Filet de Bœuf Jardinière

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Small melon baller or ¾-inch (2 cm) cutter
• •Stout metal skewer and narrow chopstick for larding
• •Kitchen twine
• •Instant-read thermometer
• •Compact roasting pan
• •Two medium saucepans
• •Wide sauté pan
• •Fine-mesh sieve
• •Long heatproof serving platter
• •Two small sauceboats

Instructions

1. 1

   Lard and tie fillet

   Work while the beef and fatback are cold. Push a clean metal skewer lengthwise into the fillet from one end to make four narrow channels parallel to the grain, then repeat from the other end. Use a narrow chopstick or the blunt end of the skewer to ease one chilled fatback baton into each channel. This is the home equivalent of a larding needle, and it preserves the original purpose: carrying fat through the lean meat rather than merely greasing its surface. If a baton softens or the meat begins to tear, stop and chill both for 10 minutes. Ça se rattrape. Tie the fillet at 1½-inch (4 cm) intervals, season it with 2 teaspoons of the salt and all the pepper, rub with 1 tablespoon of the butter, and leave it at cool room temperature for 30 minutes.

   Ask the butcher for a center-cut fillet of even thickness. The thin tail of a whole tenderloin cooks before the center is ready, and no quantity of optimism makes it even.
2. 2

   Shape the garden

   While the beef loses its chill, finish every vegetable. Use a small melon baller to shape the carrots and turnips; a grooved cutter made decorative ridges in the grand kitchen, but the modern baller preserves what matters, equal pieces that cook evenly. If you have neither, cut tidy ¾-inch (2 cm) dice. Cut the French beans on a steep bias into lozenges, separate the cauliflower into compact florets, and place every garnish in its own bowl. Keep the peas frozen until their water boils. Distinct heaps begin here, not on the platter.

3. 3

   Roast by temperature

   Heat the oven to 450°F (230°C). Set the fillet in a compact roasting pan and roast for 10 minutes, then lower the oven to 375°F (190°C), rub the top with another 1 tablespoon of butter, and continue roasting until a thermometer inserted into the coolest part reaches 140°F (60°C), usually 18 to 28 minutes more. The meat will rise toward 145°F (63°C) while resting, an honest safety translation when salt pork has been carried into the center. Do not judge tenderloin by its crust; the outside bronzes long before the middle is ready. Transfer it to a warm board, tent loosely with foil, and rest for 20 minutes.

4. 4

   Poach roots separately

   While the beef roasts, place the carrots in a narrow saucepan with half the consommé. Bring it just to a simmer and cook uncovered until a knife enters with slight resistance, about 8 to 12 minutes. Lift them out with a slotted spoon and keep them separate. Rinse the pan, then cook the turnips in the remaining fresh consommé in the same manner. Do not boil hard. If the shaped edges begin to split, lower the heat at once; place any broken pieces beneath the neat ones when you build the heap. Reserve about ¼ cup (60 ml / 60 g) of the consommé for finishing the vegetables.

5. 5

   Blanch greens separately

   Bring 2 quarts (1.9 L / 1.9 kg) of the water to a full boil with 1 tablespoon of the salt. Cook the French beans until vivid green and just tender, 3 to 4 minutes, then lift them directly into ice water. Return the water to a boil and cook the frozen petits pois for 60 to 90 seconds, only until hot and sweet, then cool them separately. Drain both very well. Water clinging to the vegetables will dilute the butter and turn a clean glaze into a puddle.

6. 6

   Keep cauliflower white

   Discard the green vegetable water and bring the remaining 2 quarts (1.9 L / 1.9 kg) of fresh water to a boil with 1 tablespoon of salt. Add the cauliflower and cook uncovered at a lively simmer until the stalks are tender but the florets remain tight, about 5 to 7 minutes. Fresh water, an uncovered pot, and brief cooking keep it white; using the bean water would stain it dull green. Drain on a clean towel and keep it warm. Do not butter the cauliflower, since its Hollandaise is waiting.

7. 7

   Bind each with butter

   While the cauliflower cooks and the beef rests, lier au beurre, bind with butter, each remaining garnish separately in a clean sauté pan. Warm the carrots with 1 teaspoon butter and a spoonful of reserved consommé until lightly glazed, then repeat with the turnips. Use 2 teaspoons butter each for the French beans and peas, tossing only until glossy and hot. Warm the flageolets most gently with the final 1 tablespoon butter and 2 tablespoons consommé, shaking rather than stirring so they remain whole. Taste each heap and use the final teaspoon of salt only where needed. If butter separates and pools, add a teaspoon of consommé and shake the pan briskly. Ça se rattrape.

8. 8

   Finish both sauces

   Pour excess fat from the roasting pan without disturbing the brown fond. Set the pan over medium-high heat, add the beef stock, and scrape the floor thoroughly. Boil until reduced to about 1 cup (240 ml / 240 g), then strain through a fine sieve and skim away any surface fat. This is the jus clair, the clear gravy, so do not thicken it with flour or finish it with butter. If it reduces too far or tastes too strong, loosen it with a spoonful of hot water. Hold the prepared Hollandaise over barely warm water, never direct heat. If it breaks, put 1 teaspoon tepid water in a clean bowl and whisk in the sauce one spoonful at a time until it returns to a smooth emulsion.

9. 9

   Build the platter

   Remove the string and set the fillet lengthwise on a warmed long platter. Arrange the carrots, cauliflower, petits pois, turnips, French beans, and flageolets in six generous, distinct heaps, alternating orange, white, and green as clearly as the vegetables permit. Present the fillet whole, then carve it across the grain into ½-inch (1.25 cm) slices at the table. Send the Hollandaise in one warm sauceboat for the cauliflower and the clear jus in another for the beef. Keep both sauces off the vegetable heaps until each guest serves themselves. À table!

Chef Tips

• •The center-cut fillet matters more than pedigree. Buy the best you comfortably can, but insist on an even cylinder with the silverskin removed; careful roasting will do more for dinner than a grand label.
• •Frozen petits pois are the honest choice outside their brief season, and canned flageolets are entirely welcome if they are small and tender. Rinse the beans gently, drain them well, and warm them without stirring them to paste.
• •Save the carrot and turnip trimmings. They are the cost of those handsome round shapes, not rubbish, and belong in the next soup, stock, or purée.
• •Warm the platter before arranging the dish, but keep it comfortable enough to touch. A scorching platter continues cooking the fillet and dulls the green vegetables before everyone sits down.
• •A Médoc or a Cabernet Franc from the Loire suits the beef without bullying the vegetables or the Hollandaise. This is a generous plate, so choose a red with freshness as well as structure.
• •Refrigerate leftover beef and vegetables separately within 2 hours and use them within 3 days. Hollandaise does not improve on reheating; make it fresh rather than forcing yesterday's emulsion back to the table.

Advance Preparation

• •Lard and tie the fillet up to 8 hours ahead, then keep it covered and chilled. Bring it out 30 minutes before roasting so the exterior loses its chill without softening the fatback too far.
• •Shape the carrots and turnips up to 6 hours ahead and hold them in separate bowls of cold water. Trim the beans and cauliflower, wrap them separately in barely damp towels, and refrigerate. Drain and dry everything before cooking.
• •The beef stock may be reduced to 1¼ cups (300 ml / 300 g) earlier in the day. At service, use it to deglaze the roasting pan and reduce only until the jus reaches the proper strength.
• •Hollandaise is last-hour work. Prepare the finished sauce shortly before the fillet leaves the oven and hold it between 122°F and 131°F (50°C and 55°C) for no longer than 45 minutes.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 690g)