Main course · Tied, roasted pink

Beef tenderloin roast

A beef tenderloin roast is a whole or centre-cut beef fillet, trimmed, tied to an even thickness, seared and roasted until the centre is pink, then sliced into thick medallions. It is the leanest of the large holiday roasts, tender because the muscle does almost no work: a trimmed 1.8 kg / 4 lb tenderloin serves about eight, roasted at 220 °C / 425 °F and pulled at 50–52 °C / 122–126 °F for medium-rare.

Also known as: roast fillet of beef · chateaubriand roast · Lomo entero al horno · solomillo asado (España) · filete al horno (México)Last reviewed 25 Oct 20264 sources

A lean muscle, cooked by thermometer

The tenderloin (fillet, eye fillet) is the psoas major, a long, tapering muscle that does almost no work and is therefore fine-grained and very tender. Roasted whole, it is a common main course for Christmas, New Year and, in the United States, an alternative to turkey at Thanksgiving. Its weakness is its leanness: with little fat to protect it, a few degrees too many turn it dry, so it is cooked by thermometer.

In French cookery the chateaubriand is a thick piece from the centre of the fillet, traditionally served for two; the same centre roasted in one piece is sold as a chateaubriand or centre-cut roast. The tenderloin wrapped in duxelles and pastry is beef Wellington.

Trimming: the chain, the tail and the silverskin

A whole tenderloin is sold untrimmed, with fat and the side muscle attached ("peeled, side muscle on", IMPS 189A), or fully trimmed. Field data weighed piece by piece put the usable share of a whole tenderloin at 72.2 % after trimming, but only 57 % when it is cut entirely into steaks of uniform size. The difference, about 15 points, is the chain (the narrow side muscle), the thin tail and irregular pieces: edible, but too thin or uneven for steaks.

Roasting the fillet whole, with the tail folded under and tied, keeps most of that difference on the platter. The chain, coarser and laced with fat and sinew, is better used for stir-fries, skewers or ground beef; a tail cut off instead of folded suits steak tartare or beef stroganoff. Allow 200–250 g / 7–9 oz of trimmed meat per adult; a whole untrimmed tenderloin therefore needs about 40 % more raw weight.

Ingredients

Method

1. Trim the tenderloin: cut away the surface fat, pull the chain off along its length and reserve it, then slide a thin knife under the silverskin and remove it in strips, angling the blade upward to lose as little meat as possible.
2. Fold the thin tail under so the roast has an even thickness, or cut it off for another use. Tie the roast with twine every 2.5–4 cm / 1–1.5 in. Salt it on all sides; ideally the day before, left uncovered on a rack in the refrigerator, or at least 45 minutes ahead.
3. Heat the oven to 220 °C / 425 °F. Pat the meat dry and season with pepper. Sear it in the oil in a large heavy pan over high heat, turning, until browned on all sides, 8–10 minutes in total; a roast too long for the pan can be cut in two. Add the butter, garlic and thyme in the last minute and baste.
4. Move the roast to a rack in a roasting tin, insert a probe thermometer into the thickest part and roast until the centre reaches 50–52 °C / 122–126 °F for medium-rare, usually 25–40 minutes for a 1.8 kg / 4 lb trimmed roast.
5. Rest the roast loosely covered for 15–20 minutes; the centre rises a further 3–5 °C / 5–8 °F. See resting.
6. For the sauce, pour most of the fat from the searing pan, soften the shallots in it for 2 minutes, add the brandy off the heat, then the stock, and reduce by half. Whisk in the mustard and the cream and simmer until the sauce coats a spoon. Add the resting juices and season.
7. Remove the twine and slice the roast into medallions 1.5–2.5 cm / ½–1 in thick. The narrow end gives more-done slices for guests who want them.

Temperatures

Reverse sear, béarnaise or horseradish

In the reverse sear, the tied roast cooks at 120 °C / 250 °F to 48–50 °C / 118–122 °F, about 60–90 minutes, and is seared in a pan at the end; it gives an even pink with almost no grey band and needs little rest. Some cooks roll the seared fillet in cracked pepper or herbs, or wrap it in bacon for fat. Besides the pan sauce, it is served with béarnaise, a peppercorn sauce as in steak au poivre, horseradish cream or a red-wine reduction. Leftovers are served cold, thinly sliced, in salads and sandwiches.

Field data

Numbers measured in a working kitchen, piece by piece, not taken from a table. Another kitchen, another trimming specification, another number. How field data is collected.

Field data

Tenderloin

38sheets (pieces cut)

226.3kg processed

57 %portion yield

72.2 %usable

8.7 %fat removed

15.2 %other usable meat

Steakpedia Field Kitchen1 Jul 2026 – 20 Oct 2026

Open data: download (CSV · JSON, CC BY 4.0) →

Frequently asked questions

Sources

4

1. USDA Agricultural Marketing Service. Institutional Meat Purchase Specifications: Fresh Beef Series 100. Washington, DC, 2014. www.ams.usda.gov/sites/default/files/media/IMPS_100_Fresh_Beef%5B1%5D.pdf
2. Larousse Gastronomique, rev. ed. London: Hamlyn, 2009.
3. McGee, Harold. On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen, rev. ed. New York: Scribner, 2004.
4. USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service. Safe Minimum Internal Temperature Chart. 2023. www.fsis.usda.gov/food-safety/safe-food-handling-and-preparation/food-safety-basics/safe-temperature-chart

Related