Beef Tenderloin Recipe

Our Beef Tenderloin Recipe is made in a cast-iron skillet and it’s perfect for entertaining. Follow our step by step instructions to make the easiest whole tenderloin steak that’s roasted to perfection. 

Beef tenderloin steak served on Christmas has been a tradition in my husband’s family before I was ever a part of the family.

My mother-in-law made beef tenderloin in the oven on Christmas night. Everyone looked forward to this delicious steak dinner. Even though my mother-in-law is no longer with us, we continue this tradition each year, taking turns hosting this special get-together. 

It’s in my nature to research the heck out of a special meal, making sure every detail is covered. I may or may not obsess a bit about the details.

Because of all this info I’ve gathered on the topic of how to perfectly cook tenderloin steak in the oven, I’m excited to share it with you today.

How To Make

1. Preheat oven to 475 degrees.
2. Place whole peppercorns into a ziplock bag, then crush with a kitchen mallet or rolling pin. Set aside.
3. Place trimmed beef tenderloin onto a cutting board or clean large surface and season liberally with the seasoning salt and the salt. Watch the video to get a better idea.
4. Turn the ends of the tenderloin into itself so the thinner ends are now in the middle of the tenderloin.
5. Place 3-4 pieces of cooking twine under the tenderloin and tie into knots, trimming the ends, so that the ends stay put and the meat is not wrapped into a nice rectangular shape that will fit into a skillet. 
6. Heat butter and olive oil over medium-high heat in an oven-safe skillet. 
7. Using tongs, place the tenderloin into the pan. Sear for 3 minutes, then turn. Repeat until all 4 sides are seared.
8. Place seared tenderloin onto your oven’s roaster pan. Spread the crushed peppercorns onto the steak, place butter cut into chunks over the steak, and place an oven-safe meat thermometer into the steak.
9. Cook for 15-20 minutes or until the thermometer reaches 140 degrees. 
10. Let the steak rest for 10 minutes before slicing
11. Make sure to slice against the grain for tender slices of steak. 

To get started, gather your ingredients, you don’t need many for this easy steak recipe.

Beef tenderloin is the most expensive cut of meat on the steer. A trimmed center-cut tenderloin can run you as much as $25 to $30 per pound, but there are ways to minimize that cost.

One way is to buy the tenderloin whole and untrimmed, bring it home, and trim it yourself. For instructions on how to trim a beef tenderloin at home head here.

Not up to this task?  Me either. I have the butcher at the store do it for me. I often find that the butcher is happy to do this free of charge.

Pro Tip: Watch for sales on Beef Tenderloin around the holidays. This cut of beef is very expensive, but it’s often on sale this time of year.

My favorite part of this recipe is the flavor from the crushed peppercorns, if you’re not sure about this ingredient, trust me, it’s amazing.

To crush whole peppercorns, place them into a Ziploc bag then crush with a kitchen mallet or rolling pin. It’s a great way to get out some of that holiday stress…

Once you’re ready to make the beef tenderloin steak, start by getting an oven-safe skillet heated over medium-high heat on the stovetop. Next, get out a large cutting board or sheet pan and place the steak on it.

Pro Tip: Generously season both sides of the steak with your chosen spice blend. Remember that the steak will be sliced thinly – you want the seasoning to coat all parts of the steak, so go heavy on your seasoning.

Once seasoned, wrap the ends inward to that they are tucked into the middle. This helps to cook the steak in the oven evenly. It also makes searing the steak a lot easier. 

Cut 3 to 4 pieces of kitchen twine and slide it under the steak, then tie. Trim off the extra. The beef tenderloin steak is now ready to cook. 

To your hot skillet, add olive oil and butter.

Using tongs, place the beef tenderloin steak into the pan to sear. Sear each side about 3 minutes, turning to sear all 4 sides. 

Pro Tip: Searing provides a nice crust on the outside of the steak and adds an amazing flavor that roasting alone cannot provide.

Once you have all sides of the steak seared, place it onto your oven roasting pan…you know that pan that came with the oven that you never use?! 🙂 It works great for steak in the oven! 

Next, spread the crushed peppercorns over the whole beef tenderloin steak, then place chunks of butter on the steak, and place an oven-safe thermometer into the steak. 

Pro Tip: Make sure that the thermometer does not touch the rack above in the oven. It will melt the thermometer (I speak from experience!). 

Roast whole beef tenderloin in the oven until the internal temperature reaches 140 degrees. This takes about 15 minutes.

Make sure not to overcook the beef tenderloin steak.

Tenderloin is lean and one of the most tender cuts around, but the lack of fat means that overcooking it will result in dry, tough meat.

Pro tip: Tenderloin is best served rare or medium-rare, so use a thermometer to make sure it doesn’t get cooked past 140°F in the center.

For guests who like their meat well-done, consider cutting a whole tenderloin into 2 pieces before tying and cooking them to different temperatures to please everybody.

Let The Beef Tenderloin Rest

One of the biggest mistakes you can make, besides overcooking, is slicing the steak too soon.

If you cut into tenderloin right after it’s been cooked, all the delicious juices will leak out onto your cutting surface rather than staying in the meat. The result is dry meat with less flavor.

Pro tip: When your roasted beef tenderloin is done cooking, set it aside to rest for 10 to 15 minutes. This lets the meat relax and gives it a chance to redistribute and reabsorb all the juices.

How To Cut Beef Tenderloin After Cooking

Slice the beef tenderloin across the grain. Slicing a steak incorrectly results in chewy, hard to eat steak.

Check out the photo above and pay attention to the arrows showing the grain and then where to cut across this grain.

If you’d like more info on why it’s important to cut against the grain check out this video that explains why it’s important to cut against the grain. 

What to serve with Beef Tenderloin 

•  Cheesy Potatoes
• Crockpot Potatoes
• Crockpot Cheesy Potatoes
• Brussels Sprout Salad,
• Mexican Corn Salad
•  Brussels Sprout Soup
• Caramelized Butternut Squash