Filet de Bœuf Hongroise

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •12-inch (30 cm) heavy ovenproof skillet
• •2-quart (2 L) heavy saucepan
• •10-inch (25 cm) wide sauté pan
• •Immersion blender and fine-mesh sieve
• •Instant-read thermometer
• •Kitchen twine
• •Long oval serving platter and sauceboat

Instructions

1. 1

   Shape and season

   Take the beef from the cold 40 minutes before roasting. If one end narrows, fold it underneath so the roast has an even thickness, then tie it firmly at 1½-inch (4 cm) intervals. Pat the surface dry and season with 1½ teaspoons of the salt and all the black pepper. Keep the fatback chilled. Heat the oven to 450°F (230°C) with a rack in the center.

   An evenly shaped fillet roasts evenly. The twine is useful discipline, not decoration; it keeps the narrow end from passing well-done while the center remains raw.
2. 2

   Poach the garnish onions

   Set the eight peeled onions snugly in a saucepan and add 1½ cups (360 ml) of the white consommé, reserving the remaining ½ cup (120 ml) for the sauce. Bring the liquid just to a simmer, cover with a parchment round or lid, and cook gently for 20 to 30 minutes. The onions are ready when a thin skewer enters with slight resistance and their layers remain intact. Lift them carefully to a tray and reserve ¼ cup (60 ml) of their cooking liquor for glazing.

3. 3

   Build the Soubise base

   Melt 2 tablespoons of the Soubise butter in a clean saucepan over low heat. Add the sliced large onion and ¼ teaspoon of the salt, cover, and let it étuver, cooking in its own moisture, for 15 to 20 minutes. Stir occasionally and allow no browning; Soubise must be ivory before the paprika meets it. Stir in the flour and cook for 2 minutes, then whisk in the warm milk gradually. Simmer gently for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring often, until the onion is completely tender and the sauce coats a spoon. Blend until smooth, pass through a fine sieve, and set aside, covered.

4. 4

   Brown and roast

   Heat a heavy ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat and add 1 tablespoon of the beef butter. When the foam subsides, brown the fillet on every side and both ends, about 7 to 9 minutes in all. If the butter solids blacken before the beef is bronze, lift out the meat, wipe away the burnt butter without scrubbing off the sound brown fond, lower the heat, and continue with the reserved tablespoon. Ça se rattrape. Remove the skillet from the heat, slip the chilled fatback slices beneath the strings across the top and upper sides of the fillet, then roast for 15 to 22 minutes. Remove it at 122 to 125°F (50 to 52°C) for medium-rare; it will settle near 130°F (54°C) as it rests. Transfer the fillet to a warm board and rest it loosely covered for 15 minutes.

5. 5

   Finish the paprika Soubise

   While the beef rests, transfer the sieved Soubise base to a bowl. Melt 1 tablespoon of the remaining Soubise butter in its clean saucepan over low heat. The moment it foams, remove the pan from the heat, stir in the paprika for 15 seconds, then immediately whisk in a spoonful of the Soubise. If the paprika darkens toward mahogany or smells acrid, discard that butter, wipe the pan, and repeat with a little of the finishing butter. Ça se rattrape. Whisk in the remaining Soubise, the cream, and enough of the reserved ½ cup (120 ml) consommé to make a light sauce that pours in a broad ribbon. Hold it at a bare simmer for 2 minutes, remove it from the heat, and whisk in the final tablespoon of butter. Season with the white pepper and the remaining salt as needed.

6. 6

   Glaze the onions

   Melt the glazing butter in a wide sauté pan over medium heat. Add the cooked onions and roll them gently through the butter for 3 to 5 minutes, adding the reserved onion cooking liquor a spoonful at a time. Let the liquid reduce around them until each onion wears a glossy, pale-gold coat. If an onion begins to split, stop rolling the pan and baste it with a spoon instead. Keep them whole; no sugar and no hard browning belong here.

7. 7

   Arrange and serve

   Remove the fatback and twine from the rested fillet. Set the roast whole down the center of a long warmed platter and surround it with the glazed onions, spooning their remaining butter over them. Pour the thin paprika Soubise into a warmed sauceboat and send it separately, exactly as the dish intends. Carve the fillet across the grain at the table and pass the sauce. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Ask for the center cut of the tenderloin, evenly thick from end to end. A tapered whole fillet is splendid for feeding more people, but four guests need the compact center, which roasts without one end drying before the middle is ready.
• •Use fresh unsmoked fatback, not smoked bacon. Smoke would become a new flavoring and bully the paprika Soubise; the fatback's job is quieter, protecting and basting the lean fillet.
• •The paprika must be sweet, fragrant, and unsmoked. Open the jar and smell it before cooking. If there is little aroma, there will be little flavor, and no amount of extra powder will repair it.
• •True white consommé keeps the onions and Soubise clear in flavor and color. When it is not available, a pale unsalted chicken stock is the honest home equivalent; dark roasted beef stock muddies both.
• •A supple Saint-Émilion or Médoc suits the fillet without flattening the sweet onion sauce. Add a plain potato purée if the table wants a starch, but keep it separate from the glazed onion ring.
• •Keep leftover beef, sauce, and onions in separate covered containers in the cold for up to three days. Reheat the Soubise over low heat with a spoonful of milk, glaze the onions again in butter, and warm the beef only briefly so its rosy center remains rosy.

Advance Preparation

• •The Soubise base can be cooked, blended, and sieved one day ahead. Cool it promptly and keep it covered in the cold; add the paprika butter, cream, consommé, and final butter while the beef rests.
• •The garnish onions can be poached earlier in the day and held in a little of their cooking liquor. Bring them back to room temperature before glazing so their centers warm without the butter scorching.
• •The fillet can be trimmed, tied, and salted up to six hours ahead, uncovered in the cold. Keep the fatback separate and chilled, then bring the beef out 40 minutes before roasting.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 380g)