# Beef Tenderloin



## skipper (Mar 6, 2008)

Hello and Help!!!
I am a cook at home and have been given a huge assignment. I have in my refrigerator 13 whole beef tenderloins that I must cook for a church group for tomorrow. I have one oven but it can turn into a convection oven if needed. My question is: should I use the convection oven and can I cook 4 at a time? or perhaps I should ask: How is the best way to complete this assignment? I am the only person available so I can not ask others to help, I've tried. I have looked up recipes that say to use the convection for baking rather than roasting as it makes meat rubbery. With this much meat, I don't want to fail and would love some input. Thank you.


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## kuan (Jun 11, 2001)

Do you have to serve them all at once?

Convection cooking does not make the meat rubbery. First of all, very important, is you need to go out and buy an instant read thermometer.

What I would do is this. Season the tenderloins with salt and pepper, then brown them in a 500F oven. Remove and refrigerate. Do it for all 13.

When it comes time to serve, put them in the oven four at time at 425F and use your instant read thermometer to make sure they get up to 125F. Remove and allow to rest for 10 minutes. Transfer to cutting board and carve slices.


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## kyheirloomer (Feb 1, 2007)

Question: When you say "whole tenderloins" do you actually mean just the loin portion? Or are they in cryovac bags?

If the latter, you're going to have to break them down, first, as there is a chain and a fat cap, as well as the loin iteself. And there's part of the loin, what I call the tail (although I'm sure it has a real name), that should also be trimmed off, because it's a different texture than the main piece, and should be cooked differently.

Not a hard job, by any means, but time consuming when you have 13 of them to do. 

Once they're broken down, follow Kuan's instructions and you should be ok.

As for the chains: at your leisure, trim them down, salvaging as much meat as possible. Use that to make things like Philly cheesesteak and the like; or even sliced thin for breakfast steaks.


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## skipper (Mar 6, 2008)

Thanks Kuan for the suggestions!!!! I will go out and buy an instant read thermometer. When you talk about a 500 degree and a 450 degree oven, do you mean a convection oven or a regular oven? Also, to brown the tenderloins, how long do I cook them and do I turn them over? I do not have to serve these, someone else will but I do have to slice them. Thank you again.


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## kuan (Jun 11, 2001)

These are whole right? You can tell when they are browned right? Not black, browned. That's really all I can say without giving you a picture. 500F convection or standard, doesn't matter. It will be browned when it's browned, done when it's done.

Next time, give yourself a little time and learn how to trim these lovely pieces of meat.


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## skipper (Mar 6, 2008)

I have just opened one and it is cut in half so there are two pieces that weight about 3 pounds each. They were bought at Costco so I think they are trimmed. Does that make any difference? (I apologize for the basic questions but the responsibility of cooking these expensive cuts of meat and the quantity of it is loading me down). I do thank you all for being so patient with me.


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## kuan (Jun 11, 2001)

Beef tenderloins are not cut in half. I think you have a pork loins.

Is it like this










or


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## skipper (Mar 6, 2008)

It looks like the second cut of meat. On the label it says "Beef Loin Tenderloin Butt Filet Mignon". The package has two pieces of meat in it, each about 3 pounds put together to measure about 15 inches long about 4 1/2 inches wide and 2" thick.


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## montelago (Nov 19, 2007)

Are they nice and clean and red or do they look like they have a bunch of white, fatty, stringy mess on them? Also, are the pieces identical, or is one fat, with a hammerhead shark appearance and the other thinner and tapering?


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## skipper (Mar 6, 2008)

The pieces are pretty much the same size, they do not tapper like a hammerhead shark. They do not have stringy mess on them but they do have fat, more on the top than the bottom. It looks like the butcher cut the tappered end off and these are the thicker, butt end. I'm a little surprised at the amount of fat.


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## montelago (Nov 19, 2007)

It sounds like they are partially cleaned. The fat pulls off easily with the fingers. Is there what looks like a separate piece of meat running down one side? if so, that needs to be removed. You can simply pull it off from the more tapered end up toward the head, and then cut off the very last of it. Also look for a patch of tough white membrane laying on top of the meat. This is called the silverskin and must be removed. It is extremely tough. Slide a boning or paring knife just barely underneath it in the middle and run the knife to one side. Then grab hold of the loose end and slide the knife back under and go the other way. Repeat until it is all gone. Pick off the excess fat and now you have a piece of meat ready to cook.

Kosher salt and black pepper. I would not brown them in the oven, but I realize you may be working with limited equipment. The best thing to do is sear them in a hot pan, like a large saute pan, griddle or heavy bottom roasting pan on the stovetop. Get a pan screaming hot, add some olive oil and lay the meat in there. Turn it after the meat gets a good brown sear on it until it is completely seared on all sides. You can either cool them down as said before, or roast them immediately. Depending on how you like your meat cooked, 125 deg. is a little too much for my taste. This will yield a medium temp at best. I would pull mine at about 110-115 deg for a nice medium rare. Like Kuan said, LET THE MEAT REST FOR A GOOD TEN MINUTES BEFORE YOU DARE TO TAKE A KNIFE TO IT. Otherwise the meat will bleed all of it's lovely juices onto the cutting board and give you dry meat. Comparitively speaking, roasting tenderloins is pretty easy, even for a beginner. Just use the probe and use it properly. Make sure that the end of the probe is in the middle of the muscle, then lightly push it in and then retract it. The lowest temp you get is the one you follow.

Good luck and let us know if you have any more questions.


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## skipper (Mar 6, 2008)

What a great help you have all been. I feel a little more confident in preparing this mass amount of meat. I will go to bed and sleep instead of thinking about it all night. I now have a good feel of what to do tomorrow. Again, thank you for your patience and advice to a novice cook.


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## kuan (Jun 11, 2001)

OK Skipper, good luck, glad we could help so quickly. 

Looks like what you have are called butt tenders. They have a little bit more sliver skin but they are still very tender. If you can, try and trim them a bit.

You can also cook some to medium, some to medium rare if you want.


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## mikelm (Dec 23, 2000)

What a _nice_ bunch of people here. That's why I like hanging out here so much.

Mike :chef:


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## skipper (Mar 6, 2008)

I had to thank you once again for your detailed, patient, thorough, explanations of a culinary problem of which I had no experience. I had to let you know that the meat turned out delicious. I did find some other people to help me cook it. It was simple, fast and well received. The thanks go to you!!


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## montelago (Nov 19, 2007)

(Applause) And the crowd goes wild.


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## ramenshopradio (Jul 17, 2010)

This thread is very helpful! I'm going to be cooking beef tenderloin for a party for 65 in a week. I've cooked a few 100 person parties, but I've never been responsible for meat and I'm feeling a little underprepared.

We have a convection oven at the party site, but I'm wondering a few things:

How much beef do we need for 65 people?

I'll be using a thermometer, but so that I can plan the workflow, about how long will 4 tenderloins take to cook?

Any advice would be very helpful!

Thanks!


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## chefbillyb (Feb 8, 2009)

I would say two 3 oz slices, I would also season the peeled & Cleaned tenderloin.  Rub with oil and season with a lot of salt, pepper and garlic...............Chef BillyB


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## petemccracken (Sep 18, 2008)

Following ChefBillyB's thoughts, 6 ounces/person is adequate, 8 ounces/person would be generous, so, guestimating a, what, say, 95% yield and a shrinkage of, umm, oh 5%:

6 ounces times 65 = 24 lbs 6 ounces (24.375 lbs), add, oh, 5% for safety? = 25lbs 10 ounces EP

25 lbs 10 ounces / .95 is pretty close to 27 pounds trimmed and 27 pounds trimmed is about 28 1/2 pounds AP (as purchased)


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## ramenshopradio (Jul 17, 2010)

The party is tomorrow -- you've all been extremely helpful! This board is really great!

Some final, and some crazy, questions: I'm thinking I will have a demi-glaze or rich stock warm and ready just in case I screw things up and it helps to douse the slices in a little liquid before plating. Does that make sense? Any dangers to be mindful of? And, as for seasoning - and here's the crazier part- I'm contemplating rubbing the filets with a fine paste of anchovies, garlic, basil, oregano, capers, olive oil, salt,pepper. Is that risky? Was thinking that a bold, briny spice would contemplate the rest of the meal...and can't decide whether my instincts are on target or if that's off the deep end (...for example, I was going to sneak the anchovies in there...my sense is that'll taste great but if folks know it would be somewhat controversial...) Advice is appreicated!

Thanks!


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## boar_d_laze (Feb 13, 2008)

You don't want to douse anything in _demi-glace_. For that matter, you don't want to use it as a stand alone sauce at least not as part of sophisticated plate. It's more of a means to an end. Nappe consistency sauces are served as nappe, puddle, or smears.

It's not a bad idea to have some sort of wine fortified, hot jus standing by to sauce and refresh the meat. A hot jus can also partner with a creme-fraiche or mayo based _sauce chaud_, or even with a_ bernaise_.

If you were serving in a buffet line, you could, for instance, have a hot jus after the meat, standing with a ladel in it; and, by its side a thermos carafe (as for coffee) filled with _bernaise_ -- and suggest that your guests try a little bernaise on top of the jus.

Something's that's worked well for me is a beef stock - red wine - madeira jus with a cold sauce made with fresh mayonnaise - creme fraiche - green peppercorns - dijon mustard - horseradish. (By the way, with a little dill and sugar that cold sauce works well for fish; and with tarragon but no sugar is great on chicken.)

You could use anchovy paste as part of a wet rub/crust, I suppose. But the wet rub you propose seems awfully salty to me. You don't want that much salt with beef generally. Because fillet is not that thick a cut, you can't go nuts salting the outside as you would a standing rib.

And there are better ways to pair anchovies with beef. One of them, come to think of it, might be in that _sauce chaud_. Hmmm. Wouldn't do much for the color though, would it?

If you want to be "creative," how about a cocoa/chipotle dry rub?

Furthermore, if you're using a good fillet there's no need to gild the lily quite as much as you seem to want. And if you're not using good fillet, don't use fillet at all. Friends don't let friends by "Select."

Just generally: You're running at about a 319% overtrain. Breathe. Do less. Do it better.

BDL


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## chefedb (Apr 3, 2010)

At most catered affairs we figure 1 Filet per 12 people 2 slices pp. (Want to be generous? 1 to 10 guest)

A lot of people are asking convection or standard oven cut down cooking time when in convection as you are using forced heated air. The item will cook quicker in convection then standard oven.


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## ramenshopradio (Jul 17, 2010)

Reporting back...

The party went very well! Cooking in the home kitchen of a rental beach house was a challenge - turned out there was no pan appropriate for searing the meat on the stovetop, so I ended up trying the brown-in-a-500-degree kitchen technique. After that, I did use a wet anchovy/garlic/parsley rub (toning down the salt as suggested). It was a nearly 100 degree day and after the browning the meat didn't cool down very well, so I was really worried about how it would come out, but 30 minutes in a 425 degree oven was all it took to finish off the meat to a perfect medium rare. I had an au jus at the ready, but it wasn't needed at all - the meat was flavorful, and juicy.

We served 65 serving and the meat got raves. I was in way over my head until I found this thread....thanks for all the wisdom and advice!


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## chefedb (Apr 3, 2010)

How many butts did you use. both pieces =1 tender.??


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## ramenshopradio (Jul 17, 2010)

We had 5 trimmed tenderloins for 65 -- servings were very generous - and we had leftovers - both in cooked meat and in parts of the 'chain' that we trimmed off.


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