Cooking Beef Filets

For my birthday, I cashed in a coupon for two filets at Dorfler's meats in Buffalo Grove. Last time I tried to cook beef filets on the stove they turned out with a thick, hard, black crust, with an interior that was too cold and bloody. When I reheated it, the entire thing was tough. What's a good way to cook these?

Thanks! My mom has my meat cookbook.

Ironically, "crisp on the outside, rare on the inside" sounds perfect in my book.

What results are you looking for?

Fillets shouldn't be tough and if they are it probably has more to do with their pedigree/grade than cooking methods. Both raw and well-done can be a little tough, though. Also, in my book, "fillets" is a little ambiguous. Are these whole tenderloins or fillet mignon-style steaks?

Try a slightly cooler pan this time and use a thermometer. If you pull them at 145-150 degrees and let them rest for about 10 minutes, you'll have them about as well-done as I'd recommend.

Bridgestone wrote:Ironically, "crisp on the outside, rare on the inside" sounds perfect in my book.

You're right, it does in mine too. Edited my post to be more definitive:
...turned out with a thick, hard, black crust, with an interior that was too cold and bloody. After reheating, it was tough.

I'm looking for what I think is medium-rare: the exterior two-thirds are nice and brown with a dark pink, hot, middle third; tender and juicy and no hard-as-nails brittle crust. I'm not sure what cuts they are, but I can look again (I don't think it's on the sticker but I'll recheck) and post my findings later.

Otherwise, I'll try the low & slow skillet method and leave the thermometer in.

I've created absolutely ethereal steaks using the Cook's Illustrated slow-roasting method, provided the steak is nice and thick. Although I prefer a cool, bloody interior, the medium-rare you get in this method is tender and beefy and the crust has always turned out perfectly for me. I suggest you try it, as outlined here.

Pie Lady wrote:What's a good way to cook these?

poached in olive oil

Alright, here's a picture of what I got, for free, at Dorfler's for my birthday. All it says on the package is "2 fillets" in pencil.


I'll post 'after' pictures soon.

Make sure you let the meat come up to room temperature before cooking. Cold meat won't cook evenly, and you will end up with a good crust but uncooked center.

Aha! That's another mistake I made last time. This time I set it out for at least an hour because the little buggers were still frozen, even after taking them out of the freezer on Saturday! Tim to turn down the fridge.

I heated the pan way high then seared them, turned down the heat and let them cook slowly for about 30 minutes. When they were about 140, I took them off heat and let them sit another 5 or 10. When I cut into them, the middle half was nice and red, the outer quarters were brown, and the whole thing was like buttah. I forgot to season it (I know, I know!) but it didn't even need anything. The potato was a little on the bland side, but it was a tasty side dish. I'll post my pictures when I get home. I can't believe they gave such high-quality stuff away for free. I highly recommend signing up with Dorfler's birthday club. I've never gotten any spam.

Thanks for your help! Next time I'm in the mood to indulge I'll definitely try poaching in olive oil.

That's great, Pie Lady! Congratulations for having a very fast learning curve.

jblth wrote:Make sure you let the meat come up to room temperature before cooking. Cold meat won't cook evenly, and you will end up with a good crust but uncooked center.

Interestingly enough, the Cook's Illustrated method is to go straight from the fridge to a 275F oven until the meat hits 95F (about 20-25 minutes), and finish on a blazing hot cast iron.

I tend to question a lot of Cook's Illustrated or America's Test Kitchen opinions and methods, but this one works fabulously. (Although I do usually take the steak to room temp--force of habit--and cook it at 250F instead of 275F. That said, I didn't notice any difference when cooked straight-from-fridge.) I used to always do the sear on stovetop, finish-in-oven method, but this way produces a much more even cook for me, with the inside a uniform medium rare, and the outside nicely browned/full of Malliard goodness. I haven't looked back since, and do all my steaks in this way now, whether outside on a grill or inside with an oven and cast-iron pan.

Most filets sold to indivdiuals that don't have any knowledge of meat are only marked USDA Inspected and not Graded. USDA Choice and Prime will be stamped and should be tender. An ungraded Tender may or may not be tender. I expect you purchased an ungraded Tender and the only thing that will make it palatable is grinding.
A USADA Choice or Prime Tender should be tender even raw.
It's not difficult to cook a whole Tender or a Filet. Salt and pepper, sear at high heat and then roast until internal temp is about 100F. Rest for at least 30 minutes.-Dick

http://www.askthemeatman.com/beef_photo_doneness_guide.htm

I don't really know that I'd use the times or other references suggested, but I like the visuals on "Ask the Meatman" (yes, the site is SFW - unless you work at PETA)