For best flavour, marinate the beef fillet overnight and allow it to come to room temperature before cooking.

Ingredients

• 750 ml bottle not-too-gutsy red wine
• 2 branches rosemary, leaves removed
• 1 heaped tsp ground or milled black pepper
• 4 cloves garlic, crushed but not peeled
• ½ onion, sliced
• 1 whole fillet beef
• 250 grams sliced pancetta, if wished

Method

1. Heat the wine, rosemary leaves, pepper, garlic and onion in a saucepan and simmer gently for 5 minutes. Cool completely and chill.
2. If not using pancetta, tie the beef fillet with string at intervals if wished, to keep it in shape while cooking. Place the marinade in a plastic bag or dish and add the beef, making sure it's completely submerged in the marinade. Cover; refrigerate overnight.
3. Remove from the marinade and pat dry. If using pancetta, wrap the slices around the beef and tie in place with string. Place beef on a roasting tray. Cover and stand at room temperature for 30 minutes, preferably one hour, until it comes to room temperature.
4. Fan roast towards the top of the oven at 200ºC (or 220ºC if not using the fan) for 20 minutes, then reduce to 160ºC fan roasting (180ºC without fan) for a further 20 minutes for medium-rare to medium. For rare meat, cook for 10 minutes at 160ºC (180ºC without fan).
5. Stand beef for 10 minutes before carving if serving hot, otherwise cover and serve sliced at room temperature.