How to Clean and Trim Filet Mignon
A step-by-step guide to cleaning and trimming a whole beef tenderloin — removing silverskin and portioning into perfect filet mignon steaks the easy way.
Yield: 10 steaks
Cost: 130
Equipment
- 1 (Help support our site!)Cutting Board
- 1 Pairing Knife
- 1 (Help support our site!)Chefs Knife
Materials
- 1 whole Filet Mignon Pismo is the Terminology used for the meat cut.
Instructions
- Gather, clean, wash all ingredients and let's take it to the board.
- Using a knife, open the cryovac package and place the filet on a towel to avoid fluids from going all over your table and discard packaging.
- Using your towel, pat dry and place filet on your board.
- Begin by peeling the skin downward to get to the outer chain of the filet. You can use your knife if needed.
- Once you remove outer skin place your finger between the Filet Meat and the chain, run your finger down to the bottom of the Filet Mignon.
- Once you have made a grove take your chef's knife and begin to cut the chain off of the actual meat.
- Separate the chain and set aside for later cleaning.
- Next using your fingers grasp the outer skin and in a downward motion remove the outer skin. It will peel right off exposing the Silver skin.* Silver skin is the membrane of the connective tissue that cannot be eaten.
- Using your pairing knife, simply slide knife under the silver skin making sure to have your blade facing upward towards the silver skin to avoid cutting out any excess meat.
- You will see about a 4-6 inch silver skin, you remove it using your pairing knife in strips. Taking your time and use the skin as a guide for your knife.
- Once you are completely done you will have a smooth membrane free filet. You can then clean off any excess fat off the sides of the meat.* Remember it is always good to retain some fat which will dissolve in the cooking process creating flavor.
- Turn meat over and begin to clean the excess fat on the bottom. They look like square boxes, remove all the way down to the tail end.
- This is what the outcome of the clean bottom should be. You are basically done cleaning of the filet mignon. Now lets clean the chain.
- Bring the chain and lets extract the meat.
- Using a chef's knife begin to work around the larger end of the chain. just begin to pull and cut skin off and you will begin to see the meat chunks.
- Feel free to separate with knife also use your knife to cut excess fat from meat.
- When finished you will have your Filet Mignon cleaned and ready for use and two extra pieces for another dish.
- The two extract pieces of meat that you can cut into pieces and use for steak fajitas, beef satays, dice it up and throw it into chili recipe or simply dice it and feed your favorite four legged friend.
- The total yield of meat to scrap is about 3 to 4 lbs. of waste. This is determined by the quality of meat you buy according to FDA types. No Roll, Choice or Prime.
