Ingredients

Method

Preheat the oven to 230ºC / 450ºF. Dry the beef with kitchen paper. Rub the beef with the softened butter and brush with oil. Place in a tin and roast in the oven for 20 minutes, then remove from the oven. Cover the meat with foil and allow to sit for 10 minutes, so that it will be evenly pink all the way through.

Peel the cucumber and cut into matchstick size slivers. Plunge into boiling water, par boil for 1 minute then drain. Melt half the butter in a frying pan, saute the cucumber until tender and beginning to brown. Saute the red pepper in the remaining butter.

Transfer the roast from the roasting pan onto a platter, and place in the warm oven while preparing the sauce.

On top of the stove, brown the shallots in the roasting pan, then add the stock and Pernod, scraping the sediment from the tin. Stir all the pan juices into the liquid, bring to the boil and allow to reduce by a third.

Add the cream, then remove from the heat and add the butter, a few pieces at a time, whisking the sauce vigorously. Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper if necessary. Add the cucumber and red pepper to the sauce. Slice the beef thickly and serve with the sauce and new potatoes.