If you’re looking for a dish with massive flavour, this fillet is for you.Made with a rich bone marrow butter then rolled in dukkah – we guarantee, you’ve never tasted anything like it. Here’s how to cook this exceptional fillet on the braai or in the Big Green Egg.
Dukkah crusted fillet with bone marrow herb butter
Ingredients
Serves: 6-8 |Time: 30 minutes (Big Green Egg) 46 minutes (Weber braai)|Difficulty: moderate
For the fillet:
1.5 kg beef fillet
NoMU Beef rub
Olive Oil
Dukkah (you can buy this at most grocery stores or make your own)
For the bone marrow herb butter:
8 bone marrow bones, braaied or roasted
100g butter
Small handful fresh thyme, chopped
Small handful flat leaf parsley, chopped
Small handful chives, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
To serve:
Ciabatta, buttered and toasted
Baby rocket leaves
For cooking on the Big Green Egg:
Lump charcoal (no briquettes!)
Oak wood chips, soaked in water for 30 minutes
Tongs
Gloves
Big Green Egg temp: 250°F / 121°C (smoke)
Method on the braai:
1. Prep you braai. Fillet cooks best on a braai with a domed lid so the heat is retained. If making this in a Weber, fill with enough coals to create a hot cooking base and stoke them up.
2. To prep the fillet, rub with a little olive oil then season generously with NoMU beef rub, cracked salt and black pepper, and set aside.
3. To make the marrow butter you need to either braai them on a separate open flame for 10 minutes or roast the marrow bones in the oven for 15 minutes at 200°C. Once the marrow is cooked you can pop the marrow out into a pan.
4. Add the butter and herbs and simmer over a medium heat, again either over your braai or on a stove top, until the marrow has rendered down. Use a wooden spoon to break the marrow down in the pan. Season to taste.
5. When your coals are glowing white it’s time to braai. Remember a steak fire needs to be very hot. You’re first going to sear the fillet (a fillet normally has three sides) and then cook it for a duration on cooler coals.
6. So to sear, place the fillet on the super hot coals to seal, turning every 2 minutes.
7. Once all three sides are sealed in, lift the grid so you can create a slight trough in the centre of your coals – essentially a cooler spot. Make sure the fillet aligns over this trough, then pop the domed lid on and leave to cook for 40 minutes.
Check that it’s not burning intermittently. You should end up with a medium rare steak.
8.Let the fillet rest for 10 minutes then paint it with the bone marrow butter. Sprinkle the dukkah on a wooden board then roll the fillet in the mix. Try to evenly coat the entire fillet.
To serve, thinly slice the fillet and serve on the toasted ciabatta with baby rocket, a dash more of bone marrow butter and a sprinkle of chopped chives.
Method on the Big Green Egg:
1. Lighting your Egg and getting it to the right temperature is critical so listen up! Fill the firebox with charcoal then place a small amount of firelighters in the centre of the coal and light. Once the firelighters have burnt out and some of the coal has caught, close the lid. Slide the top and bottom vents all the way open. The temperature will start rising and when you get within 20–30 degrees of your target temperature (150°F/65°C), slide the top ¾ closed and set the bottom vent halfway closed. You may have to make adjustments as you creep towards your temperature. Getting the temperature right is crucial for Big Green Egg success but it can be tricky. Check out our top tips for cooking in the Big Green Egg.
2. Rub the fillet with a little olive oil then season generously with NoMU beef rub, cracked salt and black pepper, and set aside.
3. To make the marrow butter you need to either braai them on a separate open flame for 10 minutes or roast the marrow bones in the oven for 15 minutes at 200°C. Once the marrow is cooked you can pop the marrow out into a pan.
4. Add the butter and herbs and simmer over a medium heat, again either over your braai or on a stove top, until the marrow has rendered down. Use a wooden spoon to break the marrow down in the pan. Season to taste.
5. When your Egg is stable at 250°F/121°Cit’s time to smoke for 20 minutes. Using tongs and gloves, remove the grid and plate setter and place a large handful of wood chips onto the hot coals. Then replace the plate setter and grill and position the meat in the centre before closing the lid. The idea here is to give the fillet a kiss of smoke and a little heat without cooking it through. The cooking will come later over direct heat on the grill.
6. After 20 minutes remove the fillet and set aside. Remove the grill so you can take the plate setter out then replace the grill and leave the lid open. Let all the coals catch and when you have a roaring hot fire it’s time to cook. Remember, a steak fire must be super hot.
7. Cook the fillet on direct heat for 4 minutes a side for a rare fillet.
8. Let the fillet rest for 10 minutes then paint it with the bone marrow butter. Sprinkle the dukkah on a wooden board then roll the fillet in the mix. Try to evenly coat the entire fillet.
To serve, thinly slice the fillet and serve on the toasted ciabatta with baby rocket, a dash more of bone marrow butter and a sprinkle of chopped chives.
This is a serious braai experience, sure to be remembered for years.
