Filet Mignon seared in garlic herb butter on the stove and finished in the oven is the best steak recipe that turns about perfect every time! I have never made, nor have I ever enjoyed, a better steak than this one.
Why this recipe works so well:
This is quite possibly my favorite dinner. Ever. That's a pretty bold statement from a girl who lives and breathes recipes.
- Each bite will deliver a crisp browned flavorful outside with a moist and tender middle.
- Fresh garlic and herbs infuse into the butter and all that flavor gets cooked into the steak.
- You can cook this steak exactly how you want it: rare, medium rare, medium, or (gasp) medium well and well done. All controlled with an accurate thermometer.
How to cook filet mignon:
The absolute best way to cook this cut of meat is to pan fry the steaks in high quality butter with fresh herbs and garlic. Once the steaks get a nice sear on both sides you will finish them off in a hot oven until they've reached the desired internal temperature.
- Set your steaks out at room temperature. Preheat your oven. Add the butter, smashed garlic cloves, and sprigs of fresh herbs to the pan (photo 1).
- Generously coat the both sides of the steaks with kosher salt and freshly ground pepper (photo 2).
- Heat a saute pan over medium high to high heat. You want the butter to melt and foam but not burn, so continue to move everything around to prevent burning (photo 3). Once the butter reaches this point, add the steaks.
- While the steaks are searing, use a spoon to continually pour the melted butter to the top of the steak. You want to infuse all of that flavor into the meat (photo 4).
- Once you've seared both sides to perfection, finish the Filet Mignon off in the oven (photo 5 & 6).
How long do you cook a Filet Mignon?
The total amount of time it takes to cook these steaks depends on a few factors:
- How thick are your steaks?
- What is the starting temperature of the meat (i.e. did you pull it straight from the fridge to the pan or did you let it come to room temperature first)?
- How hot can you get your garlic herb butter and pan without burning the butter? There are a few tips and tricks to this step... keep on reading to find out.
All in all, Filet Mignon cooks up in about 15 minutes, start to finish. It truly is an easy dinner recipe.
Internal temperatures:
Remove the filet mignon steaks from the oven when internal temperature is about 5°F below your desired doneness:
| Doneness | Color | Temperature |
|---|---|---|
| Rare | Cool red center | 125°F |
| Medium Rare | Warm red center | 135°F |
| Medium | Warm pink center | 145°F |
| Medium Well | Slightly pink center | 150°F |
| Well Done | Little or no pink | 160°F |
Remember: as long as you let the steaks rest in the hot pan, the temperature will continue to rise about 5 degrees.
Cooking tips for perfect results:
- Prior to cooking, take the steaks out of the refrigerator at least an hour before they hit the pan. If the steaks are cold when you cook them, the outside will cook much faster than the inside resulting in steaks that are usually over cooked on the outside and under cooked on the inside.
- When the steaks are added to the pan, they will reduce the temperature of the pan and help prevent your butter from burning. You still need to keep an eye on it and move the butter around so that it doesn't burn.
- Be sure to test with an accurate thermometer to guarantee that the steaks are cooked to your liking.
- For best results, buy steaks that are the same size and thickness. This will ensure they cook at the same rate. Otherwise you will need to test the temperature of each steak.
- Pull the filet mignon pan out of the oven a few degrees before they've reached their final temperature and allow them to rest in the pan for at least 5 minutes prior to serving.
- If you accidentally took the temperature too far, you will still need to allow the filet mignon to rest before cutting into them. Take them out of the hot pan to rest and transfer to a cutting board or plate. This will slow further cooking which would result in an overly done filet mignon.
Tenderloin is expensive.
But beef tenderloin steaks are absolutely worth the cost every so often for a special treat or for a holiday dinner.
Filet Mignon is expensive because it is arguably the most tender cut of beef. It is super tender because it is not a weight-bearing muscle and contains less connective tissue, thus making it more tender.
Tender beef is desirable beef. Desirable beef is expensive beef. The fact that beef tenderloin is a relatively small cut compared to other beef cuts adds to the hefty price as well. If you're looking for a less expensive steak, T-Bone Steaks are another great option.
Worth it. So worth it.
Side dish recommendations:
- You can't go wrong with perfectly cooked Baked Potatoes (hint: they are outstanding when you make them in the Instant Pot)
- Don't want baked potatoes? Go the extra mile and make Garlic Herb Mashed Potatoes
- You can't enjoy Filet Mignon without a dark green vegetable. What's more perfect than Garlic Parmesan Oven Roasted Asparagus?
- You can't go wrong with serving up an every day salad alongside your steak.
Did you make this recipe? Please leave me a comment below! I love to hear from my readers.
Filet Mignon
CLICK TO PLAY RECIPE VIDEO
Ingredients
- 16 ounces filet mignon (2 steaks, about 2 inches thick, room temperature)
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper (freshly ground)
- 2 tablespoons butter (Kerrygold recommended)
- 2 cloves garlic (smashed)
- 2 sprigs rosemary
- 2 sprigs thyme
Instructions
- Take steaks out of refrigerator about an hour before you plan to cook them to allow them to come to room temperature. Coat both sides with salt and pepper. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
- Add butter, garlic, rosemary and thyme to oven safe stainless steel or cast iron pan.
- Heat over medium high to high heat. You want the pan to be as hot as you can get it without burning the butter. Allow butter to melt, swirling frequently to prevent burning. The more you move the butter around, the less it will burn.
- As soon as the butter is melted, add both steaks to hot pan. Sear 2-3 minutes on both sides, constantly spooning the hot butter onto the steaks, and only turn once after they get nicely browned. Do not let the butter burn - keep it moving. Insert thermometer into thickest part of steak and transfer pan with steaks to hot oven.
- Finish cooking in hot oven. Remove when internal temperature reaches 120 degrees F for rare, 125 degrees F for medium rare, and 130 degrees F for medium. This should take around 10 minutes. Allow steaks to rest in pan for at least 5 minutes (temperature should rise another 5 degrees).
Notes
Cooking tips for perfect results:
- I can't stress enough how important it is to let your steaks come to room temperature before cooking. These are thick cut and if they're super cold in the middle, you risk over cooking the outside before the middle is done. Prior to cooking, take the steaks out of the refrigerator at least an hour before they hit the pan.
- When the steaks are added to the pan, they will reduce the temperature of the pan and help prevent your butter from burning. You still need to keep an eye on it and move the butter around so that it doesn't burn.
- Be sure to test with an accurate thermometer to guarantee that the steaks are cooked to your liking.
- For best results, buy steaks that are the same size and thickness. This will ensure they cook at the same rate. Otherwise you will need to test the temperature of each steak.
- Pull them out of the oven a few degrees before they've reached their final temperature and allow them to rest in the pan for at least 5 minutes prior to serving.
- If you accidentally took the temperature too far, you will still need to allow them to rest before cutting into them, but take them out of the hot pan to rest. This will slow further cooking which would result in an overly done filet mignon.
- The best type of pan is either cast iron or a high quality stainless steal. Just be sure it is oven safe.
NUTRITION INFORMATION
This post was originally published in January 2019 and has been updated with more information and cooking tips. Don't worry - I would never touch the recipe!
Beth
I’ve made this recipe twice now. I serve it with a salad and sautéed mushrooms. It’s a winner!
Dotty
I want to make this for the first time. I don't have fresh herbs. Can I use fresh garlic and bottled herbs or do you recommend leaving the rosemary and thyme out altogether?
Krissy
Dried herbs are better than no herbs. Just don't use as much as fresh!
Russ
I used the filet recipe on 2/14 and was not sure about cooking on stove top and finishing in the oven, as I usually grill steaks on a green egg, but this was excellent. The steaks were on the larger side but came out perfect medium rare at 135 degrees. Best steak I have every cooked and I have cooked a lot! Very easy to do also. Excellent!!
Natalie
This was literally the BEST steak we have ever had. Be sure to get Prime cut. You won’t regret it.
James E. Aaron
I didnt know alot of cooking things but after I tried yours and it came out great, I am glad I read this a head of cooking, Thanks
Catherine Gove
I didn’t have the herbs, but did everything the recipe said to do.
It was perfect and easy! The filets were the best EVER!
I can’t say enough about the ease of the recipe and the end result is more than you could hope for! Kudos!!!
Kari
Yes…yes….YES! I made it exactly as detailed above and it turned out Ah-mazing!! My 10 year old finished his before the rest of us started. And my kids eat slower than imaginable. My husband LOVED it. I am not a cook, and honestly don’t really get into it. But this made me look like a professional!
Eric
Excellent recipe I made this last night for my Wife and Son.
Everyone loved it great secret to keep moving butter around.
I You
Barbara
Oh my God, this is SO good! I was a little skeptical that the filets would get done since they were quite thick, but they came out absolutely perfect and tasted incredible! Thank you for the recipe, I'll be making it again very soon as I still have a couple filets left 🙂
Shawna
Was Soo good. My mom said it was one of the best! That makes me happy. This is a great way to cook them. Smoked up the whole house but was worth it. Haha.
Chris
Followed instructions to a create one of the best meals my family can remember. The spices perfectly complimented the tenderness of this wonderful cut of beef. Wow, going to have trouble topping this one.
Thank you for the recipe.
chi_town60608
I can't find an answer to my question for cooking for large groups. Say I have 8 people coming and they want a steak dinner. What is the best process for searing 8 steaks? I don't have 3 or 4 cast iron skillets. I have 1. Do I sear 2-3 in the pan and then empty out the contents, ie the butter, garlic, oil, etc and towel clean it and then repeat the steps until they're all seared? Or do I keep using the same pan and adding more butter, garlic, and herbs to the pan for each batch? That's my only question and all of the videos and posts about how to cook for a group never addresses that issue.
Krissy
Do you have a large 12" skillet? I think you could get at least 4 steaks in there assuming your burner is large enough to provide even heat. I would use the same pan to sear all of them in batches and then finish all of them off in the oven at the same time. You'll just need to use a large cast iron vessel that you preheat in the oven because you want it to be hot when you add the steaks. Just be sure not to crowd when you sear but it's probably okay to have them a bit closer in the oven.
Candy Taylor
A keeper! So tender juicy and tasty!
Alice
Thank you thank you and thank you. Had never even considered cooking a filet mignon, never thought I was skilled enough of a cook. Received 2 filets as a gift and my mother asked I cook them. So easy with your recipe, even though I was freaking out while cooking but they were delicious
Krissy
I always get nervous when I cook expensive cuts of meat. Glad you enjoyed the recipe!
Patrick Hopkins
Great recipe. Recomended out of oven, temps right on the mark. You forgot to mention oven temp. Used 400 deg f. Turned out perfect. Thanks!
Krissy
Hi Patrick. In step 1 I say to preheat oven to 400°F, so you were right on the money!
Bob
Hi. I also arrived here looking for temp. It appears to be an oversight. Step 1 just says preheat your oven. No temp given.
Krissy
Hi Bob, you were looking at the high level summary within the post. The printable recipe card at the bottom of the post has all the specifics, including preheating the oven to 400°F.
Betty Olsen
Betty and 71 yrs old and just mastering steaks. with your recipe. I told my son it would have been nice to have google years ago. Thank you! Very very very good
Linda
Absolutely perfect Great instructions
SHaron
First time I’VE done steaks in cast iron skillet & they turned out great-I will definitely use this recipe again! Thanks!
Amy
I NEVER leave reviews but this is the best recipe I’ve found to make the perfect steaks. I finally broke down and bought a cast iron skillet for this and I’m glad I did. The steak was so tender and so flavorful. I used garlic, butter and rosemary sprigs and omitted the thyme. When I plated the steak I used the rosemary sprigs as garnish on top of the steaks. This recipe will be in heavy rotation and I’ll definitely be using this to impress any guest.
Michele
Awesome recipe, perfect instructions - thank you! It was the best filet I ever made.