Trimming a beef fillet and cutting tournedos

The preparation of the fillet belongs to the classical Parisian kitchen codified by Auguste Escoffier in Le Guide Culinaire, where the cuts of the beef fillet are fixed by name and by weight. The tradition is that of the grande cuisine of the brigade, in which the butcher's work and the cook's work meet at the station of the rôtisseur and the grillardin. The fillet is the central muscle of the loin, and the tournedos, the filet mignon and the chateaubriand are its cuts, each tied to the garnishes and sauces that the Guide assigns to them.

The fillet is the psoas major of the ox (Bos taurus), lying beneath the loin and along the spine, and it is the most tender muscle of the animal because it does little work. It is trimmed of its chain, the strip of loose meat and fat along one side, then of its surface fat and the silverskin, the glistening sinew that does not melt in cooking. The thick centre yields the chateaubriand, and the part beside it yields the tournedos, cut across the grain as round pieces of even thickness, commonly about 3 cm (1¼ in) and about 120 to 150 g (4 to 5 oz) each. The thin tail serves for filet mignon, for tips in sauce, or for tartare, and the head is kept for roasting whole or for pieces of less regular shape. Each tournedos is tied with a turn of string so that it holds a round shape under heat.

The tournedos is served with garnishes that supply what the lean, mild meat lacks: richness, acidity and a contrast of texture. The Guide pairs it with bases of bread fried in butter, with foie gras and truffle sauce as in the Rossini, with artichoke bottoms, or with a Béarnaise, whose butter and tarragon vinegar cut across the meat. A red wine of firm structure, such as a mature Médoc or a Saint-Émilion, suits it, because its tannin is softened by the proteins and its acidity meets the butter of the sauce.