Paper Palate

I have been reading Cook’s Illustrated for years now, and though I seldom use any of their recipes anymore (they tend to be very basic dishes that I can cook with my eyes shut), I still read the magazine. I am always interested in their product reviews, because their very methodical, somewhat obessive testing approach is very well-suited to giving accurate assessments on kitchen equipment and appliances. Their tastes are a little off from mine, and I really wish they would leave most ethnic recipes alone, but I most of the time, I learn one or two useful bits of knowledge from each issue.

The March/April issue caught my eye with the recipe for Pepper-Crusted Filet Mignon.

As I read through the recipe, I was interested to see how the author proposed to keep the peppercorn crust adhered to the steaks, and keep the crust well crisped once it was browned. Not surprisingly, a two-step cooking process was proposed: searing both sides of the steaks over very high heat in a cast iron skillet on the stovetop, then finishing the cooking in a hot oven.

The process of creating the peppercorn crust was interesting–first five tablespoons of crushed black peppercorns are simmered in five tablespoons of olive oil until they are toasted and fragrant. This is meant to tame the heat of the peppercorns, since the Test Kitchen members who tasted the versions with the unsimmered peppercorns and found them to be unpalatably spicy. (I will refrain from rolling my eyes–peppercorns are supposed to be hot! If you don’t want spicy steak, don’t coat it in peppercorns!)

What fascinated me the most in that simmering process was the possibility for flavor building. The author, Sean Lawler, had been inspired by the idea of blooming spices to make infused oils, which of course, reminded me of the Indian technique of tarka. Tarka is the process of toasting whole spices and sometimes onions, chiles and other aromatics in oil or ghee, and then stirring the mixture into a completed dish, like a lentil dal. The process of tarka cooks the spices, so that they are more easily digested, and allows the flavors to mingle and meld into a pleasant melange, before the dish is brought before diners, steaming and fragrant from the addition of spice-scented oil or ghee.

So, I took the general ideas presented in the recipe (click on the link above for the original) as a guideline, and created my own version. Unsatisfied with just one variety of black peppercorns in the crust, I resolved to add coriander seeds and white peppercorns; I could just as easily added green or pink peppercorns as well, or some whole allspice berries. I think that part of the reason the testers found the original, unsimmered peppercorns to be too fiery was because there was no relief for the tongue, no variety of flavor. This could have been alleviated with the addition of other spices.

I also decided to forgo finishing the dish in the oven, and instead, clapped a loose lid over the pan. My stovetop throws off enough heat to allow this to work, and frankly, once the steaks are seared to deep brown perfection, the little amount of steam generated by covering them is not going to make the crust soggy, especially if one is only going to cook them to rare or medium rare.

I also ditched the idea of letting the filets rest on rack, also as a measure to keep the crust from getting soggy. I decided that if Zak and Morganna were so picky as to complain about a soggy bottom crust, they could get up and do all those extra dishes like the baking plaque, the rack and all of that. As it turned out–the bottom crust was anything but soggy, which tells me that sometimes, the very meticulous, sometimes overblown steps presented in most Cook’s Illustrated recipes are not always necessary in order go achieve a good result.

Oh–and two more things–I should have lowered the amount of salt in the dish, but instead went against my own better judgement and kept the one tablespoon called for by Lawler’s recipe. It was too much. Also, next time, I will still use the trick of simmering the spices in olive oil, but I will lower the amount by one tablespoon. The steaks were a bit too oily for my taste, even considering how lean they were.

I served the steaks with a compound butter, eschewing sauce. For the butter, I crushed one garlic clove into a pulp with my mortar and pestle, and added aleppo pepper flakes, a pinch of ground cumin, a pinch of smoked paprika, and about a teaspoon of fresh mint. These I kneaded into softened butter, then wrapped in plastic wrap, carefully shaping the mixture into a cylinder, then stuck it in the freezer. When it was time to serve the steaks, I took the butter from the freezer, and with a sharp knife, cut the roll into individual round pats.

Barbara’s Version of Pepper-Crusted Filet Mignon

3 tablespoons black peppercorns, cracked
1 tablespoon white peppercorns, cracked
1 tablespoon coriander seed, cracked
4-5 tablespoons olive oil (to your taste–I would go with 4)plus two teaspoons
1/2-1 tablespoon salt (to your taste–I would go with the lower amount)
4 center-cut filets mignons, 2″ thick, around 8 ounces each, trimmed of silverskin (I left the tiny bits of fat on my steaks because they came from Belgian Blue cattle, which are very, very lean animals. The tiny amount of fat present helped keep the meat moist as it cooked.)

Heat the 4-5 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat. Add the spices, and stirring occaisionally, simmer until the spices and oil are quite fragrant–between five and eight minutes. Remove from heat, and set aside to cool. When it is at room temperature, add salt and stir well to combine.

Rub steaks with the spice and oil mixture, coating all sides, but paying particular attention to the top and bottom surfaces. Press the peppercorns in with your hands, then set steaks on a plate, cover with plastic wrap and press firmly again in order to set the spices into the meat. Allow to sit at room temperature for about an hour.

Heat 2 teaspoons of oil in a 12 inch cast iron skillet until it is barely smoking. Sear the steaks on one side without touching or moving them for 3-4 minutes in order to let a heavy crust form. Turn the steaks with tongs, and do the sear the other side in the same way. (Here is a tip–if you go to turn your steaks and they stick–they are not done searing. Leave them in place, wait 30-60 seconds and try to turn them again–repeat until they turn easily.)

When the crust is formed on the bottom–check to see if the steaks are sticking–if they are not, the crust is formed–cover loosely with a lid–I used the domed lid to a pan that was larger than the skillet so I could set it askew to let the steam out. Cook for another 3 minutes for rare, 5-6 minutes for medium rare. (If you want them more done than medium rare–cook something other than a filet, please–something with lots of fat, like a ribeye, that will stay moist under extended cooking conditions.)

Remove from pan, set on warmed plates and allow to rest 5 minutes before serving.