The farmhouse rice being referred to in this recipe is camargue red rice – a variety of rice that is recently becoming popular among gourmands or gourmet people. It’s a somewhat new variety of rice from Camargue, a region in southern France, mostly cultivated from the wetlands. Its most famous characteristic is its distinctive red colour (described by some as brownish-red). This is due to the rice not being milled or polished leaving the outer bran layers intact. This is also the reason why it has a sticky, firm and chewy texture. A lot of people are fond of its “nutty” flavour. These characteristics make it a good and common accompaniment to most kinds of meat, which in this recipe is bull filet. It takes about 35-45 minutes to cook and is best cooked like risotto – sautéing in butter then adding water or meat stock/broth little by little until cooked. Our chef here uses chicken stock for this recipe.

Bull is technically not called as bull when it gets to the market – or simply after being slaughtered for meat. They are simply called beef. Beef comes from bulls, cows, heifers, or steers. The animals raised for beef are generally called beef cattle and the meat taken from them are simply called “beef” and beef alone regardless of where it came from, especially in culinary. Lean meat is, in contrast to what a lot of people say against red meat, an essential building block for a healthy diet. In fact, it is advisable that it be included in our regular diet. Besides its great protein content, it also has a lot of essential nutrients, vitamins, and moderate amount of fat.

As goes with most red (even glutinous) rice, camargue rice is a lot heavier to the stomach than our regularly used white ones. Having it match up with bull and with the whole dish filled with flavorful touches, it’s almost assured that none of your diners would leave hungry and unsatisfied when you serve this.
4
30 min
30 min
Recommended Wine
Cotes Roties
Ingredients

1 bull fillet (about 3.3 lbs.)
8.8 oz. (about 1 cup) rice
2 shallots
1 onion
Provençal herbs (dried savory, fennel, basil, and thyme)
laurel
chicken stock
salt, pepper
olive oil
butter

1

Mince onion, shallots, and Provençal herbs. In a pot, heat some olive oil and butter. Add the onion, shallots, Provençal herbs, and bay leaf. Cook gently without browning. Add the rice, cook a little more then add some chicken stock. Boil. Cook in the oven for 20 minutes.
2

Trim the bull fillet. Take bull broth from the bits of the fillet trimmed off. Cut the fillet per about 150g then season it.
3

Heat some olive oil in frying pan. Fry a side of the fillet then add some butter. Turn the fillet over, which should now be well browned, then cook till the other side is browned. Finish cooking the fillet in the oven for 10-15 minutes (depending on how well done it’s wanted) while turning it over every 2-3 minutes.
4

Season the bull broth with red wine and water to make a sauce.
5

When the rice is also cooked, add a little butter to the pan then cook it just a little bit more.
6

Place a heap of rice in the middle of the plate (using a mold or not) then set the fillet on top of it. Drizzle the sauce around the dish. It’s now ready to serve, bon appétit! Watch more of cookery videos.