FILET MIGNON AU POIVRE

FILET MIGNON AU POIVRE image

Categories Beef

Yield 4 servings

Number Of Ingredients 9

Ingredients

Thick, top-quality filet mignons. I use 8 ounce filet mignons. If you're not serving a number of other courses, you might opt for larger ones.
Green peppercorns. If you get them dried, soak them in Cognac for a day or longer to reconstitute them.
Peanut oil
Butter 2 tablespoons
Cognac (brandy can be used)
Dry or sweet Sherry (A little Amontillado sweetness adds a nice touch to this sauce.)
Shallots 2 cloves, chopped (garlic can be used instead, 4 cloves, minced)
Heavy cream
Dijon mustard, 2 teaspoons

Steps:

Press plenty of green peppercorns into both sides of each filet mignon, but don't flatten the filets. Preheat oven to 140 degrees. Add a very small amount of peanut oil to a heavy cast iron skillet, preferably one with a top to minimize splatter. I use a cast iron chicken cooker that came with a glass top. You want just enough oil so that when you heat it, it will just spread out and cover the pan. You aren't frying the meat; you're pan broiling it. Heat the skillet on high heat til the oil begins to smoke. Using tongs, add the filets to the pan and sear on each side for about three minutes. Remove the filets to a platter, cover with aluminum foil, and place in the oven. Add 2 tablespoons butter to the pan. It will melt quickly. Stir and scrape the particles off the bottom of the pan. Add the shallots and cook briefly til they become translucent. Keep stirring and scraping. Then add about 3-4 tablespoons of Cognac and either flame to burn off the alcohol, or just cook for a minute and the alcohol will evaporate. Add about 4-5 tablespoons of Sherry and continue scraping and stirring. After it reduces a little, add about 3-4 ounces of heavy cream, stirring and scraping all the while. As it begins to thicken, pour in the juices that have accumulated on the meat platter from the oven. When the sauce begins to thicken, remove it from the burner or it will separate. Add 2 teaspons of Dijon mustard and stir well. Pour the sauce over the filets and serve. Wild rice or garlic mashed potatoes goes well with that sauce.You can vary the amounts of the ingredients to taste. It can be made with black peppercorns, but that can be kind of spicy and it could overwhelm a good red wine. I also use this recipe for breast of duck. If you do, cut through the skin and fat, but not into the meat, and palce rows of green peppercorns in the slits. You will also need to pour of the fat after pan searing the breasts.