Whole Roasted Beef Tenderloin With a Green Peppercorn Butter

I know there are many recipes out there for a whole roasted beef tenderloin. I myself have several recipes, and I love them all. But this is always a favorite and very basic. You will have to purchase green peppercorns packed in water (Whole Foods or most specialty markets carry these, but some local grocers carry them as well) and the tenderloin itself which will be expensive, but it is worth it - this is just a classic simple dish. Besides, if you are going to buy an expensive cut of beef for a special occasion ... you want to treat it with respect and not cover up the flavor. It is five (5) ingredients for the marinade/rub; then pan seared in butter and oil and finished in the oven. A simple finish with a green peppercorn butter. It is perfectly elegant. This isn't an every day dish, but great for a holiday or special occasion. And if you don't want to make as much, simply cut the recipe in half. Prep time does not include the marinade time.

• Ready In: 30 mins
• Serves: 8-10
• Yields: 8-10 Slices of tenderloin

Ingredients

• Tenderloin and Marinade

• 4 -5  lbs  whole beef tenderloin
• 1  tablespoon black peppercorns, crushed (not ground)
• 1  tablespoon kosher salt
• 1  tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 1  tablespoon  minced garlic
• 1 1⁄2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1  tablespoon olive oil (to sear the tenderloin)
• 1  tablespoon butter (to sear the tenderloin)

• Peppercorn Butter

• 1⁄2 cup unsalted butter
• 1  tablespoon  drained green peppercorn, rough chopped (they usually come packed in a brine or water, available at specialty food stores)
• 1  shallot, minced very fine
• 1  teaspoon fresh lemon juice
• 1⁄2 teaspoon Dijon mustard (no yellow mustard)
• 1⁄4 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1⁄4 cup fresh parsley, fine chopped

• Garnish

•  gorgonzola, crumbles
•  onion rings, very thin sliced and fried

Directions

1. Marinade/Rub -- In a small bowl, add the black peppercorns (crushed) not ground. To crush my peppercorns I put them in a small baggie and use a meat mallet or rolling pin and just hit them until they are roughly crushed. Add the salt, dijon mustard, garlic, olive oil and mix well. Take this mixture and rub all over the meat very well. Put the meat in a glass not metal pan and cover with plastic wrap and let marinate all day. At least 4 hours, but I have even let it go overnight and it tasted great.
2. Butter -- In a small bowl, add the butter, green peppercorns drained and rough chopped, shallot, lemon juice, dijon mustard, worcestershire and parsley. Mix well. Then spread on a small piece of parchment paper or plastic wrap. Wrap it up and form in a small log shape. Refrigerate until firm. The butter will be cut in small rounds and added to each slice of beef when served.
3. Steak -- Three things to remember. First, always let the beef come to room temperature before cooking. Second, the ends are always thinner, so I fold them in and then tie them with a piece of kitchen twine to make the ends approximately the same size as the rest of the tenderloin. If you didn't wrap the ends in, they would be well done while the rest of the tenderloin was still raw. And third, the key is a good pan sear in a heavy pan on the stove. On medium high to high heat (cast iron or oven proof pan) heat up the butter and oil and pan sear the room temperature tenderloin until brown on each side. Not too long - just long enough to a nice crust.
4. Once your tenderloin is golden brown, remove from the heat and transfer to the oven; 450 degrees for about 8-10 minutes. Trust me - there is NO MAGIC time. Everyone's oven, pans and meat are different. There isn't that perfect time that works every time and even when I cook this recipe, each time it is a bit different and it should be, that is normal. I have 2 tenderloins in the freezer. One is flatter and the other thicker, both the same weight. And it is common sense that they will take different times to cook, so just remember that using a thermometer is really the only way to test and to make sure the meat is cooked to the right temperature.
5. After 8-10 minutes check the temperature using a meat thermometer; and I take 2 readings to make sure you get an accurate read. Remove the tenderloin just before your tenderloin reaches that perfect temperature as the tenderloin once removed will continue to cook as it rests. I remove at these temperatures as the meat will usually go up 3-5 degrees as it rests. So, 120 for rare; 130 for medium rare; 140 for medium; and 150 for medium well to well.
6. Once the beef reaches the correct temperature, remove from the oven and from the pan, cover with foil and let rest 10-15 minutes before slicing.
7. Serve -- Slice the tenderloin and serve with a slice of the chilled peppercorn butter. It will melt and drizzle all over the steak.
8. Garnish -- If you want, a few crumbles of gorgonzola cheese are a nice touch, just a few. Or another favorite is just a few very thin fried onion rings.