Beef Tenderloin for guests this weekend

Mark Backer

I am making a "Christmas" Dinner for my mom and stepdad Saturday and they are bringing a Beef tenderloin that they want spectactularly egged. (surprise). I have read the recipe at T-Rex's site and his sounds great. I just wondered if anybody's got any of those "hey, when I did one, I found this" kind of pointers. [p]I tend to be nervous anytime I am cooking a certain cut for the first time, and I appreciate your patience and the virtual hand-holding.[p]
Thanks.

mad max beyond eggdome

Mark Backer,
go to the dizzypig recipe section and you'll see a detailed description on how i do one. ...btw, just like with prime rib, you can go with a rub, like cowlic, or herbs, or garlic, etc. ..

katman

Mark Backer,
First, let me make clear that I think the world of my mother! Okay. Now, second, she is a pretty simple soul. I'll leave it at that.[p]Several years ago she asked what I thought the family should have for Xmas. I usually egg a turkey and bring a spiral cut ham. She still wanted the regular stuff, but also something special. I suggested beef tenderloin.[p]Mom went out to the market and got a whole cryo tenderloin. Being of French ancestry, she has always been good with pastry so she made it Wellington style. Looked like a big loaf of french bread with a little bow tie on it.[p]I went to slice that baby up and it was the toughest hunk of meat I had ever cut into. Just wouldn't slice. Turned out she took the whole thing out of the cryo and without peeling it encased it in the pastry dough. She figured there didn't seem to be much fat on it and, being frugal, wasn't going to waste any of that expensive meat.[p]Family and guests enjoyed the turkey and ham. The tenderloin we added to our inventory of good stories like the one when she mistakenly grabbed the bottle of karo syrup instead of cookin oil when she was filling the frybaby to cook some stuffed mushroom caps.[p]So, don't forget to peel that meat.

egghead2004

<p />Mark Backer,
I've done a few of these. One way was to butterfly the tenderloin and make a mushroom stuffing and lobster tails. Check out Food network, Emeral did one like this if your interested. [p]Lessons learned the hard way
1. Sear it baby! Just like a TRex steak. I get the large egg going at 700 or so and place the tenderloin on the lower grid. 2 minutes per side, then rest. I did't do this the first time..[p]2. I don't cook it below 350 dome, I have noticed that cooking it too slow dries out a lean tenderloin. There may be others who hae success, but I have not.[p]3. I cook it indirect. Again many others cook it direct, I've had better success with a drip pan full of wine/water.[p]4. For medium, pull it in the low 130s. Cooking @ 375-400 dome temp, seems to give me a 10-12 degree over run. You can pull it even lower, the nice thing about tenderloin is that the head will be meduim rare and the tail will be medium. [p]I'm no pro at these, but this is what I have noticed.

Eggsellent

katman,
Wow! That is a great story!!! I can't come close to that one - but when we were little my sister and I decided to make an anniversary dinner for our parents. I don't even remember what we were making - some Mexican dish. Anyway, it called for 1/4 TEASPOON of garlic powder and we put in 1/4 CUP by accident - whoops! They ate as much as they could (as to not hurt our feelings) - but it's a story that's been told for years. Some anniversary, huh?!

QBabe

katman,[p]Ok, I'm going to show my ignorance here. I've done at least a couple dozen or more beef tenderloins since I began egging, but have never "peeled" them. What in the world is "peeling" them?[p]Thanks,
Tonia
:~)

Mark Backer

Eggsellent,[p]Was that the same sister who left the bag full of crud in the turkey on thanksgiving, or was that the other sister?[p];)

Mark Backer

QBabe,[p]Thank God you asked QBabe. I was going to ask, but everyone here thinks I'm dumb enough already. LOL[p]Now, what does peeling a beef tenderloin mean?

Bobby-Q

Mark Backer,
There is a very thin but very tough layer of silverskin on the back and side of beef tenderloins. You basically take a boning knife and skin it like you would a fish, taking as small an amount of meat as is possible in the process.[p]Most "real" butchers will skin it for you, but if it is in cryovac then it will be there in all it's toughness.

fishlessman

QBabe,sometimes you can get an untrimmed tenderloin for less money.
To trim beef tenderloin start by removing the silvery skin. This cooks up very tough and makes dealing with the tenderloin difficult. This is similar to removing the membrane from ribs. Try using a paper towel to get a good hold on the skin while you use a knife to lift it away from the meat. Then remove any excess fat that might be hanging lose. [p]

katman

QBabe,
Perhaps my local butcher (now gone to butcher heaven so I can't consult) gave me a localized term. Basically, when the whole tenderloin comes from the packer it is untrimmed and there can be a layer of fat, grizzle and meat that should be separated from the main portion of the roast. I imagine most supermarkets have trimmed or peeled tenderloins in the meat case, but the last packer I got definately needed to have the tough stuff removed.

Unknown

Mark Backer,
Old Bordello could answer that butt I don't want to be in trouble again.............Hmmmmmmmmmm, maybe I DO. LOL
Cheers,
Bordello at heart. ÜÜÜ

Gandolf

Mark Backer,
Seems you've made up your mind, but I gotta recommend the Blue Cheese Stuffed Tenderloin. It is fabulous and easy to make. If interested, email me and I'll forward the recipe.[p]Dave

Mark Backer

Gandolf,[p]I am not totally convinced yet, but I am not a blue cheese eater at all. If you have an alternate filling (like swiss or something) I'd be all ears...[p](stike...you keep you comments right here to yourself).

Unknown

Mark Backer,
I too have a hard time with blue cheese, it's not that I don't like it but how strong it is. I can eat a little, maybe have to work up to it.[p]Cheers,
Bordello

Eggsellent

Gandolf,
I LOVE blue cheese and so does our daughter!!!! And since that's 2 out of 3 in this family (with the 2 being women) Backer might lose out some days (just kidding hon). Anyway, I'm e-mailing you for the recipe right now - YUMMY!!!!!

YB

Mark Backer,
This is a real good recipe Todd.I have tasted it at two Eggtoberfest.
Larry
[ul][li]SloMo's Beef Tenderloin[/ul]

Mark Backer

YB,[p]Thanks Larry. What's funny is you get so spoiled by the resources available on the messageboard that you (I) forget to check the BGE recipe site for any of this...[p]Can't wait to try one of these thingies.

Bobby-Q

Mark Backer,
For a practical in Culinary school I rolled a tenderloin with Blue Cheese and made a sweet raspberry sauce to drizzle over it. Some of the best eats ever in my opinion.[p]But a basic tenderloin prepared really well, like some of the recipes suggested should and will stand on it's own perectly.[p]Besides if it just sucks, you can always blame the meat that they are bringing.

Hooter

Mark Backer,[p]You will never forgive yourself if you don't try a Drunk and Dirty tenderloin. Get yourself a copy of "Smoke and Spice" by Jaimison and Jaimison and you'll find the recipe. [p]I'm sure someone else will chime in. This is still my favorite after 3 years of egging.

Unknown

Mark Backer, If it's a whole tenderloin in a cryovac bag, it will need to be trimmed and have the silver skin and excess fat removed (as mentioned by others here). There's about 10% waste. I trim-off the long side muscle, the head-end side muscle, and the tail for stir-fry, etc. What I prepare for the meal is the center piece (3-4 lbs) for four people, with leftovers. Some markets sell oven-ready tenderloin roasts that have two such trimmed pieces tied together for serving a larger group. Don't overcook. I take mine off at 115°.