves only
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- For the wrapping:
8 slices of Parma ham
2 sheets puff pastry
1 egg yolk, beaten
Directions
- Make the herb butter: Mix the softened butter with the tarragon, parsley and thyme. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside at room temperature.
- Sear the turkey: Season the breasts with salt and pepper. Heat olive oil in a pan over high heat and sear for 30 seconds on each side until golden but still raw inside. Set aside to cool, then spread the herb butter evenly over each breast.
- Make the stuffing: In the same pan, fry the diced bacon for 2 to 3 minutes until it starts to crisp. Add the onion and cook for 3 minutes until soft. Add the mushrooms, garlic and thyme leaves. Cook over high heat for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring often, until all the moisture has gone and you have a dry mixture. Season and spread on a plate to cool.
- Wrap in ham: Lay cling film on a work surface. Lay four slices of Parma ham overlapping slightly. Spread half the stuffing over the ham. Place one turkey breast on top. Roll tightly using the cling film into a neat parcel. Twist the ends. Repeat with the second breast. Chill for 20 minutes.
- Wrap in pastry: Brush each pastry sheet with egg yolk. Unwrap a turkey parcel and place seam-side down on the pastry. Fold the pastry around it, press to seal, trim excess. Turn seam-side down onto a lined baking sheet. Repeat with the second parcel. Egg wash all over. Chill for 15 minutes.
- Bake: Heat oven to 200°C (400°F/Gas 6). Score the pastry lightly and egg wash again. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes until deep golden and puffed. Rest for 10 minutes. Check the thickest part reads 75°C (165°F) on a probe thermometer. Slice each wellington in half to serve.
FAQs
Why use turkey breast steaks instead of a whole breast?
Because a whole turkey breast crown is too thick and uneven for pastry. Steaks are flat, uniform, and cook through evenly in 30 to 35 minutes. If you can only find a whole breast, slice it horizontally into two even steaks about 2cm thick. The flatter the meat, the less risk of raw turkey inside golden pastry.
What makes this different from chicken wellington?
The herb butter and the bacon in the stuffing. Ramsay’s turkey herb butter from Sunday Lunch uses tarragon, parsley and thyme, which gives the meat a flavour boost that plain chicken doesn’t need. The smoked bacon in the stuffing adds richness that plain mushroom duxelle can’t match, because turkey breast is leaner and blander than chicken.
What do you serve with turkey wellington at Christmas?
All the usual Christmas sides work. A cranberry sauce on the side cuts through the richness of the pastry, and a bread sauce adds that classic Christmas pairing. Roast potatoes, honey-glazed carrots and braised red cabbage all sit happily alongside.
Can you make turkey wellington ahead?
Assemble up to the pastry wrap, then chill for up to 8 hours before baking. This makes it perfect for Christmas Day because you can build everything the night before and just bake it while the starters are on. Egg wash just before it goes in the oven.
You can freeze it unbaked for up to a month. Bake from frozen at 200°C and add 10 to 15 minutes. Turkey is thicker than chicken so check the internal temperature carefully.
