Châteaubriand, Fillet Steak, Tournedos

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •12-inch heavy oven-safe skillet
• •Wide lidded sauté pan
• •Instant-read thermometer
• •Kitchen string
• •Tongs or a sturdy fish spatula
• •Warm oval serving platter

Instructions

1. 1

   Shape and season

   Choose one beef format and keep the dimensions true. Tie the Châteaubriand at 1½-inch intervals to make an even cylinder; tie each tournedos around its circumference so it stays round, and tie a bifteck only if its shape is loose. Season the beef on every surface with about three-quarters of the salt and pepper. Leave it uncovered on a rack in the refrigerator while you begin the endives, then take it out about twenty minutes before cooking and blot it dry again.

   The book's proportions are the guide: a bifteck is 1½ inches thick and 6 to 7 ounces, while a tournedos is roughly half that weight but still 1¼ inches thick. The Châteaubriand is the same central fillet kept large enough to carve.
2. 2

   Braise the endives

   Melt 1 tablespoon of the butter with 1 tablespoon of the oil in a wide sauté pan over medium heat. Lay in the endives cut-side down and let them become deep butter-gold, about 5 minutes. Turn them, add the remaining salt and pepper, 2 thyme sprigs, the lemon juice, and ½ cup of the stock. Cover and hold at a bare simmer for 20 to 25 minutes, until a knife enters the thick end easily. If the liquid disappears before they soften, add stock a spoonful at a time; if they darken too quickly, lower the heat. Ça se rattrape. Set them aside in their pan with the braising liquor.

3. 3

   Heat the skillet

   Heat the oven to 425°F (220°C). Set a heavy oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat for several minutes, then add the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil. The oil should shimmer without smoking. Dry the beef once more before it meets the pan. A damp fillet cooks grey; a dry one builds the Maillard bronze that gives this mild cut its backbone.

4. 4

   Sauté by size

   Lay the beef in the skillet and leave it alone until the first surface releases cleanly. For Châteaubriand, brown the entire circumference in quarter turns for 6 to 8 minutes total, add 2 tablespoons of butter, the garlic, and the remaining thyme, baste well, then roast for 12 to 20 minutes. For biftecks, sauté 3 to 4 minutes on the first side and 2 to 3 minutes on the second, add the butter and aromatics, baste for 1 minute, then use the oven for another 2 to 6 minutes if needed. For tournedos, sauté 2½ to 3 minutes per face, baste briefly, and finish in the oven only if their centres remain too cool. For medium-rare, remove Châteaubriand at 122 to 125°F (50 to 52°C) and the smaller cuts at 125 to 128°F (52 to 53°C). If the crust is ready before the centre, move the beef to the oven immediately; the thermometer, not the clock, decides.

5. 5

   Rest and glaze

   Transfer the beef to a warm platter or rack. Rest Châteaubriand for 12 to 15 minutes, biftecks for 8 to 10 minutes, and tournedos for 5 to 7 minutes, loosely covered. Meanwhile, uncover the endives and return them to medium heat. Add another 1 tablespoon of butter and turn them gently as their braising liquor reduces to a light glaze. If the pan dries before they shine, loosen it with a tablespoon of stock. Pour every resting juice from the beef into a cup for the sauce.

6. 6

   Reduce the pan jus

   Pour excess fat from the beef skillet while preserving its brown fond. Add the shallot and sauté for 1 minute, then pour in the red wine and scrape the pan clean with a wooden spoon. Reduce the wine to about 2 tablespoons, add the remaining 1 cup of stock and the resting juices, then boil steadily until about ½ cup remains and the taste is concentrated but not salty. If any fond burned black, wipe those flecks away and build the reduction in a clean saucepan; the mahogany fond is flavour, the black fond is bitterness. Remove the pan from the heat and montez au beurre, mount the sauce with the remaining 4 tablespoons of cold butter, whisking in one piece at a time until glossy. If it splits, whisk 1 teaspoon of cold water in a clean pan, then add the broken sauce gradually. Ça se rattrape.

7. 7

   Arrange to scale

   Remove every string. Carve Châteaubriand across the grain into thick slices and arrange it on a warm platter with the endives around it. Place one bifteck and two endive halves on each plate, or set two tournedos slightly overlapping with the same garnish beside them. The garnish remains the same; only its arrangement follows the meat, exactly as the classical formula intends. Spoon the pan jus beneath and around the beef so the crust stays proud, scatter the parsley over the endives, and serve at once. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Ask the butcher for the thick central section of the tenderloin. The tapering tail makes uneven tournedos, and the broad head makes awkward biftecks; neither cooks with the calm regularity this formula depends upon.
• •String, not bacon, preserves the round shape of a tournedos. Bacon changes the flavour and insulates the side from the pan, while the book asks only for a neat kernel of fillet that browns evenly.
• •Use unsalted stock with enough body to become glossy when reduced. If it tastes thin, reduce it longer before adding the butter; if it is already salty, dilute it before it reaches the skillet.
• •Tenderloin is lean, so butter basting isn't decoration. It carries the garlic and thyme over the surface and rounds a cut prized more for tenderness than for fat. We don't apologize for butter.
• •A medium-bodied Bordeaux suits the red-wine jus without overwhelming the fillet. Pour the same wine into the pan only if it is dry and pleasant enough to drink.

Advance Preparation

• •Trim, shape, tie, and salt the beef up to one day ahead. Keep it uncovered on a rack in the refrigerator so the surface dries, then bring it out while the endives cook.
• •The endives may be braised up to 6 hours ahead. Refrigerate them in their liquor, then reheat uncovered with butter until the liquid becomes a glaze.
• •Mince the shallot and measure the wine and stock before guests arrive, but finish the sauce only after cooking the beef. Its fond and resting juices belong in the reduction.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 330g)