Beef Tenderloin with Chimichurri Sauce

 

BEEF TENDERLOIN with CHIMICHURRI SAUCE

Beef Tenderloin with Chimichurri Sauce is something that I make all the time in the summer.  It is perfect for large gatherings because the meat holds well and is delicious on a buffet warm or at room temperature.

There are a few different ways to make the beef and all of them are delicious.  Here in the Santa Ynez and Santa Maria Valley's the traditional way to cook any kind of beef is over an oak pit barbecue and that is still my preferred method of preparing it and the way I have done it for hundreds of weddings and parties.  You can sear it on an oak grill and finish it in the oven.  I always trim the fat from the beef.  Then rub it with olive oil and kosher salt before I put it on the grill.  Then get a good sear on it and either cook it completely on the grill or if it has to be prepared in advance we sear it on the grill and then finish it in a hot oven.  When the beef is finished cooking and just before I serve it, I brush it with melted butter.  

I realize that not everyone wants to take the time to light a fire, wait 45 minutes for the embers to burn down to the current temperature and then grill it.   So here is the oven version for those of you who don't want to build a fire.  If anyone would like additional information on the live fire version please contact me via my web site www.mailihalme.com or by instagram @maili_halme 

The oven roasted version has a version where you turn the oven off and then turn it on again right before you want to serve it, or you can cook it from start to finish at one time.  The turning it off version works well for someone who is entertaining without anyone helping them and and may want time to clean up the kitchen and do other things while the meat happily rests safely in the oven.  Also, guests can happily enjoy hors d'oeuvres without a worry of the meat overcooking.  Then about 35 minutes before you want to serve the beef you turn the oven back on.  So this gives you a lot of flexibility while you do other things.  

OVEN ROASTED BEEF TENDERLOIN

1 whole beef tenderloin

Olive oil

Kosher Salt

Melted butter, optional

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Trim some and silverskin fat from the beef.  I like to leave a little fat on the meat because there is a lot of flavor in the fat and it melts in while you cook it.  So don't trim all of the fat away completely.  You can remove the chain or grill it with the chain on.  (For more casual parties I leave the chain on.  For more formal parties, I remove the chain and we use it to make delicious beef tacos.  I also remove the chain when I'm cutting the tenderloin into steaks.)

After it is cleaned and trimmed, rub the entire tenderloin in olive oil and spring with kosher salt.  If you like pepper you can add freshly ground pepper as well but most of the time I only season with kosher salt and olive oil.

Place the oven on a half-sheet tray or rimmed metal baking tray.  I always line mine with heavy duty aluminum foil for easy clean up.

At this point you have two choices.  

MAKE AHEAD VERSION:  Place the tenderloin in the preheated oven and then roast for 20 minutes.  Then turn the oven off and leave the beef inside with the oven door closed.  THE MEAT CAN SIT IN THE TURNED OFF OVEN FOR 2 HOURS.  Then about 35 minutes before you'd like to serve it, turn the oven back up to 400.  Once the oven gets to temperature, let it cook for another 20 minutes.  This will result in a perfect medium rare tenderloin.  Remove the beef from the oven, brush with melted butter and tent with heavy duty aluminum foil.  Allow it to rest for 10 minutes and then carve it at a diagonal.  Place on a platter and top with Chimichurri Sauce (recipe follows below)

COOKING STRAIGHT THROUGH VERSION:  for the straight through version, roast the beef tenderloin in a 400 degree oven for 35-40 minutes.  Test to see that the temperature with a meat thermometer is somewhere around 125-130 degrees.   Remove the meat from the oven, brush with melted butter if you wish, tent with heavy duty aluminum foil and let rest for ten minutes before you carve it.

for the Chimichurri Sauce:

1/3 cup red wine vinegar 

1/3 cup olive oil

1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1 garlic clove, minced (do not overdo the garlic!)

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, or more to taste

1 bunch of flat-leaf parsley (also known as Italian parsley), leaves only, chopped

To make the sauce,  Combine all of the ingredients in a bowl and mix well.  There are some versions that blend their chimichurri sauce but I like it combined in a bowl.  Also, do not overdo the garlic or the sauce will be bitter.  I use this sauce on so many things:  Many kinds of grilled beef as well as chicken and fish.  it is also delicious on salads and you may recognize it from the lentils salads I've shared on my blog in the past.  

It is best made the morning you want to serve it so that the parsley stays bright green and fresh.  But if you need to make it one day in advance, you can do that.