What Is Beef Tenderloin?
If you’ve never tried biting into beef tenderloin, you should do so right away. The first bite of this soft, tender piece of beef will change your life forever. The most tender beef cut, tenderloin practically melts in your mouth. It can be quite expensive because it is the most expensive meat because it is the most tender. That is why we call it the “special occasion” meat.
The tenderloin is a long, thin muscle that runs along the backside and deep inside the body. It’s located right under the spine. Due to the fact that this muscle is not weight-bearing, is rarely exercised, and lacks a lot of connective tissue, it is extremely tender. The highly coveted steak cuts Filet Mignon, Tenderloin Steak, Chateaubriand, and tournedos are made from beef tenderloin.
There are several options available for cooking the entire beef tenderloin. You have two options for cooking the tenderloin: either cook the entire piece from top to bottom, or cook the Chateaubriand portion in the middle. Depending on how it is sliced and what sides are served with it, a whole tenderloin that weighs between 5 and 8 pounds can feed six and twelve people.
I typically prepare the center cut of a beef tenderloin for a small gathering of 2 to 6 people. For a larger dinner that serves more than six people, a whole tenderloin is preferable. Even so, reheating beef tenderloin won’t affect its tenderness or the temperature at which it was cooked. (Lower in this article, I reveal my reheating trick.) ).
How Much Beef Tenderloin Per Person?
When it comes to beef tenderloin, the rule is typically a little different. Typically, you should estimate main meats at 1/2 lb (or 8 oz). but beef tenderloin is an extremely pricey cut of meat. You can estimate slightly smaller serving sizes and serve each person 4-6 oz of trimmed beef tenderloin.
Cleaning The Whole Tenderloin:
Despite being a very lean muscle, beef tenderloin still needs to be cleaned. There is some extra fat that should be removed, but try to focus on the larger pieces rather than the tiny ones. It’s also important to remove the silver skin.
How To Clean And Dissect A Whole Beef Tenderloin Is A Whole Post With A Video. Read it for all the details! .
NOTE: If you don’t want to clean the tenderloin yourself, most grocery stores with a butcher department can assist you. If necessary, you can also ask a butcher to cut the tenderloin to a specific size.
Don’t be afraid if you have to clean the tenderloin yourself. All you need is a cutting board, a sharp knife, and a larger baking sheet with a rim to accommodate the cutting board. Even the rimmed cutting board still drips blood all over, so I use a baking sheet underneath it.
When butchering the meat, putting the cutting board inside the baking sheet makes cleanup much simpler. (To cut cooked beef, use a fresh, clean cutting board and a rimmed baking sheet. ).
Look at the tenderloin after removing it from the packaging. The butt end is the portion that is the thickest and also has a piece known as a “wing” attached to it.
The center cut is the middle part of the tenderloin. It is the source of chateaubriand and filet mignon, and has the most consistent size. The tenderloin tip end, which is also the portion used for tournedos steaks, is the small, thin end of the meat.
Remove the chain if needed:
While most packaged tenderloin will not have the chain attached, some tenderloin may still do so. The entire tenderloin appears to be covered in a thin, fatty piece of meat.
It will be very simple to detect and take out. With a few help cuts along the way, you can actually remove it with your hands. Just follow it along, separating it from the tenderloin.
DO NOT discard the chain. Although it is not tenderloin, it is still a good cut of meat that tastes great in soups and stews.
Along the tenderloin, there is a tough layer of white, shimmery connective tissue called silverskin. It MUST be removed. Pull up a small amount of the silver skin at the tenderloin’s one end before using a thin knife to cut along the skin and separate it from the meat to remove it.
Some silverskin will lift up with simple hand tugging and pulling. Remove any remaining silverskin with a knife, being careful not to remove any of the meat.
Why and How To Tie The Beef Tenderloin?
I frequently receive the following query: “Do people really have to tie the entire tenderloin or the filet mignon?” And I consistently emphasize that while tying it is important, using a professional-looking butcher tying technique is not essential.
To ensure consistency in size and shape while cooking, tie the entire tenderloin, the center cut, and the steaks. A more uniform size will help cook the meat evenly.
Cut the tip where it starts to get narrow almost all the way off but not completely off to make the tenderloin more even at the thin end. Tuck the narrow, thin tip under the tenderloin. Use cooking twine to tie the tenderloin at 1-inch intervals along its entire length. Be careful not to tie it too tightly where the meat will be cut.
Always tie the meat before seasoning it to prevent the seasoning from falling off while you’re tying it.
I’ve developed two sets of oven temperatures based on my experience cooking beef tenderloin. I use a high temperature of 425 degrees to cook the center cut of the tenderloin (chateaubriand) until it is medium-rare. I begin by cooking the entire tenderloin for about 15 minutes at a high temperature. Then, I gradually cook it at 325° for a medium-rare result by lowering the temperature.
Because beef tenderloin is a lean cut, it should be cooked to a maximum of medium-rare or medium.
Set the roasting pan in the oven at 425 degrees and line the bottom with aluminum foil. Place the beef tenderloin, which has been cleaned and tied, on a rack inside the roasting pan. Place a leave-in thermometer in the middle of the meat. (In the absence of a leave-in thermometer, you must remove the meat from the oven to check the temperature. ).
Put the roasting pan in the oven and heat it there for 15 minutes. Cook until the internal temperature reaches 130° to 135° for medium-rare by lowering the oven’s temperature to 325°. (Cook to 135°-140° for medium or 120°-125° for rare. Since the beef continues to cook while resting under the tent, I personally remove it at 130°.
Place the beef on a large plate and a cutting board after removing it from the oven. Put pieces of butter all over the cut and on top of the tenderloin. Allow it to rest for 20 to 30 minutes under a tent made of aluminum foil (for a large tenderloin). ).
Remove the tenderloin from the plate, cutting it against the grain while leaving the buttery juices on the plate. Place cut beef slices back in the plate with juices.
How To Reheat Beef Tenderloin
Place cooled beef tenderloin in an airtight food storage container with a lid and keep it in the fridge for approximately 3 days to store leftovers.
Beef tenderloin can be warmed up by wrapping each slice in aluminum foil and preheating the oven to 350 degrees. Don’t wrap it too tight. Put the tenderloin pieces that have been wrapped directly on the oven rack and heat for 10 to 15 minutes. (Time will depend of thickness of cuts. (Reheat it just until it is warm throughout to prevent overcooking.
Try My Other Popular Beef Recipes:
PIN THIS RECIPE FOR LATER
- ▢ 5 lb whole beef tenderloin trimmed
- ▢ 8 cloves of garlic pressed
- ▢ kosher salt
- ▢ freshly cracked black pepper
- ▢ 6-8 tbsp salted butter
- NOTE: If you don’t want to clean the tenderloin yourself, most grocery stores with a butcher department can assist you. If necessary, you can also ask a butcher to cut the tenderloin to a specific size.
- Although most tenderloin that is packaged will not have a chain attached, some tenderloin may still have one. The entire tenderloin appears to be covered in a thin, fatty piece of meat. It will be very simple to detect and take out. With a few help cuts along the way, you can actually remove it with your hands. Just follow it along, separating it from the tenderloin.
- SILVERSKIN: Running along the tenderloin is a tough layer of white, shimmery connective tissue. It MUST be removed. Pull up a small amount of the silver skin at the tenderloin’s one end before using a thin knife to cut along the skin and separate it from the meat to remove it. Some silverskin will lift up with simple hand tugging and pulling. Remove any remaining silverskin with a knife, being careful not to remove any of the meat.
Tie and Season Beef Tenderloin:
- Cut the tip of the tenderloin where it begins to get narrow almost all the way off but not completely to create a more uniform thickness at the thin end. Tuck the narrow, thin tip under the tenderloin.
- Use cooking twine to tie the tenderloin at 1-inch intervals along its entire length. Be careful not to tie it too tightly where the meat will be cut.
- The tenderloin should be covered in pressed garlic on all sides. Sprinkle liberally with kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper.
- Set the roasting pan in the oven at 425 degrees and line the bottom with aluminum foil.
- Put the beef tenderloin, which has been cleaned, tied, and seasoned, on a rack inside the roasting pan. Place a leave-in thermometer in the center of the meat. (In the absence of a leave-in thermometer, you must remove the meat from the oven to check the temperature. ).
- Put the roasting pan in the oven and heat it there for 15 minutes.
- Cook until the internal temperature reaches 130° to 135° for medium-rare by lowering the oven’s temperature to 325°. (Cook to 135°-140° for medium or 120°-125° for rare. Since the beef continues to cook while resting under the tent, I personally remove it at 135°.
- Place the beef on a large plate and a cutting board after removing it from the oven. Put pieces of butter all over the cut and on top of the tenderloin.
- Allow it to rest for about 20 minutes (or 30 for a larger tenderloin) under a tent made of aluminum foil. ).
- Remove the tenderloin from the plate, cutting it against the grain while leaving the buttery juices on the plate. Serve the beef slices that have been cut back into the plate’s juices.
