REVIEW: Three Jerks’ Gourmet Filet Mignon Burgers Are To Die For

When you think of premium cuts of beef, nothing compares to filet mignon. It’s so tender and flavorful that it’s no wonder it’s relatively expensive. You get what you pay for when it comes to meat, but filet is worth it.

No company loves and respects the beauty of filet more than Three Jerks. First, they made beef jerky out of filet mignon and hooked a “shark” on the Emmy winning show Shark Tank. Now, they’ve created a new premium beef product: Filet Mignon Burgers. The new burgers were released in late August and back then, we got a chance to talk to the founders of Three Jerks about their latest creation.

Now, we’ve finally had the chance to try them and can tell you that they certainly live up to the hype. There are two versions: 100% Filet and 60% Filet/40% Pork Belly – we’ve tried both and tried them cooked in three different ways.

1) Cast Iron Skillet

You may not think of cooking a burger in a cast iron skillet, but you also may not think of grinding up a filet and making it into a burger. So Three Jerks are here to shake things up all over the kitchen.

Just salt and pepper the burgers, lightly oil the skillet and cook on each side for 5 or so minutes. The fat in the pork belly helps give a little extra caramelization on the blended version but both get a decent sear. We ate these plain to get a full taste of the meat without any distracting sauces or toppings, and we can safely say that they don’t need anything other than salt and pepper.

As you’d expect with filet, these are tender and packed with succulent flavor. Using a skillet is a great way to cook these high end burgers, but it’s certainly not the best.

2) Cast Iron Grill Pan

Another one of our favorite cooking methods here at We Got Food Covered, the grill pan gives you the taste of a grill indoors. It also gives you those beautiful grill marks, but there’s no need to brave the weather to fire up the grill outside.

This method is a very good way to bring out some of the amazing flavors that these filet burgers have to offer. They get that backyard look and taste which is important for a burger, and the char of the grill lines add a great extra layer of flavor and texture.

There is a caveat in regards to this method, though: beware of grease. The 100% filet iteration of these premium burgers doesn’t shed a lot of grease as filet is very lean. However, the pork belly in the blended version is the opposite. That fat content is what gives the blended burger a rich, decadent flavor, but it can cause some issues on the grill pan if you aren’t careful. That grease builds up and can ignite as well, so be careful. You’ll also most likely smoke up the kitchen when using a grill pan – but we think it’s worth it.

Save for those potential safety concerns, a grill pan is a great way to go, especially for the 100% filet version.

3) Charcoal Grill

If you want a truly great experience with any kind of burger, the charcoal grill is the way to go. The smoky flavor from the charcoal takes a burger to the next level. Seriously, be prepared for the gourmet burger experience of your dreams when you cook these high end filet burgers on the charcoal grill.

High heat, 4 minutes on each side and you’re in heaven. You get the beautiful grill marks giving you all that flavor and texture that you got from the grill pan without the fear of starting a grease fire and you allow the tender meat to soak in those smoky notes from the charcoal.

Both the 100% filet and the 60% filet/40% pork belly versions take to the grill spectacularly. Leave a tiny bit of pink in the middle and let them rest for a couple of minutes before you bite in and you have a juicy burger unlike any other.

When you put it on the bun, the grease from the pork belly soaks into the bread a little making it a bit less healthy and more messy, but oh so tasty. And when you bite into the 100% filet version, it just melts in your mouth. It’s the succulence of a high end filet with the hand-held ease of a burger. Hungry yet?

Serving Suggestions

We topped these burgers with beer glazed onions and a fresh slice of tomato and dined like the royalty we’ve always wanted to be. You can top them with anything your heart desires, but beer glazed onions certainly will not disappoint.

Also, we didn’t try it this way, but stacking one of each type of patty onto your bun to make the ultimate double burger sounds like a fantastic idea. Maybe throw some bacon on there to highlight the pork belly? Bacon makes everything better, right?

Finally, you can do it like Three Jerks founders Daniel and Jordan do it and make a mushroom and Madeira sauce. They created the burgers after all, so why not try their idea for serving them? When we talked to them, they also suggested putting the pork belly blend on a French roll and making a bahn mi burger. Sounds good to us.

However you serve them, these burgers are as high end as they sound. Sure, they’re a bit expensive at $80 (free shipping) for a twelve pack (6 of each style, 5oz patties), but when you use the highest quality ingredients, you’re going to come in at a higher price point. And once you try them, you’ll understand the value. They can even be cooked from frozen and still rock your world with flavor.

For now, you can order these delicious, gourmet patties exclusively online directly from Three Jerks, but they may make it to a retailer near you in 2017.