How To Cook Filet Mignon

Filet Mignon is the most tender, juicy, and flavorful steak that is perfect to cook for any special occasion. Learn how to how to cook the best filet mignon steaks right here. There is no need to go out to a fancy restaurant and pay too much money when you can easily make it at home. Whether you cut your own steaks or get the butcher to cut it, you will be able to cook it yourself with just a few easy steps.

WHAT IS FILET MIGNON

I am a huge fan of beef tenderloin and there is no surprise why. It’s the most tender cut of beef you can get. Filet mignon is a prime steak cut that comes from the beef tenderloin. Tenderloin is a long, thin muscle that runs deep inside, along the back, right under the spine. This muscle is not weight bearing, doesn’t get worked out much, and doesn’t have much connective tissue, which is what makes it so tender. 

Filet Mignon literally means “dainty filet” or “petite filet.” Filet is a culinary term that means “boneless” and mignon means “small or dainty.” Traditionally, filet mignon came from the narrower end of the tenderloin muscle before it tapers off to the end. Over time though, most of the steaks cut from the center of this muscle came to be known as “filet mignon.” 

This tender, petit steak is still the best one to share during a special dinner and is very easy to make yourself. Why go out to a fancy restaurant and over-pay for two small steaks when you can impress your date with your culinary skills and serve filet mignon at home?

TIP: I highly recommend that you get a whole tenderloin and cut the steaks yourself. Whole tenderloin is very versatile and you can use the “scraps” in many other recipes. It will be much cheaper to cut it yourself too!

Learn how to break down a whole tenderloin HERE. 

HOW TO COOK FILET MIGNON

Best known way to cook filet mignon and many other steaks like ribeye, NY strip, and sirloin is by using the steakhouse style. (Unless you’re using a grill, but that is a whole other story.) Steakhouse Style has two steps: first you start by searing steaks on the stove-top at high heat and then move the skillet into the preheated oven to finish cooking. So let’s cook! 

Let it rest:

Pull the steaks out of the refrigerator 30 minutes before cooking, take them out of the package, and let them rest on the cutting board to get to room temperature. 

Pat it dry:

Now is a good time to preheat the oven to 425° so it’s ready to go when the steaks are seared.

Use a paper towel to pat each steak dry.

Tie it:

Why do you tie filet mignon? I get this question ALL the time. It’s not a common practice but many chefs do believe in tying these steaks in the middle. The reason to tie the steaks is the same as when cooking a whole beef tenderloin roast, to make it uniform in size and hold its shape while cooking. A more uniform size will help cook the steaks evenly. 

Tie a piece of cooking twine around each filet mignon steak. Tie it firm but not too tight where it starts to cut into meat. Trim off long sting ends. 

Season it:

Season it with salt and pepper on all the sides, don’t forget to season it around the edge side as well. (Make sure to season the steaks right before placing them into the hot skillet. Salt draws out moisture from food so if you salt too early, too much moisture be on the skin and it will hinder the beautiful sear.) 

Sear it:

Preheat a cast iron skillet (or another oven-safe cooking pan) over medium-high heat and add some cooking oil. I do not like to sear on butter because butter burns. You can always finish the steak with some butter on top for the flavor but I recommend cooking on canola or vegetable oil.

Place steaks into the hot skillet and let them sear for about a minute and a half on each side. 

Finish in the oven:

Transfer the skillet into the oven and cook for 8-10 minutes before checking the temperature. The exact time that it will take to cook the steaks will highly depend on the size of the steaks. (If you have a leave in meat thermometer, insert it through the side of the largest steak to monitor the temperature.)

The best temperatures to cook filet mignon to is medium-rare or medium. For medium-rare, cook it to 130°-135°. For medium, cook to 135°-140° and for rare, cook it to 120°-125°.

Let it rest:

DON’T forget to let the cooked steaks rest for about 5 minutes! Take cooked steaks out of the skillet so they don’t keep cooking and place them on a cutting board. Cut the string off and let them rest before cutting.

BEST SIDES FOR STEAKS

Home Fries

Italian Roasted Asparagus

Roasted Mushrooms

Mashed Potatoes

Green Beans with Bacon and Onion