Roasted Beef Tenderloin

  • Prep 10 min
  • Total 1 hr 15 min
  • Servings 6

Ingredients

  • 1 beef tenderloin (about 2 1/2 pounds)
  • 1 tablespoon olive or vegetable oil
  • 1/2 teaspoon coarsely ground pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried marjoram leaves
  • 1/4 teaspoon coarse kosher salt, coarse sea salt or regular salt

Steps

  • 1
    Heat oven to 425°F.
  • 2
    Turn small end of beef under about 6 inches. Tie turned-under portion of beef with string at about 1 1/2-inch intervals. Place beef on rack in shallow roasting pan. Brush with oil. Sprinkle with pepper, marjoram and salt. Insert meat thermometer so tip is in thickest part of beef.
  • 3
    Bake uncovered 40 to 50 minutes or until thermometer reads at least 140°F. Cover beef with tent of aluminum foil and let stand about 15 minutes or until thermometer reads 145°F. (Temperature will continue to rise about 5°, and beef will be easier to carve.) Remove string from beef before carving.

  • Serve this Roasted Beef Tenderloin with classic mashed potatoes and your favorite steamed green veggie.
  • Beef tenderloin is, indeed, tender—but only when it’s cooked correctly. This is a very lean cut of meat, something you need to be cognizant of when cooking it, with this recipe or any other. The lack of fat makes overcooking the cardinal sin of handling a tenderloin. With a tenderloin, too much time in the oven or cooking at too hot a temperature will leave you with a tough, dry piece of meat (and, dare we say it, a waste of money). Other cuts can stand the heat a bit more because their fat renders and helps to keep things moist and juicy. If ever there was a time to baby your ingredients, this is it; your vigilance will pay off in the form of a beautiful tenderloin roast.
  • A meat thermometer is a handy tool to keep in your kitchen, and it could become your best friend if you like to cook a lot of meat and are choosy about how it’s done. This recipe calls for an oven-safe thermometer that can be inserted at the start of cooking and give you a read-out as it progresses. Another option for helping you keep tabs on temps is an instant-read digital thermometer, which can read out temperatures in fractions of a second but doesn’t need to stay in the oven. Some models are rather expensive, but as the demand for them continues to expand, it’s becoming easier to find affordable yet effective options.
  • Tenderloin—and the steaks cut from it, filets mignon—are among the most expensive cuts of beef you can buy. They make up such a small part of the yield from a cow but are in very high demand, so prices stay lofty. When you have something to celebrate and only the best will do, a beef tenderloin roast in the oven is guaranteed to impress and be a meal that’s remembered for years to come—well worth the investment, if you ask us.

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size: 1 Serving
Calories
230
Calories from Fat
110
Total Fat
12g
0%
Saturated Fat
4g
0%
Cholesterol
80mg
0%
Sodium
170mg
0%
Total Carbohydrate
0g
0%
Dietary Fiber
0g
0%
Protein
30g
% Daily Value*:
Vitamin A
0%
0%
Vitamin C
0%
0%
Calcium
0%
0%
Iron
14%
14%
Exchanges:
0 Starch; 0 Fruit; 0 Other Carbohydrate; 0 Skim Milk; 0 Low-Fat Milk; 0 Milk; 0 Vegetable; 0 Very Lean Meat; 4 Lean Meat; 0 High-Fat Meat; 0 Fat;
*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.
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