Description
Grilled Filet Mignon with Knob Creek® Bourbon Peppercorn Sauce
Ingredients
Scale
- 4 thick cut filet mignon steaks (about 2 ½ inches thick)
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt (or 1 teaspoon table salt)
- 2 tablespoons peppercorn blend, coarsely crushed
Knob Creek® Bourbon Peppercorn Sauce
- ¼ cup Knob Creek® bourbon
- ½ cup heavy cream
- ½ teaspoon fresh ground peppercorn blend
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Season the steaks:Â Sprinkle the steaks evenly with the salt. Put the crushed peppercorns in a single layer on a plate and press one side of the steaks into the peppercorns to help them stick. Let the steaks rest at room temperature while the grill preheats.
- Set the grill up for two zone high heat grilling:Â Set the grill up for two zone cooking; one side should be high heat, the other side no heat. In my kettle grill, I light a chimney full of charcoal, wait for it to be covered with gray ash, then pour the charcoal in a tight single layer over half of the charcoal grate. In my gas grill, I preheat with all the burners on high for 15 minutes, then leave two of the burners on high and turn off all the other burners. After the grill is preheated I brush the grates clean with my grill brush.
- Simmer the Knob Creek® bourbon peppercorn sauce: Once the grill is preheated, pour the Knob Creek® bourbon in a small, grill-safe pot, and stir in the heavy cream, pepper, and salt. Put the pot over the direct heat part of the grill and bring to a simmer, then slide to the indirect heat side, just off of the heat, and simmer the sauce while the steaks are cooking. (Keep an eye on the pot, because as I said in the opening, cream likes to boil over. Move it away from the heat at the first sign of the bubbles stacking up on each other).
- Grill the steaks: While the sauce is simmering, put the steaks on the grill, peppercorn side down, over the direct heat part of the grill. Grill until the peppercorns are just starting to blacken, about 3 minutes. Flip the steaks peppercorn side up and grill on the other side until browned on the bottom, about 3 more minutes. (You’ll lose some peppercorns into the grill when you turn the steak; that’s OK.) Brush the steaks with the Knob Creek® Bourbon peppercorn sauce (be careful - the sauce will flare up when it hits the flames of the grill), then slide the steaks to the indirect heat side of the grill. Close the lid and cook until the steaks reach medium-rare, an internal temperature of 125°F measured in the thickest part with an instant read thermometer, about 8 more minutes. (Rare is an internal temperature of 115°F; medium is 135°F.) Brush the steaks again with the Knob Creek® peppercorn sauce, then remove the steaks and sauce from the grill.
- Serve the steaks: Let the steaks rest for ten minutes. Spoon another tablespoon of the Knob Creek® Bourbon peppercorn sauce on top of each steak and serve.
Equipment
Buy Now → Notes
I use a mortar and pestle to crush the peppercorns. If you don’t have one, seal the peppercorns in a zip-top plastic bag to keep them from scattering over the counter. Squeeze out all the air, seal the bag, and use the bottom of a heavy skillet to crush the peppercorns. Or, try your pepper mill’s coarsest setting. You want mostly cracked pepper, not powder.
No grill safe pot? Simmer the sauce on the stove top. Also, if the cream boils over on the grill, the bourbon may catch fire. That’s OK - the sauce is fine. Use long handled tongs to slide the pot away from the heat and wait for the flames to burn themselves out.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 60 minutes
- Category: Sunday Dinner
- Method: Grilling
- Cuisine: American