How to Cook Filet Mignon

What is a Filet Mignon?

First referenced in 1906’s “The Four Million,” by O. Henry, the “dainty fillet” was a main course employed throughout the novel underscoring moments of romance between two lovers. Now, more than a hundred years later, fillet de bouef is still found at the center of our most intimate evenings — whether it’s a romantic Valentine’s Day in the finest of dining establishments or a rustic date night for two over the flames of a backyard barbeque.

​The filet mignon has grown to be one of the most popular steak cuts and the most tender you can find anywhere. Cut from the heart of the beef tenderloin, it’s an elegant steak with fork-tender texture and mild flavor. It’s a steak cut that is designed to impress. If you’re planning to order filet mignon online, you can learn more about the filet mignon and how it’s hand-carved by our master butcher’s in our Butcher’s Guide.

Selecting the Best Filet Mignon to Grill

To deliver a phenomenal steak dinner, it’s critical to start with an incredible cut of beef. For more than a century, Omaha Steaks has hand-selected only the finest grain-finished beef. Our steak is carefully chosen for exquisite marbling, aged at least 28 days for maximum tenderness, and expertly trimmed by master butchers. We offer four incredible cuts of filet mignon – bacon-wrapped, Butcher’s Cut (double trimmed), Triple-Trimmed®, and Private Reserve®. Learn how we select and deliver the best beef in the world.

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Before You Start Cooking Filet Mignon

Prep Your Filet Mignon

No matter which cooking method you choose, you’ll first want to prep and season your filet mignon. Completely thaw your steak overnight in the refrigerator or thaw faster using the quick-thaw method. Before cooking, pat your steaks dry with a paper towel, lightly oil, and season liberally with coarse sea salt and fresh cracked black pepper or your favorite Omaha Steaks Seasoning. After seasoning, allow the steak to come to room temperature before cooking.

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Determine Your Desired Steak Temperature Doneness

The easiest way to ensure your filet mignon has reached doneness perfection is to follow our steak cooking chart, which was created and tested by our team of expert chefs. For an even easier and more simplified cooking process, check out our Omaha Steaks mobile app with a built-in steak and cooking timer. The helpful interactive timer guides you through each cooking method, highlighting all you need to know to create mouthwatering results at home.

Ideal Filet Mignon Doneness

For an incredibly tender filet mignon experience, our chefs recommend cooking your steak to a rare to medium-rare doneness. Filet mignon has less marbling than other steak cuts, so the steak can dry out if you overcook it. To measure doneness using a meat thermometer, rare is 120°F, with a cool to warm red center, and medium-rare is 130°F, with a warm red center and perfect steak texture.

Make Sure Your Steak is Done the Way You Like It

Our comprehensive steak doneness guide will help you understand the way the texture, flavor, and juiciness of your steak are affected by its doneness level, so you can make sure you cook your filet mignon just the way you like it.

Six Best Ways to Cook Filet Mignon

There are multiple approaches to cooking a filet mignon and each method brings out that perfectly mild beefy flavor in unique ways.

• On the Grill
• Sous Vide
• Reverse-Sear
• Sear Roast
• Pan-Sear
• Air Fry

How to Grill a Filet Mignon

Grilling is a fast, dry-heat method perfect for cooking juicy steak. The grill creates a flavorful crust on the outside while the center of the filet remains tender and succulent. Not sure how long to grill a filet? Whether you choose gas or charcoal? Don your apron and grab your tongs, our comprehensive grilling guide is what you need to assume the grill master title. It’s important to remember to preheat your grill first to allow it to heat up enough to cook your filet mignon at the optimal temperature.

STEP 1: Pat dry, lightly oil, and season the Omaha Steaks Filet Mignon with coarse sea salt and black pepper or Omaha Steaks Seasoning. Bring to room temperature.

STEP 2: Preheat your gas or charcoal grill to medium-high heat. Oil grill grates immediately before grilling. We recommend using tongs with a paper towel soaked in oil and rubbing the grill grates to ensure your steak doesn’t stick.

STEP 3: How long do you grill a filet mignon? The length of time on the grill will depend on the thickness of the steak. Our easy to use cooking chart provides grilling time based on the thickness of your steak – no more guessing when to flip! Or use the Omaha Steaks app with a built-in cooking timer. To use our cooking app, simply enter the steak cut and size, desired doneness, and start the timer. You will be alerted when it’s time to flip and when your steak is done. Use a meat thermometer to check internal temperate and remove your steak from the grill when it reaches 5°F below your desired final doneness.

STEP 4: Rest filet mignon 5-10 minutes, add compound butter, and enjoy!

Filet Mignon Grilling Chart

How to Sous Vide Filet Mignon

Sous vide is a foolproof cooking method that is used in many high-end restaurants to ensure every steak served is juicy, tender, and perfectly cooked. Sous vide cooks your meat to exactly the ideal temperature, but without a crisp crust. Because of this, properly searing your sous vide filet mignon is necessary.

STEP 1: Prep the immersion cooker. Fill a large pot with warm water and attach the immersion cooker. Set the water temperature to 5-10 degrees below your desired doneness.

STEP 2: Season the filet mignon and, if desired, add butter, garlic cloves, and fresh herbs and vacuum-seal each steak or place in a heavy-duty food safe plastic bag. Alternately, place your frozen or thawed steaks directly into the immersion cooker in the original vacuum-sealed Omaha Steaks packaging for quick and easy steak cooking. Our vacuum-sealed packaging is SAFE for sous vide. Season your steak right before searing.

STEP 3: Sous vide for one hour for up to two steaks and two hours for more than two steaks.

STEP 4: Remove the filet mignon from the bag and pat dry with a paper towel to remove excess moisture.

STEP 5: Heat a skillet on medium-high heat and add a high smoke point oil, like grapeseed, ghee, or canola.

STEP 6: When the pan is HOT, add the filet mignon and sear for about 2 minutes per side, flipping every 30 seconds, until a nice crust forms. Add your butter, garlic cloves and fresh herbs near the end of searing and baste by tilting your pan to the side and spooning the melted butter over the filet mignon.

STEP 7: Remove from heat and let rest under tented foil for 5-10 minutes.

​How to Sear Roast Filet Mignon

Cooking a thick steak, like filet mignon, can be intimidating, as well as tricky, because it’s very easy to burn the outside before the inside reaches the desired doneness. The beauty of sear-roasting a filet mignon is you can get a nice even sear on the outside and a juicy, perfectly cooked steak on the inside.

STEP 1: Thaw filet mignon, pat dry, lightly oil, and season with coarse sea salt and black pepper or Omaha Steaks Seasoning. Once seasoned, allow your steaks to come to room temperature before cooking. This allows the meat to cook more evenly from edge to center.

STEP 2: Preheat your skillet on medium-high/high heat for 3-4 minutes.You want your skillet HOT! to create a beautiful crust on your steak. Use an oven-safe skillet – nothing fancy is needed to achieve a perfect pan-seared filet mignon. An all-purpose stainless-steel pan with a metal handle or a well-seasoned cast-iron pan are great options. However, any skillet with an oven-safe designation will suffice. While your pan is heating, preheat your oven to 300°F.

STEP 3: Now that your filet mignon is seasoned and your pan is preheated, it’s time to get cooking! Add about 1-3 tablespoons of oil or fat to the preheated skillet. Grapeseed oil, canola oil, ghee, duck, or pork fat are good choices, as they all have a high smoke point. Let the oil get hot – you should see shimmering in the oil, or even a few wisps of smoke. Carefully place the steak in pan and sear just one side for 2-3 minutes or until well browned. You do not need to sear the other side. Simply, flip the steak, add butter, a few crushed cloves of garlic and a sprig of fresh thyme or rosemary, then place the pan on the lower rack in a preheated oven.

STEP 4: Once you’ve seared your steak and added aromatics, place the oven-safe skillet on the center rack of your preheated 300°F oven. Use our steak sear roasting cooking chart and steak temperature guide to help with this last cooking step. Cook the steak in the oven until your steak reaches your desired doneness as measured with a meat thermometer. For the best steak experience, our chefs recommend medium-rare doneness with a warm red center and an internal temperature of 130°F.

STEP 5: Remove the steaks from the pan and let them rest under tented foil for 5 to 10 minutes before slicing.

How to Pan-Sear a Filet Mignon

Pan-searing is a quick and easy way to cook your filet mignon indoors that gives your steak a tender middle surrounded by a great seared crust. This high-heat cooking technique delivers mouthwatering steak and restaurant-quality results at home. When pan-searing, it’s important to carefully monitor doneness to avoid overcooking. The steak will cook faster than reverse-sear or sear roast methods, which slowly bring your filet mignon to the desired temperature. Use a cast iron skillet and butter baste with garlic and fresh herbs for a wide range of cooking versatility and incredible flavor.

STEP 1: Pat steaks dry with a paper towel, lightly oil, and season with coarse sea salt and fresh ground black pepper or Omaha Steaks Seasoning. Allow the filet mignon to come to room temperature for even cooking.

STEP 2: Preheat an oven-safe skillet on medium-high/high heat for at least 5 minutes. If you are using a cast iron skillet, you will need to preheat the pan for at least 10 minutes. You want your skillet HOT! This will create a beautiful crust on your steak.

STEP 3: Add high smoke point oil or fat to the preheated skillet. Grapeseed oil, canola oil, ghee, duck, or pork fat are good choices. Let the oil or fat get hot – you should see shimmering in the oil, or even a few wisps of smoke. Now, place the filet mignon in the searing hot pan.

STEP 4: Cook both sides of the steak evenly. It’s okay to flip more than once. We recommend using the Omaha Steaks app with cooking timer or this pan-searing steak cooking chart for effortless cooking.

STEP 5: Basting your steak will add moisture to the surface and infuse the flavors from the aromatics and butter into your filet mignon. To baste, add butter, crushed garlic cloves, and fresh thyme or rosemary to the pan and allow to melt. Then, tilt the skillet toward you, using an oven mitt and with a large spoon, continually baste the steak with the butter in the pan. Continue basting until butter smells nutty and is beginning to brown, about one minute.

STEP 6: Remove steaks from the pan and allow to rest 5-10 minutes. Add a compound butter or drizzle the melted butter from basting and enjoy!

How to Air Fry Filet Mignon

Cooking filet mignon in the air fryer is an incredibly simple and easy way to have mouthwatering steak in a flash. Air frying is the perfect combination of a delicious crust accomplished through pan-searing and the ease of cooking steak in the oven.

STEP 1: Pat steaks dry with a paper towel, lightly oil, and season with coarse sea salt and fresh ground black pepper or Omaha Steaks Seasoning. Allow to come to room temperature before air frying.

STEP 2: Preheat air fryer to 400°F.

STEP 3: Once preheated, place seasoned filet mignon in air fryer basket leaving 1 inch between portions. The air needs to circulate in the air fryer for a nice, crispy crust on all sides.

STEP 4: Most steak cuts cook to medium-rare doneness in 10-14 minutes. Check out our air fryer steak cooking chart and monitor internal temperature with a meat thermometer to achieve your desired doneness.

STEP 5: Remove your filet mignon from the air fryer and let rest 5-10 minutes before serving.

Always Rest Your Filet Mignon

It’s tempting to slice into your steak right away, but it’s worth the wait. Let your cooked steak rest 5-10 minutes after removing from the heat to allow the juices to redistribute for an incredibly tender and juicy filet mignon.

After your filet mignon is rested don’t forget these important finishing touches to help maximize the taste and add decadent richness to the steak.

Filet Mignon Finishing Touches: Compound Butter or Steak Pan Sauce

No matter what method you use to cook your filet mignon, this mild-flavored steak is a perfect companion for rich toppings. Try our ready-to-use Butcher’s Steak Butter or make your own with one of these recipes:

• Bourbon Bacon Butter
• Smoky Bacon Butter
• Garlic Herb Butcher’s Butter

Or, whip up Chef David Rose’s delicious steak pan sauce using the pan drippings.

Serve a Steakhouse-Style Filet Mignon Dinner

Serve your perfectly cooked filet mignon with a vegetable or potato side dish, delicious dessert, and red wine. Or try one of these 18 epic steakhouse-style recipes for an elegant and delicious steak dinner at home.