Filet Mignon on French Menus and Filet de Bœuf in French Cuisine.

from
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

 

     
An 8-ounce Filet Mignon
  
When ordering a Filet Mignon in France
rule No 1 is to read the menu carefully.
     
A Frenchman, an Englishman and an American meet in Paris and decide to have lunch together. Without waiting for a menu the Frenchman chooses the best steak dish he can think of and orders a Filet de Boeuf, the Englishman ordered a Fillet Steak; and the American orders a Filet Mignon. The Frenchman and the Englishman are served excellent cuts from the center of a beef tenderloin, large fillet steaks. The American was served a superb cut, but, from a pork tenderloin!  He had not remembered rule number 1.
  
 A Filet Mignon in the USA
   
Ordering a Filet Mignon in the USA indicates that you want the very best of beef steaks.  In the USA a Filet Mignon is the name usually given to the tenderloin, a large muscle that is the most tender of all cuts.  Other cuts make great steaks and they may be tastier, but they are not as tender. A Filet Mignon is the most expensive cut that most US restaurants offer and it will generally be served with a sauce.
  
What is happening here?
  
The French term Filet Mignon means “dainty fillet” in English. In France, it does not refer to the whole beef tenderloin, rather to the narrow, almost pointed, end of the tenderloin. The thick end of a beef tenderloin, the fillet, in France is reserved for the cuts called a Chateaubriand and a Tournedos. As the tenderloin becomes thinner, about halfway down, the French will cut their Filets de Boeuf, beef fillets. The French beef Filet Mignon is the name given to the last few inches of the narrowest part of the tenderloin. Nevertheless, the term Filet Mignon may be used for a whole tenderloin, but that will be a pork or veal tenderloin! N.B. Confusion for the American traveler in France began in the American kitchen. When US chefs and butchers took French names for their own use but changed their original meanings they omitted to inform would-be travelers.
    
This cut, even when well marbled, has little natural fat and whether called a filet mignon in the USA or a fillet steak in the UK or a filet de bœuf in France they will be barded, wrapped in fat, before being cooked. Without the barding the steak would dry out. N.B. This cut should never be ordered well done. To see the post on ordering a steak in France cooked the way you like it click here.
     
A whole beef tenderloin (without any bone) may weigh anywhere from 1.3 kilos (2.5 lbs) to 2.3 kilos (4.5 lbs). In the USA most restaurants take the whole tenderloin beginning at the thickest end and cut 2" to 2.5" thick steaks until they reach the narrow end.  A large sized US Fillet Mignon steak is around eight ounces (225 grams). Some North American restaurants offer 10-ounce (280 gram) Filet Mignons.  
  


A whole tenderloin.
Photograph courtesy of Marx Foods.
   
The smallest part at the end of this cut, on the right-hand side in the picture above, is the French Filet Mignon, the dainty fillet.    Nevertheless, cuts taken from here will, in France, rarely be called Filet Mignon, rather they will on the menu as Médaillions, or used for the highest quality Steak Tartar or cut for dishes such as Beef Stroganov.  Whole tenderloins of pork and veal are much smaller, and it is for these that the French use the words Filet Mignon. A tenderloin, a Filet Mignon, from an average pig weighs about 500 grams (17.5 ounces, 1.1 lbs), and that is about enough for three people, two if they are very hungry.  A veal tenderloin weighs about 700 grams (24.5 ounces, 1.5 lbs), a fair sized meal for three.
    
Filet de Bœuf on French Menus:
   
Filet de Bœuf Poêlé, Jus de Cresson et Pommes Grenailles – A lightly fried fillet steak (tenderloin) served with a watercress sauce and small new potatoes.
   
A Filet de Bœuf.
  
Cœur de Filet de Bœuf Grillé, Sauce au Poivre Vert. A grilled center cut  from the heart, the center, of a beef tenderloin, served with a green pepper sauce,
  
Filet de Bœuf en Brochette Marchand de Vin – A beef fillet cut into cubes and served on a skewer with a Sauce Marchand de Vin; that is a sauce prepared for a wine merchant. A beef fillet served this way allows the use of the thin end of the tenderloin, the French Beef Filet Mignon which may be cut into small pieces. A Sauce Marchand de Vin is made with red wine and beef stock. N.B. The word brochette with two tees may easily be confused with brochet, with one tee, which is pike, the fish.
  
Filet de Bœuf, Sauce au Porto, Fricassée de Cèpes, Pleurotes et Champignons de Paris – A beef fillet served with a Port wine sauce and a stew of wild Porcini mushrooms and farmed oyster and button mushrooms
   
Médaillons de Filet de Bœuf Balsamique – Round cuts from the end of the tenderloin (medallions) served with a Balsamic vinegar sauce.
   
  
Médaillons de Filet de Bœuf
These three cuts together will weigh less than 6 or 7 ounces,
(170 to 200 grams).
Photograph courtesy of www.boeufinfo.org/

Tartare de Filet Mignon de Bœuf –  A Beef or Steak Tartar. The best Tartar will be cut from the end of the tenderloin, no better cut could be used for a steak Tartar
   
     
French beef comes from freely grazing grass-fed cattle
  
There are cattle feeding lots in France, but they are few and far between.  When the beef on your menu is named and it has a Red Label or an AOP then you know it is farm raised. You also know the calves were raised by their mother until they were weaned. The cattle graze freely in the summer and only in the winter are they allowed into barns. In the barns they are fed the same grasses, wildflowers and herbs they grazed on in the summer.   French beef will, therefore, be tastier, though it may also be slightly tougher as the cattle will have had more exercise. French beef may be well marbled but overall has less fat than beef sold in the USA.
   
You will nevertheless, see Filet Mignon on French Menus:
     
Filet Mignon de Porc aux Pêches, Miel, Amandes et Son Jus au Romarin – A pork tenderloin prepared with peaches, honey, almonds and a sauce made from the natural cooking juices and Rosemary, the herb.
 
Filet Mignon de Porc Jus a l'EstragonA filet mignon or pork served with a sauce made from the natural cooking juices and tarragon.
 
Filet Mignon De Veau Charolais, Son Jus Aux Escargots Du Brionnais Et Porto Rouge – A cut from a tenderloin of Charolaise veal served with a sauce made from the natural cooking juices and large-sized farmed petit gris snails, from the area of the Saône and the Loire in South Burgundy, and a red Port wine. The AOP Charolaise cattle were the third breed to receive an AOC to protect their provenance and unique qualities. To that French AOC has been added the Pan-European AOP.
 
Filet Mignon De Veau, Fricassée De Rattes Et Eryngii, Sauce Au Vin Rouge Et Morilles – A  veal filet mignon alongside a stew of ratte potatoes and farmed King Trumpet Oyster mushrooms served with a sauce made with red wine and wild morel mushrooms. (Ratte are a popular strain of potatoes in France.  Their name comes from their spurious resemblance to a mouse or a rat; rest assured that their look has nothing to do with their taste which is superb).
  
Ratte Potatoes.
  
More French confusion in US Kitchens
  
Another example of confusion with the use of French in the US kitchen is the use of the word entrée. Entrée in French means “the entrance, the beginning.”  Following on that entrée in France is used for the first course. In the USA they took the French word entrée and use it for the main course!
   
George Bernard Shaw said:  England and America are two countries separated by a common language.  However, Shaw ignored the confusion that arises when US chefs and butchers take words from French cuisine and bring them into the American kitchen.

A tenderloin steak in the languages of France’s neighbors: 

(Catalan – llom de bou), (Dutch - ossenhaas), (German – rinderfilet), (Italian - filetto di manzo), (Spanish  -  filete de lomo ).
   
Connected Posts:
    
 
 

  
 
 
   
   
 
 
  
   
   
   
  
   
   
 
  
   

Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

 

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

 

Copyright 2010, 2016.

Darphin, Paillasson, Dauphine and Dauphinois on French Menus.

from
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

 



Pomme de Terre Darphin - Potatoes Darphin
   
and Pommes Paillasson.
   
Darphin or Paillasson Potatoes. A dish originally only made with thickly grated potatoes. The traditional Pommes de Terre Darphin are grated potatoes are dipped in egg, flavored with salt, pepper, and herbs and fried like a thick pancake. In the South-West of  France, these Darphins  may be fried in duck fat. T The thickness and extra crispy finish make the final potato pancake clearly different to Röstis and Latkes.  Pommes de Terre Darphin will be on many menus and are not to be confused with other dishes using the slightly similar sounding name of Dauphine. The same dish may be on another menu as Pommes Paillasson or Paillasson de Pomme de Terre which translates as a door-mat of potatoes; that name refers to the desired thickness of the grated potatoes.
 
Darphin recipes have moved on

Today’s Darphin dishes are no longer restricted to thickly grated potatoes. A menu may now offer a Darphin de Celery made with thickly grated celery.  Other menus may offer a Darphin de Topinambour, a dish made with thickly grated Artichaut de Jérusalem, Jerusalem artichokes. I have been told that this dish was originally a specialty of Lyon but who initially gave the name Darphin to this recipe I have still not discovered.
     
Darphin and Paillasson on French Menus:
 
Darphin de Saumon –  Salmon cooked together with the thickly grated potatoes,
   
Carré D'agneau au Thym et Miel, Pommes Darphin et Son Fagot d'Haricots Verts –  Rack of lamb prepared with thyme and honey and served with potatoes Darphin and a bundle of France’s favorite fresh green beans.
    
Esturgeon, Sauce Vin Rouge, Pommes de Terre Darphin et Topinambour. - Sturgeon, the fish, prepared with a red wine sauce and served with potatoes and Jerusalem artichokes Darphin.
   
Galette de Légumes Anciens Façon Darphin –  A thick vegetable pancake made in the traditional manner of Darphins..
   

Faux-Filet et Pomme de Terre Darphin
  
Le Filet de Bœuf, Darphin Pomme-Céleri et Crème Noisette- A beef fillet steak, a beef tenderloin, accompanied by a celery and potatoes Darphin served with a creamy hazelnut sauce.
  
Maigre Poêlé Pommes Darphin, Sauce Bacon Meagre, Salmon Bass lightly fried with potatoes Darphin and served with a bacon flavored sauce.
   

Mignon de Veau Rôti, Pomme Paillasson, Beignet de Fleur de Courgette et Crème de Parmesan – A cut from a roast veal tenderloin, the French Filet Mignon, served with Pommes Paillasson, deep fried stuffed courgette flowers (the USA zucchini), all served with a cream of Parmesan sauce.
  
Pommes de Terre Dauphine
    
A Dauphiné  is a Dolphin
  
The Dauphiné  on the menu is not the mammal or even the dolphin fish. Dauphiné on French menus indicates recipes that originated in the departments of Savoie and Isère in the Rhone-Alps along with others from the department of Alpes-de-Haute-Provence in the region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur.

More than eight hundred years ago Dauphine was an independent state in the Southeast of modern France. There the ruling Counts, under the banner of the Holy Roman Empire used the title Dauphiné.  At the end of the 14th century, the Dauphinés sold their land and their titles to the French King. I believe they received an offer they could not refuse!

The centerpiece of their flag, the dolphin then became the hereditary title of the eldest son of the King of France and part of his standard (flag).
  
During the French Revolution, the province was divided into three departments: the Drôme and Isère in the Rhône-Alpes and  the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, in Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur.Later some of the Province's lands  were added to the department of Rhône also in the Rhône-Alpes.
    

The standard (flag) of the French King’s eldest son,
the Dauphiné.
 
The French King’s standard remained the fleur-de-lis, the flower, the lily of the valley. France ended up with more territory, and French restaurants ended up with Pommes de Terre Dauphine and other dishes.
    
Pommes de Terre Dauphine  -  Potatoes Dauphine are potato croquettes mixed with choux pastry, and fried.
   

Pommes de Terre Dauphine
 
Gratin Dauphinois – This is baked sliced potatoes cooked in milk and cream, flavored with nutmeg, garlic, thyme, and shallots and then browned under the grill usually with Gruyere or Parmesan cheese.
   

Gratin Dauphinois

Ravioles du Dauphiné – Small squares of pasta stuffed with white cheese, Comte, and Emmental cheese and served sautéed in butter. This ravioli while made in restaurants and private homes is also available commercially. The ravioli is made by a group of six producers who have been awarded a Label Rouge, the red label, for their consistent and unique quality and use of the original recipe.
   

Preparing Ravioles de Dauphine
Photograph courtesy of http://www.promenade-gourmande.fr
 
Dauphine dishes on French Menus:
 
Entrecôte Sauce au Poivre, Gratin Dauphinois et Salade Verte. -  A rib-eye steak in North America,  in the UK a rib-eye or fore-rib. This is a pepper steak served with Gratin Dauphinoise and a green salad. Pepper steaks are usually made with green pepper corns; they give the chef more control over the pepper taste.

Filet de Truite Saumonée Locale, Sauce Vierge, Ravioles du Dauphiné et Légumes.- A filet of local rainbow trout served with a sauce vierge, Dauphine Ravioli and vegetables.   Sauce Vierge  means a virgin sauce. The name comes from the use of virgin olive oil. Sauce Vierge will most usually be on your menu with fish dishes as is this.  As its name suggests it includes virgin olive oil and with the oil will be fresh tomatoes, garlic, lemon juice, basil, red wine vinegar, salt and black pepper. The sauce will be served slightly warm but not cooked as olive oil loses flavor when cooked. The sauce will be poured on the fish just before it is served.
 
Magret de Canard au Vinaigre de Framboise, Gratin Dauphinois Duck breast prepared with raspberry vinegar and served with Gratin Dauphinois
  
Ragoût de Lotte à la Crème Areilladou aux Ravioles du Dauphiné – A monkfish stew served with a cream of Areilladou sauce and Ravioles du Dauphiné. (Areilladou is a traditional fresh goat ‘s milk cheese from the Ardèche, the department in the region of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes).
 
Connected Posts:
 
 
 

 
 
 

 
 
 
  
 
 
 

      
 
  
  
   
   
   

Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

 

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

 

Copyright 2010, 2016.
 

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