RCP: Basil Beef & Fingerlings with Olive Oil and Coarse Salt

Here's another delicious recipe from Laura Calder's French Food at Home show on the Canadian Food Network. You can even watch her make it at http://www.foodnetwork.ca/recipes/Main/Beef/recipe.html?dishID=10304. It was very refreshing on a hot summer night, accompanied by cold asparagus in a lemon-mustard-tarragon vinaigrette and an Alsatian Gewurztraminer.

Note that on the show, she just sears the outside in a little olive oil, rather than roasting the meat in the oven.

Basil Beef & Fingerlings with Olive Oil and Coarse Salt
Serves 4

Ingredients
2 pounds beef filet at room temperature
1 cup olive oil
Grated zest of 1 lemon
Juice of 2 lemons
Several fistfuls of basil leaves, chopped
Fleur de sel and pepper
2 pounds fingerling potatoes, scrubbed
Coarse salt, for the water
A generous dribble of olive oil (for the potatoes)
Fleur de sel and freshly ground pepper (for the potatoes)

Directions
1. For the beef: Heat the oven to 375°F/180°C. Roast the meat 15 minutes. Alternatively, heat a little olive oil in a pan and sear the beef on all sides. Remove, and cool. Thinly slice with a sharp knife. Mix the oil, lemon zest and juice, and basil. Toss with the meat in a glass casserole. Season, and spread the mixture out, cover, and refrigerate all day or overnight, turning once or twice. Serve at room temperature.

2. For the potatoes: Bring a large pot of water to the boil. Salt it, as you would for pasta. Add the potatoes, and cook until tender when you test them with a fork. Drain. Toss in olive oil. Season with salt and pepper, and serve.

3. For the plate: Plate some beef and potatoes side by side on a plate and enjoy!

[Jenise]

Boy does THAT sound good, Ted. Would be a great use for my basil, which I am growing more of than I can use. Kind of a seared beef ceviche, as it were?

Kind of a seared beef ceviche, as it were?

Exactly. I think of it as a cross between [very] rare roast beef and carpaccio. I forgot to mention that the meat is extremely tender, but I'm not sure how much that's the cut of meat (I splurged on good quality tenderloin) and how much it's the 18 hour marinating.

Ted, is it safe for me to assume that I'll get reasonable results with traditional sea salt in place of the Fleur de sel?

Ted, is it safe for me to assume that I'll get reasonable results with traditional sea salt in place of the Fleur de sel?

I'm sure any differences would be subtle. Fleur de del may be a little softer than regular sea salt, that's all.

Ted -

How thin did you need to slice the beef? I understand we're not talking carpaccio here, but I'm assuming you'd still want it fairly thin.

Thanks for posting this - looks great.

Ted -

How thin did you need to slice the beef? I understand we're not talking carpaccio here, but I'm assuming you'd still want it fairly thin.

I sliced it as thin as I could; in fact thinner than she did in the video. It's not easy to get even slices, though, since the meat is warm, or at room temperature. I suspect it doesn't matter a lot.

[Jenise]

Ted, is it safe for me to assume that I'll get reasonable results with traditional sea salt in place of the Fleur de sel?

As Ted said, yes. Frankly, it would be a waste to use fleur de sel in any way except a finishing salt. For cooking the potatoes? Kosher or regular table salt will be just as good.

[Jenise]

Ted, not to mess around with your recipe, but I'm thinking how good that beef would be served on thin slices of toasted baguette, as a bruscetta.

Just to add, this sounds like one of the better uses I've seen for beef filet recently. It's not something I generally get real excited about given the cost-to-flavor ratio. Serving it nearly raw with the lemon and basil sounds like it might be worth the tariff.

[Jenise]

Just to add, this sounds like one of the better uses I've seen for beef filet recently. It's not something I generally get real excited about given the cost-to-flavor ratio. Serving it nearly raw with the lemon and basil sounds like it might be worth the tariff.

Just what I was thinking. In this prep, the luxurious texture would be king where as, fully cooked, filet can lack the flavor many of us prefer from other cuts.

Nice quote from a favourite TV cook "I have a lovely tenderloin....'

I've done this and I put the filet in the freezer as I would for carpaccio, until it just firmed up - makes it much easier to slice properly

The basil makes this dish. Although I'd tend to say that her recipe falls a little short of serving 4 dedicated carnivores - I mean geez, only 8 oz. per person??

This is a really nice variation on very rare beef with oil, Dijon mustard and capers.

PS - one interesting variation is to add a dash of balsamic to the marinade.

[Jenise]

Bill, here's how knowing you has changed me: I looked at this recipe and immediately thought of switching out the potatoes for crusty baguette slices for "bocce food".

I am a willing Guinea pig.....

The basil makes this dish. Although I'd tend to say that her recipe falls a little short of serving 4 dedicated carnivores - I mean geez, only 8 oz. per person??

Surely you jest.

I’m thinking this would be a perfect application for skirt or flank steak instead of filet. Seared for a couple of min on each side over charcoal or wood? Yum....

Richard

I’m thinking this would be a perfect application for skirt or flank steak instead of filet. Seared for a couple of min on each side over charcoal or wood? Yum....

I think that would really change the character of the dish. What really makes this dish is that the meat is meltingly tender. That's partly due to the marinade, but partly due to being a tender cut of meat to start with. I think skirt or flank would be too tough (relatively speaking). Let us know, though, if you try it.