Reverse Seared Fillet Steak
Here’s how to cook a perfectly reverse seared fillet steak that’s super tender, full of flavour & pink from edge to edge!
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A perfectly cooked fillet steak is hard to beat! This is one of the most premium steaks that you can get from a cow & when cooked properly, it’s melt in your mouth tender.It’s like cutting butter! I’d really recommend visiting your local butcher to buy your fillet steak as this will be the best quality. Ask for one that’s nice and thick (at least an inch)! To make your steak extra flavourful, I’d recommend serving it with some of our roasted bone marrow butter (as shown in the photo above)!
Fillet steak is a prime cut of beef and is one of the most expensive cuts that you can buy. As such, it’s not a steak that we want to risk under or overcooking. Luckily, reverse searing guarantees success every single time. The meat will be perfectly cooked to your desired doneness (I like medium rare!) & the crust will be properly seared. If you want to cook a steak that’s pink from edge to edge, this is the way to do it!
For sides to serve with your steak, check out our ever growing collection of side dish recipes! There’s lots to choose from here, from triple cooked chips, to salads, homemade breads & lots more…
What You’ll Need
- Fillet Steaks – For reverse searing, you’ll need to use fillet steaks that are at least an inch thick. I used 8 ounce steaks but this method works with larger steaks as well.
- Salt & Pepper – Used to season the steaks before & after cooking. I like to use table salt to season the raw steaks & sea salt to finish once cooked. I use freshly cracked black pepper for both.
- Oil – You’ll need a small amount of veg oil to sear the steaks (or any oil with a high smoke point).
- Butter – I like to add some butter into the pan when searing the steaks as it helps give the steaks a really good, well browned crust. This is optional though.
- Garlic & Herbs – I also like to add some fresh garlic, rosemary & thyme in with the butter, for extra flavour.
How To Reverse Sear Fillet Steak
Reverse searing is the best way to cook a steak when you want it to be perfectly pink from edge to edge! This method does take a bit longer to cook steaks than just pan frying but the results speak for themselves. Steaks cooked by reverse searing are more tender & as they cook more slowly, there’s less chance of the meat become overcooked.
For those new to reverse searing, this is where steak (or larger joints of meat) is cooked at a low temperature; either in an oven or barbecue until it reaches your desired doneness then it’s seared in a smoking hot pan to finish. This is why it’s called reverse searing, because we sear the steak at the end rather than at the beginning.
Reverse Searing Step By Step
Seasoning The Steak
The first step is to take our steaks out of the fridge, season them generously with salt & pepper then let them sit at room temperature for 30 minutes. This is called tempering the steak & helps it cook more evenly. In the meantime, we preheat an oven to 120°c/250°f.
Cooking To Temperature
To cook our steaks, we place them onto a rack set inside a roasting tin (this helps with heat & air circulation in the oven which helps cook the steak more evenly) then cook gently until it reaches our desired doneness. It’s best to flip the steaks over every 10 minutes or so, which also helps with even cooking.
I like to cook my fillet steak medium rare, so I aim for a final internal temperature of 54°c/130°f once cooked. We need to take the steak out of the oven a couple degrees lower than this as the internal temperature will continue to rise after we take the steak out of the oven. Feel free to cook your steaks however you like though. There’s a full doneness/temperature guide below…
Searing
Once cooked, we let the steaks rest for 5 minutes or so, whilst we heat a frying pan up over a high heat, until it is smoking hot. We add a small amount of veg oil into the pan then sear the steaks for 1 – 1½ minutes on each side, flipping them over every 30 seconds. It’s key to get your pan really hot before searing so that the steaks get a proper sear.
I like to throw some butter, garlic & herbs into the pan after I’ve flipped the steak over once, to add flavour and to help with browning. This is optional though!
Slicing
Once cooked, there’s no need to rest the steaks. All we need to do is slice the meat against the grain then season with sea salt & freshly cracked black pepper.
Steak Internal Temperature Guide
Fillet steak contains very little fat so is best cooked either rare or medium but feel free to cook your’s however you like! You’ll need a digital food probe to check the steak’s internal temperature but these are readily available online. I use a Thermapen.
| Steak Doneness | Internal Temperature (To Stop Cooking) | Internal Temperature (After Resting) |
|---|---|---|
| Rare | 46°c/115°f | 48°c/120°f |
| Medium Rare | 52°c/125°f | 54°c/130°f |
| Medium | 58°c/136°f | 60°c/140°f |
| Medium Well | 63°c/145°f | 65°c/150°f |
| Well Done | 68°c/154°f | 70°c/158°f |
Tips & Tricks
- Use a thick cut fillet steak! Reverse searing works best with steaks that are at least an inch thick.
- Let your steak sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes before cooking. This is called tempering the steak & helps it cook more evenly.
- To cook your steak perfectly, use a digital food probe to check the meat’s internal temperature.
- For the best sear, get your pan smoking hot. Make sure to flip the steaks every 30 seconds to get an even.
- When slicing your steak, make sure to cut against the grain to make each slice as tender as possible.
Serving Suggestions
Fillet steak goes really well with flavoured butters, classic steak sauces (like peppercorn & Béarnaise), and other sides such as chips, salad, roasted veg, homemade bread & lots more! I served mine with some of my roasted bone marrow & marmite butter.
Frequently Asked Questions
Fillet steak will roughly take between 25-45 minutes to reverse sear, depending on the thickness of the meat. However, it’s best to cook to cook to temperature, not time so it’s best to check the steak’s internal temperature to avoid overcooking it!
To reverse sear steak in an Aga, cook the steak in the simmering oven on the second from bottom set of runners. Sear the steak on the boiling plate.
Reverse seared steaks don’t really need to rest because they’ve been cooked at such a low temperature. However, I like to give my steaks a quick 5 minute rest just before searing which gives us time to get our pan smoking hot.
Fillet steaks need to be sliced against the grain, to be as tender as possible. The grain runs the same way as the visible muscle fibres & cutting across them, shortens them making each slice more tender.
Fillet steak is a lean cut of beef so is best cooked either rare or medium rare. There’s very little fat in a fillet steak so cooking beyond medium rare can make it dry out.
Equipment Used
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More Dinner Recipes To Try!
- Black Garlic Hanger Steaks
- BBQ Lamb Kofta Meatballs
- Beef Wellington
- Nduja Stuffed Porchetta
- Rocket Pesto Gnocchi With Burrata
- Crispy Sriracha & Peanut Chicken Wings
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Reverse Seared Fillet Steak
Equipment
- Roasting Tin With Rack
- Large Frying Pan
- Digital Food Probe
Ingredients
- 2 8 oz Fillet Steaks (At Least 1 Inch Thick – See Notes)
- 1 tbsp Vegetable Oil
- 50 g Butter
- 4 Garlic Cloves
- 6 Sprigs Rosemary
- 6 Sprigs Thyme
Instructions
- First, take your steaks out of the fridge & season the outside generously with table salt & freshly cracked black pepper. Place the steaks onto a rack set inside a roasting tin then leave to sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes.
- In the meantime, preheat an oven to 120°c/100°c fan (250°f/212°f).
- Next, place the steaks into the preheated oven then cook until the internal temperature in the centre of each steak reaches 52°c/125°f. Make sure to flip the steaks over every 10 minutes or so. Total cooking time will be around 30 minutes, depending on the thickness of your steaks.This internal temperature is for medium rare steaks. If you'd prefer a different cooking method, there's a temperature guide in the post above.
- Once cooked, let your steaks rest for 5 minutes. In the meantime, set a large frying pan over a high heat. Add in a tablespoon of vegetable oil then leave to get smoking hot.
- Next, add the steaks into the pan then cook for 1 – 1½ minutes on each side, until well seared. Flip the steaks over every 30 seconds & add in the butter, garlic & herbs after the first turn. Give the steaks a baste with the butter as they sear.Make sure to give the sides a quick sear as well!
- Once seared, transfer the steaks to a chopping board then slice against the grain. Season with sea salt & freshly cracked black pepper to finish.
