Beef Tenderloin

[paulraphael]

My mom asked me to cook the dinner on Christmas, and she went out and bought a 6 lb beef tenderloin ... at costco. I've been spoiled by prime dry aged meat in new york, and so I'm not completely confident in my abilities to make this cryovac monster taste delicious.

I'm intrigued by some of the information on the home dry-aging thread, and wonder if anyone has suggestions on how to proceed with this piece of meat. There's only one fridge, and my mom has given me permission to stink it up with uncovered beef for at most a couple of days.

I'm also interested in some of the debate on los-and-slow vs. high heat cooking. I have always roasted hot and fast, and gotten wonderful results. My last tenderloin was done at 500 degrees all the way through, cooked to 120 degrees on the inside and mahogany brown on the outside. It was delicious, but was also a much nicer piece of meat. If anyone thinks another method would do better with this thing, I'm open to suggestions.

[Franky2Times]

In order to dry age a cut of beef, you need a thick layer of fat which, of course, the tenderloin doesn't have. Unless you can age a whole animal, whoever claims to sell an aged tenderloin is lying. If you try to age a tenderloin as you would a ribeye or a strip let's say for 21 days, it will just rot and be inedible. Also, the USDA categories as applied to tenderloins, as far as I'm concerned, don't matter much since it mainly refers to the layering of fat. The difference in taste between a prime or a choice, for a Filet, is minimal. Your Costco loin will be just fine as is. Just roast it whole, spiked between the chain and the eye, with fresh herbs (thyme comes to mind), garlic and peppercorns and deglaze with a good wine and beef stock reduction. It will be really good if you sear it on all sides in the roasting pan and then put it in a 350 degree oven for about 20 to 30 minutes. Good luck!

[JerzeeTomato]

clean the silver skin, tie off the roast, cover with a coating of good butter salt and pepper, maybe some granulated garlic, cook at 500 degrees for about 20-25 mins, this is for med rare center. let rest and slice thin. It is very good. I make a horseradish sauce to go with it.

My mom asked me to cook the dinner on Christmas, and she went out and bought a 6 lb beef tenderloin ... at costco.  I've been spoiled by prime dry aged meat in new york, and so I'm not completely confident in my abilities to make this cryovac monster taste delicious.

I'm intrigued by some of the information on the home dry-aging thread, and wonder if anyone has suggestions on how to proceed with this piece of meat. There's only one fridge, and my mom has given me permission to stink it up with uncovered beef for at most a couple of days.

I'm also interested in some of the debate on los-and-slow vs. high heat cooking. I have always roasted hot and fast, and gotten wonderful results. My last tenderloin was done at 500 degrees  all the way through, cooked to 120 degrees on the inside and mahogany brown on the outside. It was delicious, but was also a much nicer piece of meat. If anyone thinks another method would do better with this thing, I'm open to suggestions.

←

[Marlene]

In general, I've found Costco's meats to be quite acceptable. While it might not meet the NY high end meat standards, it won't likely be crap either. I often rotisserie a tenderloin, but when I use the oven, this is one piece of meat that I will sear first, then finish in a fairly hot oven. Use a cast iron pan for the searing and finishing if you have one large enough. I doubt that tenderloin has enough colegen to make the low and slow method of any value here.

[paulraphael]

Hi,

I'm not talking about true dry aging (for weeks) ... just a day or two outside the cryovac before cooking.

Any thoughts on this? good idea? bad?

[tim]

Hi,

I'm not talking about true dry aging (for weeks) ... just a day or two outside the cryovac before cooking.

Any thoughts on this? good idea? bad?

←

Hi,

I would trim the fat and silver skin and prior to air aging for two days.

With a piece of meat without a fat cap or bones, you will have to roast on high heat. Don't worry about the Coscto label, it will be delicious.

The chain and fat trimmings will make wonderful hamburgers.

Tim

[Fat Guy]

The Costco tenderloins are excellent, if you like tenderloin.

I can't imagine that two days of resting open in the refrigerator would improve the meat. I'd just leave it in the bag until it's time to prepare it.

I agree with everyone who has recommended high-temperature roasting. You'll also find that the graduated shape of the tenderloin will yield slices of varying doneness, which is good for groups where you have some folks who prefer rare and others who prefer medium rare or medium. There may even be a piece all the way at the end that's medium well.

An alternative to high-temperature roasting is grilling. I've had many a Costco grilled tenderloin -- I have a friend who cooks that exact dish every time we go there for dinner -- and they've been great. I mean, I'm not exactly a partisan of the tenderloin -- I think you sacrifice flavor for tenderness when you opt for tenderloin -- but as tenderloins go this is good stuff.

[paulraphael]

-- I think you sacrifice flavor for tenderness when you opt for tenderloin -- but as tenderloins go this is good stuff.

←

sure, that's why i usually save up for the prime dry-aged stuff with this kind of cut. it finesses more flavor out of the meat. it's still a pretty delicate flavor compared with a strip steak, but it's delicious. and i admit that i'm a sucker for melt-in-your mouth beef.

i usually make some kind of sauce (lightly bound or unbound) to focus the flavors a bit. i'm making some variation on a sauce chasseur this time. i like the way shallots and mushrooms can bring gentle beef flavors into focus without overwhelming them.

thanks for all the tips, everyone. i'll report back with results.

have a great holiday!

[Shalmanese]

Tenderloin has no marbling so I'm not sure what exactly you're getting with prime. It also doesn't have much flavour so dry ageing isn't going to develop any more. America's Test Kitchen reccomends folding over the end tip of the tenderloin and typing it to get a more uniform shape so that theres no bit that is overcooked. If you have people who like a medium well tenderloin (which really defeats the purpose of it) leave it untied. Otherwise, tying might be a good idea.

[budrichard]

Leave the meat in the Cryovac until ready to cook.

The classical way to do a tenderloin is to lard internally and externally(bard). This requires larding needles which still can be obtained and then chilling your lard so it has resistance and can fill the hollow larding needle. I use leaf lard which is gettng hard to obtain these days rather than the commercial products.

If you don't want to go to that trouble, barding alone will help and just follow the previous instructions.-Dick

[rhinopias]

I followed a recipe on Epicurious for Herb and Spice Crusted Tendeloin with a Red Wine Shallot sauce for Thanksgiving and really enjoyed it. The rub is very aromatic with orange peel, cloves, nutmeg, and such. Should suit Christmas dinner well. There is no searing prior to the oven so the rub smells fantasic while roasting.

I cooked at 450 degrees for appx. 25-30 mins till 120 degrees.

[deltadoc]

My butcher informed us that tenderloin is never dry aged, only the tougher cuts of meat with fat. The aging is for enzymes to soften the collegen. There isn't any in tenderloin!

The previous suggestion about saving the strap and its associated fat is a great one, i incorporate that into my special hamburger blend (but I do leave out the silverskin---that just gets thrown away).

Its a good idea to tuck under the tail end for more even roasting, and I usually try to position the whole tenderloin so the thickest part (which has a slice down into it to remove cartilage) in a manner so the slice doesn't open up during roasting.

I usually just S&P my tenderloin after brushing it with some Olive Oil, then brown it on all sides in a really big frying pan, before putting it the oven.

Alternatively to prebrowning in the frying pan, I've put the oven on at 550 and leave the tenderloin at that temperature some 10-15 minutes, and then turn the oven down and cook to an internal temperature of about 130-135. Always let the roast sit under a tent for 15 minutes before slicing. I always use a roasting pan with the roasting grate so the heat gets all around the whole roast.

Almost forgot: Saute some chopped shallots or red onion in the roasting pan (on the stovetop), Deglaze the roasting pan with a nice dry zack or sherry, add some Demi-glace and a bit of blue cheese to make a truly wonderful sauce to serve with the slices. Season to taste with S&P if necessary.

doc

Edited December 24, 2006 by deltadoc (log)

[mrbigjas]

just yesterday here on maryland public tv, they replayed the julia child master chef episode with christopher gross, wherein he lightly smokes a beef loin (he uses a strip) before searing and serving it. you can watch the episode here. i'm totally going to make the potato crisps he makes on that show, one of these days. he got the recipe from michel richard, and calls them information potatoes, because the ratio is 411: 4 parts potato, 1 part each egg whites and butter.

anyway it looked fantastic.

[paulraphael]

I'm not sure where anyone's getting the idea that prime doesn't make a difference with tenderloin. or that it's never dry aged.

Prime, dry aged tenderloin and cut fillets are pretty widely available in new york city, and are a lot better (flavor and texture) than the choice variety from the supermarket, including the 'certified angus' brand.

I can't comment on the science, but I can say from experience that the difference is not subtle.

[SushiCat]

our cheap tenderloin turned out GREAT. We cut a smaller roast and had two on the grill at the same time. Took them off at 125 degrees internal, and enjoyed wiht a host of butter and cream laden side dishes! We all might die, but we will die happy!

Hope your's turned out delicious!

[Fat Guy]

There is such a thing as dry-aged tenderloin -- there has to be, because if you dry-age a short loin you by definition wind up with dry-aged tenderloin. And it is better than wet-aged, because tenderness is only half the reason you age beef -- the other half is flavor. However, it's quite rare to find dry-aged tenderloin sold as a whole tenderloin roast.

When dry-aged short loins are butchered so as to get porterhouse and T-bone cuts, there's no tenderloin independently available for sale because the fattest cross-sections of the tenderloin are attached to the strip to make up those cuts. So, if you pull the tenderloin out of the short loin, you sacrifice the most valuable steaks.

The only place I know of where I could walk out tomorrow and get a dry-aged USDA Prime tenderloin is Lobel's, where a 3.5-pound whole tenderloin costs $174.48. Lobel's can offer this product, first, by charging $50 a pound and, second, because Lobel's also sells the whole shell roast (8 pounds for $318.98). There may be a couple of other places where you can get USDA Prime dry-aged tenderloin but I'm not sure where they'd be. Maybe Florence down on Jones Street.

[budrichard]

I obtain my dry aged Prime from Zier's in Willmette, Illinois, a place I have mentioned before. I have purchased Lobel's and the quality is the same but I don't pay shipping charges which have become considerable. Lobel's used to have Wagyu from Australia and that was the best because the flavor was so pronounced but now Lobel's sources thier Wagyu from the US.

There are some chains the have USDA Choice tenderloin which can ber very good and if the price is right, a bargain compared to Prime, but it depends on the chain.

Tenderloin purchased without any grade marking is USDA Select and can be somewhat tolerable depending upon how you use it, to only suitable for grinding. These I believe are called 'Cow Tenders' in the trade. -Dick

Edited December 25, 2006 by budrichard (log)

[deltadoc]

There is such a thing as dry-aged tenderloin -- there has to be, because if you dry-age a short loin you by definition wind up with dry-aged tenderloin.

←

Well, so much for listening to my butcher!~

doc

[MarkIsCooking]

Hello all. I saw a recipe on Bobby Flay's show that really intrigued me (actually done by his wife, the former Law and Order actress). The concept is that you broil the whole tenderloin for a certain period of time, with it almost looking burnt on the outside. After the broiling, you seal the tenderloin in aluminum foil and the residual heat from the broiling supposedly cooks the tenderloin to a perfect medium rare. Also, given that the time you let it sit is pre-determined, it allows you to perfectly time when the tenderloin is ready. All sounds great, but when I tried it, the tenderloin caught on fire from the broiler a few times (nobody injured) and things just didn't go as they did on TV (do they ever?).

The link to the recipe is here --> Kathy Baker's Beef Tenderloin Recipe

I'm curious if anyone else has tried this technique and/or if anyone has a similar recipe/technique to share.

Thanks!

-Mark-

[deltadoc]

Hello all.  I saw a recipe on Bobby Flay's show that really intrigued me (actually done by his wife, the former Law and Order actress).  The concept is that you broil the whole tenderloin for a certain period of time, with it almost looking burnt on the outside.  After the broiling, you seal the tenderloin in aluminum foil and the residual heat from the broiling supposedly cooks the tenderloin to a perfect medium rare.  Also, given that the time you let it sit is pre-determined, it allows you to perfectly time when the tenderloin is ready.  All sounds great, but when I tried it, the tenderloin caught on fire from the broiler a few times (nobody injured) and things just didn't go as they did on TV (do they ever?).

The link to the recipe is here -->  Kathy Baker's Beef Tenderloin Recipe

I'm curious if anyone else has tried this technique and/or if anyone has a similar recipe/technique to share.

Thanks!

-Mark-

←

The easiest most consistent method I've found for individual filet mingons is to put a heavy cast iron frying pan on the stovetop and let it get as hot as it can (no oil).

Pre-heat your oven to 450 F.

Then S&P each tenderloin and lightly coat with olive oil. Throw them onto the skillet for 3 minutes. Do not touch or move them during this time. By shaking the pan (using a pot holder of course) they should break free by themselves. Turn them over and do the same on the other side for another 3 minutes.

Then put the entire skillet in the oven for about 6-7 minutes for medium rare.

Take the skillet out of the oven, remove and tent the filets.

While the filets are resting, saute some chopped shallots in the skillet, deglaze with some wine, and reduce (or add some demi-glace) to make a fine sauce to ladle over the tenderloins and serve. (Don't forget the juices from the tented filets and add that to the sauce too).

This works everytime for me. Time in the oven depends on how thick your steaks are. I like 2" filets. A couple of times you will find the right combination of timing for your oven and preferences of doneness.

doc

[MarkIsCooking]

Hello all.  I saw a recipe on Bobby Flay's show that really intrigued me (actually done by his wife, the former Law and Order actress).  The concept is that you broil the whole tenderloin for a certain period of time, with it almost looking burnt on the outside.  After the broiling, you seal the tenderloin in aluminum foil and the residual heat from the broiling supposedly cooks the tenderloin to a perfect medium rare.  Also, given that the time you let it sit is pre-determined, it allows you to perfectly time when the tenderloin is ready.  All sounds great, but when I tried it, the tenderloin caught on fire from the broiler a few times (nobody injured) and things just didn't go as they did on TV (do they ever?).

The link to the recipe is here -->  Kathy Baker's Beef Tenderloin Recipe

I'm curious if anyone else has tried this technique and/or if anyone has a similar recipe/technique to share.

Thanks!

-Mark-

←

The easiest most consistent method I've found for individual filet mingons is to put a heavy cast iron frying pan on the stovetop and let it get as hot as it can (no oil).

Pre-heat your oven to 450 F.

Then S&P each tenderloin and lightly coat with olive oil. Throw them onto the skillet for 3 minutes. Do not touch or move them during this time. By shaking the pan (using a pot holder of course) they should break free by themselves. Turn them over and do the same on the other side for another 3 minutes.

Then put the entire skillet in the oven for about 6-7 minutes for medium rare.

Take the skillet out of the oven, remove and tent the filets.

While the filets are resting, saute some chopped shallots in the skillet, deglaze with some wine, and reduce (or add some demi-glace) to make a fine sauce to ladle over the tenderloins and serve. (Don't forget the juices from the tented filets and add that to the sauce too).

This works everytime for me. Time in the oven depends on how thick your steaks are. I like 2" filets. A couple of times you will find the right combination of timing for your oven and preferences of doneness.

doc

←

Doc -

Thanks for the reply. Looks awesome. This recipe is for the whole tenderloin, though, not steaks. So, the advantage is that you get to present the whole tenderloin to guests and carve at the table if you want.

-Mark-

[Chef Bradley]

I read below the recipe and saw this:

A viewer, who may not be a professional cook, provided this recipe. The Food Network Kitchens chefs have not tested this recipe and therefore, we cannot make representation as to the results.

So, that should tell you why it didnt turn out as planned? They always seem to edit out the bad stuff on TV too for some reason. (I can only imagine, I dont know for sure, lol).

The way I've always done it is crank up the grill outside to about 400F, rub the loin down with pure olive oil (I don't like to waste the EVOO on cooking) kosher and cracked black pepper and mark it up pretty good until its completely "seared" all around. Then you could either turn the grill down to about 300-325F or so and off center your heat, finishing it up outside on the grill or pop it into a 350 oven until you get the desired internal temp (trust yer old insta-read ) about 135-145F.

Let it rest for about 10 minutes and enjoy.

[deltadoc]

Hello all.  I saw a recipe on Bobby Flay's show that really intrigued me (actually done by his wife, the former Law and Order actress).  The concept is that you broil the whole tenderloin for a certain period of time, with it almost looking burnt on the outside.  After the broiling, you seal the tenderloin in aluminum foil and the residual heat from the broiling supposedly cooks the tenderloin to a perfect medium rare.  Also, given that the time you let it sit is pre-determined, it allows you to perfectly time when the tenderloin is ready.  All sounds great, but when I tried it, the tenderloin caught on fire from the broiler a few times (nobody injured) and things just didn't go as they did on TV (do they ever?).

The link to the recipe is here -->  Kathy Baker's Beef Tenderloin Recipe

I'm curious if anyone else has tried this technique and/or if anyone has a similar recipe/technique to share.

Thanks!

-Mark-

←

The easiest most consistent method I've found for individual filet mingons is to put a heavy cast iron frying pan on the stovetop and let it get as hot as it can (no oil).

Pre-heat your oven to 450 F.

Then S&P each tenderloin and lightly coat with olive oil. Throw them onto the skillet for 3 minutes. Do not touch or move them during this time. By shaking the pan (using a pot holder of course) they should break free by themselves. Turn them over and do the same on the other side for another 3 minutes.

Then put the entire skillet in the oven for about 6-7 minutes for medium rare.

Take the skillet out of the oven, remove and tent the filets.

While the filets are resting, saute some chopped shallots in the skillet, deglaze with some wine, and reduce (or add some demi-glace) to make a fine sauce to ladle over the tenderloins and serve. (Don't forget the juices from the tented filets and add that to the sauce too).

This works everytime for me. Time in the oven depends on how thick your steaks are. I like 2" filets. A couple of times you will find the right combination of timing for your oven and preferences of doneness.

doc

←

Doc -

Thanks for the reply. Looks awesome. This recipe is for the whole tenderloin, though, not steaks. So, the advantage is that you get to present the whole tenderloin to guests and carve at the table if you want.

-Mark-

←

Sorry! Missed the "whole" part. I crank the oven up to 550 F, do as the other poster stated and rub with olive oil, S&P. Then stick it on your roasting rack in a roasting pan and into the 550 oven for about 10 minutes, then turn the oven down to about 325-350 and continue cooking until internal temperature is about 130-135.

Remove and tent and let it rest for about 15 minutes, whilst you can take the roasting pan (remove the rack first!), and continue from there to make some sauce for your whole tenderloin. Unless your guests tastes run from raw to well done, I always try to tuck in the tip end so it doesn't overcook.

doc

[paulraphael]

Sorry!  Missed the "whole" part.  I crank the oven up to 550 F, do as the other poster stated and rub with olive oil, S&P.  Then stick it on your roasting rack in a roasting pan and into the 550 oven for about 10 minutes, then turn the oven down to about 325-350 and continue cooking until internal temperature is about 130-135.

←

doesn't residual heat continue to cook it quite a bit after you pull it out? I like a final temp of 135 or so, so I take it out of the oven when the internal temp is 118 to 120 degrees. I tent it very loosely with foil (to retain some radiant heat, but not all the steam).

I just made a delicious tenderloin for xmas, and did it a bit differently than i had in the past.

I preheated the oven to 500, with the roasting pan in the oven. While the meat warmed to room temp, i salted and peppered it and brushed it with clarified butter.

When the oven (and pan) were preheated, I put the pan on the stove, with the fire turned up, and browned the tenderloin on the smooth side. then I flipped it over, and popped the pan in the oven. In just over fifteen minutes, the meat was a crisp mahogany brown on the outside, and 120 degrees on the inside. After 20 minutes rest (plenty of time to deglaze and finish the sauce) the internal temp was 135.

Fast, easy, and perfect. Much more nicely browned than I was ever able to get from just the oven.

[qrn]

The snow melted off of the exhaust fan unit on the roof, Xmas day (in Denver) .

I cranked up the restaurant type grill in the kitchen and did a good all around sear with all the nice grill marks, and then put it on a rack in a 500º oven till it was 125º internal. tented it for 15 minutes. It was perfectly even med rare.

Same thing works for Pork loin roasts etc.

Bud