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1
Cut and season the beef
10 Mins
Room temperature, about 20°C (68°F)
Trim the tenderloin of fat and sinew, then cut it into even 2.5 cm cubes — even cubes cook evenly. Pat each cube dry with kitchen paper and arrange them on plates, one plate per diner. Season with the salt and pepper just before the oil is hot.
Keep the beef cold until the last moment; cold cubes in hot oil sear fast and stay juicy inside.
Done when: Even, dry cubes with no sinew or ragged edges.
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2
Make the three sauces
10 Mins
Room temperature, about 20°C (68°F)
Aioli: stir the crushed garlic and 1 teaspoon of lemon juice into the 60g mayonnaise. Cocktail sauce: stir the ketchup into the 40g mayonnaise until pink and smooth. Mustard sauce: stir the Dijon and snipped chives into the 20g mayonnaise. Taste each and adjust with salt or lemon. Chill the sauces until serving.
Make the sauces at least 30 minutes ahead — the garlic and mustard flavours need time to bloom.
Done when: Three smooth sauces: pale aioli, pink cocktail, speckled mustard.
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3
Set the table and dress the salad
5 Mins
Room temperature, about 20°C (68°F)
Put the fondue pot on its stand in the centre of the table with the burner underneath, unlit. Give each diner a long fondue fork, a plate of beef, a small plate for the cooked meat, and the three sauces. Tear the baguette into chunks and dress the salad leaves with the olive oil, remaining lemon juice and a pinch of salt.
Keep a spare plate for used forks and a folded towel beside the pot — the pot and forks stay very hot throughout the meal.
Done when: Everything within reach before the oil is heated — nobody should be fetching things over a pot of hot oil.
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4
Heat the oil to 180°C (350°F)
10 Mins
180°C (350°F)
Pour the peanut oil into the fondue pot — no more than two-thirds full — and heat it on the stove over medium-high heat. Test with a small cube of bread: it should brown in about 30 seconds at 180°C (350°F). If the oil smokes, it is too hot — take it off the heat at once. Carry the pot carefully to its stand and light the burner underneath.
Never leave hot oil unattended, never fill the pot more than two-thirds, and keep children and sleeves well away from the pot.
Done when: A bread cube browns in 30 seconds and the oil shimmers without smoking.
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5
Cook the beef at the table
15 Mins
Oil at 180–190°C (350–375°F); beef to 63°C (145°F)
Each diner spears one cube on a long fork and lowers it into the oil. Cook for 30 to 60 seconds for rare to medium-rare, or up to 90 seconds for medium — the cube should reach at least 63°C (145°F) inside. Lift it out, let the oil drip back for a few seconds, and slide it off the fork onto your plate with a table fork, never your teeth — the fork tip is scalding hot.
Cook one cube at a time per fork and do not crowd the pot — too many cubes at once drops the oil temperature and the beef stews instead of searing.
Done when: A crisp brown crust outside and a juicy pink centre; 63°C (145°F) or above inside.
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6
Dip, eat and keep the oil hot
5 Mins
Oil held at 180–190°C (350–375°F)
Dip each cooked cube into a sauce, eat it with a chunk of baguette and a little salad, and cook the next cube. Keep the burner adjusted so the oil stays at 180–190°C (350–375°F) — if it cools, the beef turns greasy. When the meal ends, turn off the burner and leave the oil to cool completely in the pot before moving it.
The sauces are the seasoning — taste the beef plain first, then choose the sauce that suits it.
Done when: Every diner cooks at their own pace and the oil stays hot to the last cube.
auto_awesome Finishing Touches & Plating
Turn off the burner, let the oil cool completely in the pot, then strain and discard it safely — never pour hot oil down the sink.
Switzerland
40m
