Why Do People Like Filet Mignon?
 

Inspired by a thread on Morton's in the SF forum, I have to ask, why eat a relatively flavorless (albeit tender) filet when there are some much more flavorful cuts out there? I like an occasional steak but I never order a filet. It's just too lean and lacks that wonderful flavor that one can get out of something like a ribeye.

So, for those of you who love it, why?

Mouthfeel?

For me the reference on filet mignon is the Club Paris in downtown Anchorage and their 14 oz. offering. They'll sear the outside but will hit the mark on doneness in the middle. I think they have an option to stuff with blue cheese, but the plain one has always been fine for me. Maybe they do something super-secret to add flavor (though it doesn't come bacon-wrapped, or anything like that).

Honestly, I have no idea. Fat equals flavor and the tenderloin completely lacks fat due to the fact from where it is located on the cow. I guess it stems back from "if it costs more money it must be better".

I agree, but a ribeye is much too far in the opposite direction. A fillet seems to work pretty well on airplanes - more forgiving, but I never ever order one in any restaurant or buy one at the store. Actually I almost never order steak in a restaurant because it's so much easier to make a far better one at home, but if I do, it will be a NY strip or sirloin.

I enjoy a NY strip at home every now and again. As far as airplane food goes, I think filet is about the last thing that should be served. The beef is already too lean; cooking it and then reheating it just turns it into bland sawdust. No thanks. Braised beef is about the only thing that should be reheated and served - give me some short ribs, any day.

Filet mignon is my steak of choice. I like the tenderness of the meat coupled with the fact that no surgery is required to enjoy it.

Very happy to see that particular reference!

However, I have to say I just had a filet from Orso (just up the street from Club Paris) that was pretty good, but more due to the creative preparation (with a glaze of veal stock and Spanish wine sauce, topped with melted cambozola, and served on a bed of wilted arugula in an apricot-walnut vinaigrette and polenta) than the quality of the steak itself. Club Paris, on the other hand, takes an excellent hunk of meat and cooks it to absolute perfection without the aid of foo-foo extras. ;)

Filet mignon = fillet?

Each to their own, but I'd always go for sirloin in preference (for steak) or a topside joint for roasting. Fillet just lacks in texture and flavour in comparison.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Filet_mignon

For once, we Americans actually spell and pronounce something more like the French than you do! :D

Aha!

You have your filet, we have our aubergines. It all becomes clear!

I was always confused about that... <about the time AS released its Bacon Wrapped Petite Tender :p> Yes I drug out an old menu to ensure proper spelling :D

While were also talking about Anchorage Dining :cool: I'll add that Club Paris has excellent burgers too ^

Because it's tender and expensive. Those two things ensure folk forget that it doesn't taste of anything..

While I prefer rib eyes at home, at a really good steakhouse I'll go for the filet. They'll have prime, aged meat that develops some great flavor (it's not strong, but it is complex). Cook it up black & bleu, give me some wine, and I'm all set.

Filet ("fil-lay") is usually beef, with the pronunciation referencing the French; fillet ("fill-it") is the dominant use for fish.

Because they don't have any teeth? Or taste buds?

Actually, a high-quality filet done rare has its subtle charm.

Filet and porterhouse are my favorites. They both have plenty of flavor and no need to drench them with ketchup, A-1 sauce or any other steak related toppings. Oy!

MisterNice

Filet mignon is actually pork in France today .... pork tenderloin. Beef fillet is "filet de boeuf" or simply "un filet". "Filet" in fact refers to any boned piece of fish or meat, in French as it does in English. Filet in old French was a kind of laced up headband and the boned meat or fish was similarly trussed up before cooking, hence the appelation.
OK teacher mode off.....:)

Oh yes and to the OP's question... I would suppose it is indeed tenderness over flavour. I'm with you 100 per cent though as far as steak is concerned, a good sirloin or a T-bone (British English here!!) beats a fillet everyday in flavour. I would hate a Sirloin Wellington though...

I disagree that filet "has no taste." It's taste is more subtle, but sometimes that is exactly what I'm in the mood for. Often times ribeyes just have too much fat. Sometimes disgustingly so.

But I also make a distinction between grass fed and corn feed beef. I'm not a huge fan of grass fed filets.

And more. Umami. The same sort of pleasant sensation as eating Ahi or diver scallops--meaty, and satisfying. And as SAT Lawyer pointed out--all the prep work has been done in the kitchen. Aging the meat adds to the experience.

I don't get the "kitchen prep" adding to the experience. Is this about de-boning? Removing the bone before cooking also removes flavor and that same umami sensation.

Don't forget about courgette! :)

Aging the meat adds to the experience. As for the kitchen prep--I want to dine, not dissect. (so for me the prep work *does* add to the experience!)

There is no bone in a tenderloin, so there is no deboning required for Filet Mignon. My hometown butcher turned me to ribeyes 7 years ago and I have never looked back!

Wirelessly posted (BlackBerry9000/4.6.0.167 Profile/MIDP-2.0 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/102)

Like the Ahi reference-

Not sure that adding shoyu, sesame and seaweed would be the same... :p

Personally I prefer something a little bigger :o

There is cutting and trimming. I don't want to deal with anything other than eating. Filet mignon is my choice for *steak*. I do think prime rib makes for a wonderful roast beef. :)

I may just be lucky, but I've probably had over 50 filets all on UA, and all but about 5 have been cooked medium to medium rare and were juicy (and bland yes). I do like the short ribs too.

That tender meat on one side of the porterhouse (and T-bone) bone is the tenderloin a.k.a. filet (mignon). The firmer, and larger, side is the strip loin (a.k.a. NY Strip).

I've been using tenderloin to make beef stroganoff lately (wonderfully cheap in Canada, C$6-8/lb for a whole small tenderloin).

As for rib eyes (sometimes we get whole rib eyes here for C$3-4 /lb if you want 8 lbs of meat), I find the best is to sear them in a pan sprinkled with kosher salt.

Can't the same be said of any cut of meat. Why do people order <<type of meat>> when <<type of meat>> is more <<choose flavorful, tender, less expensive, leaner, etc>>

There's what, 25 or 30 different main cuts from a cow, there are probably just as many people who like one cut over another.

I guess the better question is why people pay more for the filet? It's not as good a cut as many others, yet is the most expensive.

Fast food at its best --almost no prep or cook time, and a sensational meal. When it was on sale, my Mom would buy a whole tenderloin, have the butcher trim and cut into steaks. (no silverskin). Butchers are the unsung heroes of the food world.

^ Same here. I'll take mine bloody please :D

I think filet mignon also fondues well in vegetable oil if you can find the meat on sale at the grocery store. I'll cool it off and add a bit of flavor by dipping in California dip (the Lipton onion soup stuff).

Not for everyone, but it's different.

This is basic economics. There isn't much of it, and it is perceived excellence. Besides, when you wrap it in pigfat slices, it does get some more flavo(u)r. :D

Often what is most expensive isn't the best. I think it is perfectly ok, but once I ordered it and thought it was a nice tender relatively tasteless piece of meat. Of course, it came without bacon or butter.

Anchorage? Alaska? Veal stock, apricot-walnut vinaigrette? I am so there. My Juneau and Petersburg relatives favor halibut enchiladas, venison and salmon, salmon, salmon. And occasional Thai.

On topic: I really like prime beef filets. Succulent, melt in the mouthy, very nice.

We were recently on a transatlantic cruise and ate regularly in the two specialty restuarants. The Italian joint features a filet mignon that they first marinate and then steam. Mrs. Fredd unfortunately didn’t hear about the preparation before ordering, and didn't bother finishing it, but we’re sure others must rave about how “tender” it is - yet another à chacun son goût moment. ;)

Our own steak preferences run to aged and grain-fed rib eye and the somewhat leaner New York Strip. Recently we compared some USDA Prime beef with some ungraded but well-marbled and well-aged beef and it was surprising how well the ungraded stacked up, provided you know what you're looking for.

POn the subject of beef, does anyone here like skirt steak, flank steak and hanger steak?

While you're there, try Kincaids

I love skirt steak. Marinate and throw that sucker on the bbq..Game over.

in terms of the filet, its just a simple and very easy piece of meat to eat and cook for that matter. If im going to a steakhouse though, i dont have to open the menu since I will be ordering the porterhouse. The way a porterhouse is prepared, is a great way to judge a steakhouse, IMHO :)

Because it is BEEF ^

Flank, yum. Hanger experience ranges from fabulous to not so much.

+1

The lean nature of the meat is pleasing to me. Since I refuse to eat meat off the bone, I love the filet. If I see anything that is gelatinous or stringy (maybe a blood vessel or tendon), I will completely lose my appetite.