Rotisserie Grilled Filet Mignon Wrapped In Bacon

This cooking method for rotisserie grilled filet mignon wrapped in bacon guarantees a juicy steak, crispy bacon and your steak can be cooked exactly to your liking too.

Note: For international clarity, filet mignon is also commonly referred to as beef tenderloin or (in the UK) fillet steak.

It is considered to be the absolute premium cut of steak because of its tenderness and melt in the mouth qualities. It's found in the back rib of the animal, a muscle area which is not load bearing so it's pretty much void of the chewy connective tissue that you find in other beef cuts that occur as a result of daily movement.

Generally the steak is cut in 2" or 5cm slices and each is approximately 3" or 75mm in diameter although the most prized are those cut from the tail end which can be a small as 1" (2.5cm) in diameter.

That said, there's also very little fat in grilled filet mignon and fat is flavour so this is one of the reasons why wrapping it in bacon is so popular.

Too many times however I have heard that this technique doesn't work because either:-

the bacon falls off
the bacon isn't cooked
the bacon is crispy and the filet is overdone

If you've experienced anyone of these then read on, this recipe is for you. It's is a bit more work in that it's a two step cooking process but it really is worth the effort. The only downer is that it doesn't really work for one steak unless you like it real thick!

So a good grilled filet mignon needs to be cut into 2 inch (5 cm) thick steaks, I'm cooking for 4 so I've bought a 8 inch long piece of filet and 12 rashers of streaky bacon for this recipe.

Preparation Time:- 20 minutes
Cooking Time:- 20 minutes

Total Time:- 40 minutes

Ingredients:-

8" long single piece of beef tenderloin (filet mignon)
10 Rashers streaky bacon
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Tooth picks or cocktail sticks

Method:-

Lay your bacon out on a board with the strips overlapping slightly so that you get the impression of a sheet. Season the filet mignon all over with salt and pepper, place it on the bacon and then wrap the bacon round the filet.

Use a cocktail stick or tooth pick to “sew” the bacon ends together and take care to do this in a radial fashion rather than across. This is so that you can cut the filet into steaks after the first stage of cooking without the bacon falling off.

Now insert the spit rod and grill on a high heat to crisp the bacon. 15 minutes should do it.

When the bacon is crisp, allow the meat to cool so that the bacon fat solidifies and therefore acts as an adhesive. Once cool you can cut in between the cocktail sticks to make your steaks and then its a simple matter of grilling both sides of your steak to your liking.

The best way to check whether your steak is cooked to your liking is to feel the meat. If you're not experienced at doing this then use my guide how to grill steaks which also includes a core temperature guide should you use an instant read temperature probe.

Once the grilled filet mignon cooked to your liking, remove it from the grill and rest the meat for 5 minutes to allow the muscle to relax.

Now you can plate up. Place the steaks centre stage on the plate and carefully remove the cocktail sticks.

Serve with a light salad and glass of full bodied red wine!