Tournedos Choron

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •30 cm (12-inch) heavy skillet
• •3 to 4 quart saucepan with slotted spoon
• •Small lidded saucepan
• •6 cm (2½-inch) round cutter
• •Instant-read thermometer
• •Wire rack set over a sheet pan
• •Heatproof bowl for the warm-water bath
• •Oval serving platter

Instructions

1. 1

   Stage the service

   Take the tournedos from the refrigerator about 20 minutes before cooking, pat them completely dry, and tie each around its circumference so it keeps a compact round shape. Heat the oven to 200°F (95°C), set a wire rack over a sheet pan for holding the bread and potatoes, and warm the serving platter with hot water. Cut four bread rounds the same diameter as the tournedos. Drain the artichoke bottoms well, portion the peas and butter, and set the finished sauce near the stove. Once the beef enters the pan, there should be nothing left to chop or measure.

   This mise en place is the home cook's extra pair of hands. The dish becomes difficult only when the sauce, garnishes, and beef demand attention at the same moment.
2. 2

   Cook potatoes and peas

   Bring the water to a boil with 1 teaspoon (5 ml / 6 g) of the salt. Add the potatoes and lower the heat to a steady simmer. Cook for 10 to 14 minutes, until a small knife enters with slight resistance and the centers are nearly tender. Lift the potatoes out with a slotted spoon and spread them on a towel to dry. Add the frozen petits pois to the same water for 45 to 60 seconds, just until hot and vivid green, then drain them well. Reserve ¼ cup (60 ml / 60 g) of the cooking water.

3. 3

   Butter the garnish

   Set the artichoke bottoms cup-side down in a small saucepan with ¼ cup (60 ml / 60 g) of the reserved cooking water and 1 tablespoon (15 ml / 14 g) of the garnish butter. Cover and warm over low heat for 4 to 5 minutes. Turn them upright, lift them onto a warm plate, and cover loosely. Pour away any remaining water, melt the final tablespoon of butter in the pan, and roll the peas through it for 1 to 2 minutes. They should look glossy and gather into a loose spoonful without becoming mashed. If they shed water, drain it away before adding the butter; wet peas slide out of the artichokes.

4. 4

   Brown the potatoes

   Melt the potato butter in the heavy skillet over medium heat. Add the dry potatoes and sauté them for 8 to 10 minutes, turning often, until lightly and evenly browned in butter. Season with a pinch of the remaining salt. Transfer them to the wire rack and hold them in the low oven, uncovered. Covering traps moisture and softens the browned surface.

5. 5

   Fry the bread crusts

   Wipe the skillet clean and melt the bread butter over medium heat. When it foams, add the bread rounds and fry them for about 2 minutes per side, pressing gently so the surfaces meet the butter, until deep gold and crisp at the edges. If the butter darkens before the bread is crisp, lower the heat and wipe out any blackened milk solids; bitterness is not browning. Drain the rounds on the wire rack and hold them in the oven for no more than 15 minutes.

6. 6

   Hold Choron tepid

   Set the finished Béarnaise Tomatée Sauce or Choron Sauce (No. 64) in a heatproof bowl over water held at 95 to 105°F (35 to 40°C). The bowl should feel gently warm, never hot. Stir occasionally, but do not return the sauce to direct heat. If it merely thickens, whisk in 1 teaspoon (5 ml / 5 g) of warm water. If it turns greasy or curdled, remove it from the warmth. Ça se rattrape: whisk 1 teaspoon (5 ml / 5 g) of cold water in a clean bowl, then work in the broken sauce one spoonful at a time until smooth.

   The sauce should fall from the spoon in a soft ribbon and remain coral and glossy. Hotter is not better; excess heat tightens the yolks and releases the butter.
7. 7

   Sear the tournedos

   Season the dry tournedos on both sides with the remaining salt and the pepper. Wipe the skillet clean and heat 2 tablespoons (30 ml / 28 g) of the beef butter over medium-high heat. When the foam subsides and the butter turns nutty gold, lay in all four tournedos with space between them. Fry without moving for 3 to 4 minutes, until a dark bronze crust releases cleanly from the pan. Turn them, add the remaining butter, and baste as they cook for another 2 to 4 minutes. Aim for 125 to 130°F (52 to 54°C) before resting for medium-rare, or continue to the doneness required at your table. If the butter blackens, lift out the beef, wipe the pan, and return it with the reserved fresh butter. Rest the tournedos for 5 minutes.

   A wet tournedo steams and turns grey. A dry one meets the butter properly and gives you the bronze crust this mild cut needs.
8. 8

   Build the crown

   Dry the warmed platter and arrange the fried bread crusts in a crown. Set one tournedo on each crust. Spoon a narrow thread of Choron around the top of each steak, leaving the center clear, then place a warm artichoke bottom in that center and fill it generously with buttered peas. Arrange the browned potatoes as a border around the crown. Pour the remaining Choron into a small warm sauce boat and serve it separately, still tepid. Bring the platter straight to the table while the bread remains crisp. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Ask for four center-cut tenderloin steaks of equal thickness, not four equal weights cut into different shapes. Even thickness gives one cook a fair chance of landing every tournedo at the same doneness.
• •Prepared artichoke bottoms packed in water are the honest home equivalent to an entremetier trimming four fresh artichokes. Avoid oil-marinated hearts, which are the wrong shape and carry seasonings that fight the sauce. Frozen petits pois are better than tired fresh peas.
• •The sauce waits for the beef, never the beef for the sauce. Keep it in hand-warm water for no longer than an hour, and stir without beating air into it.
• •Pour a restrained red Bordeaux, such as a Médoc or Saint-Émilion, with enough freshness for the tomato and tarragon character of the sauce. The beef is tender rather than heavily flavored, so the wine needn't arrive wearing armor.

Advance Preparation

• •Up to 4 hours ahead, tie the tournedos, cut the bread rounds, drain the artichoke bottoms, and parboil the potatoes. Chill the beef and potatoes separately, then bring the beef out about 20 minutes before searing.
• •Béarnaise Tomatée Sauce or Choron Sauce (No. 64) may be prepared 30 to 45 minutes before the beef is cooked and held in gently warm water. Serve it within an hour rather than cooling and reheating it.
• •The potatoes and bread crusts may be browned about 15 minutes before service and held uncovered in the low oven. Do not assemble the crown early, because sauce and resting juices will soften the fried bread.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 485g)