Whole filet of beef

[annesteph]

Hi

I have some guests coming who don't go for rib of beef so thought I might buy fillet steak in the whole piece, about four to five pounds in weight. Has anyone tried this in the WFO and if so any tips would be most welcome. Time, herbs anything.

[wlively]

Re: Whole filet of beef

What exactly are you looking for?
Smoke?
Long and slow?
Roast and rare or well?

Long and slow, you could probably duplicate what I did on the pulled pig.

Roast, maybe cover in garlic butter with salt/pepper, put it in around 400 deg F for 30 minutes then cover with foil and let it finish. Put a can/tin of water in to keep moisture up.

Whatever you decide I would recommend using a remote thermometer and pull it out the second it reaches approx 10 deg less than the temp you want. Then cover and let it rest and coast up to temp.

Experimenting is half the fun.

[annesteph]

Re: Whole filet of beef

Thanks for the help I am going for roast and rare, will give it a go and let you know !!

[Frances]

Re: Whole filet of beef

Try reading this thread... always makes me start drooling:

http://www.fornobravo.com/forum/f12/steak-oven-843.html

[texassourdough]

Re: Whole filet of beef

I would strongly urge using a remote thermometer on this exercise. It will be way easy to overcook it....

Assuming you like a crust on the meat you should sear it on a BBQ first. Tenderloin roasts are routinely browned and then oven finished to allow the meat to reach a solid medium rare (well 5-10 degrees short, i.e. 120 range) and pulled to soak. If you sear it really hard you can get meat that has a very thin crust and is almost uniform all the way through. Temp in the oven is not very critical - I actually prefer lower temps so I would tend to not use a WFO though doing so could be pretty spectacular.

Good Luck!
Jay

[annesteph]

Re: Whole filet of beef

Thanks Texas

Cant wait to try this now and have ordered a remote thermometer so wish me luck next weekend. Beef fillet is expensive so I am praying it goes okay and I will keep a close eye on the internal temperature. Thanks for your advice

[texassourdough]

Re: Whole filet of beef

Whole filets roasts are simply decadent! And yummy!

Another interesting cut to do this with is a sirloin roast which can be quite a bit less expensive. Takes longer to cook though for they are a lot thicker. But they can also be butterflied and stuffed with spinach and nuts and garlic and ricotta and other alternatives to give a spectacular effect. (Note the filling should be cooked so that the beef can be cooked medium rare or so.) (Note: easiest way to butterfly is simply run a knife about a half inch above a cutting board so you open the roast up into a gigantic rectangle of steak. Spread the stuffing on top. Roll it up and tie it with string. Sear it REALLY HOT on the grill. And bake at 325 or so until the temp hits 120 or so. Let rest and enjoy!)

You can do similar things with filets but...I do them either straight or in puff pastry with a duxelle of mushrooms)

Good Luck! Let us know how it comes out!
Jay

[annesteph]

Re: Whole filet of beef

Butterflied sirloin sounds delicious and I will definately do this one soon. This time I will keep to basics but add the mushrooms. I am also doing Belly Pork with a touch of spice will do a posting of how that comes out too. Thanks for the suggestions.

[texassourdough]

Re: Whole filet of beef

Yikes!

I should have been specific... You want the WHOLE sirloin - i.e. the cut that would normally be steaks - avoid top round and stuff that needs tenderizing. And note...a whole New York Strip roast works well too! Yes, mushrooms or a duxelle make great stuffing. This is really fun for you can put just about anything in it. (blue cheese can be heavenly too!) And when you slice it you get pinwheels. Guests will probably gag a little when they first see it because pinwheels are often made of tougher cuts and can be pretty mediocre but this can be absolutely heavenly with good steak!

Good Luck!
Jay