Introduction
Filet mignon is one of the most prized cuts of beef for its incredibly tender texture and mild, buttery flavor. Filet mignon is naturally tender, so you don’t need fancy ingredients or complicated techniques to make it tasty at home.
Whether you are cooking a steak for a special dinner, or just want to improve your steak cooking skills, this guide will show you how to select, prepare, cook and serve filet mignon.
What Is Filet Mignon?
Filet mignon is a steak cut from the tenderloin, a long, relatively lean muscle that runs along the back of the animal. This muscle does very little work and that is what helps give the steak its popularly soft texture.
Filet mignon tends to be leaner than heavily marbled cuts like ribeye. The appeal is in its tenderness rather than in intense beef flavor.
Steaks are typically cut into thick round pieces. Their thickness makes them ideal for cooking or grilling in a hot pan, then finishing in the oven.
How to select the Best Filet Mignon
When buying filet mignon, look for steaks that are:
Even cut and reasonably thick
Freshly bright red
Rather firm than too soft
No bad smell.
If you are cooking several steaks together they will be about the same thickness.
If the steak is of an even thickness, it will usually cook more evenly. Filet mignon is naturally a lean cut compared to many other cuts of steak, but if you want a little more flavor, you can look for filet mignon with a little visible marbling, or fat.