Roasted Beef Tenderloin

In my family, we have lots of traditions.  Some are good, some are odd, and most of them are fun.

One tradition is that we roast and eat beef tenderloin every year at the beach.  This falls into both the "good" and "fun" tradition categories.

And in our family, we have a few rules. 

One rule is that we eat meat.  And we love it.

Let me show you what I mean.

Well.  Hello there, cow.

Here is he is all wrapped up from the market.

And here is slathered with butter, salt and pepper.

Another family rule is that we eat butter.  Or did I even need to tell you that one?

Oh!  And here he is after he's roasted in a really hot oven.  He's resting before we cut him up and eat him.

You want this to be medium rare.  Anything further than that and you should've just bought hamburger meat. So you'll need to babysit it a little bit with a meat thermometer to make sure it does not go one degree over 130 before you take it out of the oven.  

And here he is again, actually being cut up.

This is definitely a special occasion dinner.  It really is wonderful.   The meat is so very tender and juicy on the inside and the outside is crusty and flavorful from the butter and seasoning and the high oven temperature.

Good thing we eat this on Christmas Eve, too, because vacation is a whole year away.

Roasted Beef Tenderloin

1 6-7 lb. beef tenderloin

1 stick butter, at room temperature

2 T kosher salt

1 T pepper

Place the beef on a large baking sheet.  Smear the butter all over it.  Sprinkle the salt and pepper evenly over.  

Roast at 500 degrees for 25 minutes.  After 25 minutes, start checking the beef's internal temperature with a meat thermometer.   Continue checking the beef's internal temperature every few minutes until the large end (tenderloin generally comes with a small end and a larger end; the small end will obviously cook faster) registers 125-130 degrees.  It will continue to cook once it is out of the oven (called carryover cooking) so removing it between 125-130 degrees allows it to come to the perfect 135 degree medium-rare temperature when it is done resting.

When you remove it from the oven, allow it to sit at room temperature for at least 10 minutes before slicing.

Slice into thick slices and serve.  The leftovers make awesome tenderloin sandwiches for lunch the next day.