Beef Tenderloin - front page article


 
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Rick Moore

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Anyone feel free to provide comments, I guess this is more for Chris though.

The beef tenderloin you did in this cook weighed 5.6 pounds before trimming - did you weigh it after trimming? Just wondering how much you lose in the trimming process.

Also, do you find it easier to cut the finished product with an electric knife similar to when you took the whole turkey breast off the turkey in last month's front page article?

And finally, the video of the trimming is top notch! It took me a minute to figure out if I was having technical difficulty with the speed of the video - but I did figure it out eventually...
 
You can use an electric knife, but if you have a shape carving knife you should have no problem using that.

That video is great. Chris did an excellent job.
Too bad he filmed it in color. It had that B&W, silient film feel.
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Alton Brom is a proponent of the "sear after" school of thought (and I agree), but he suggests letting the meat rest between the roasting and the searing. That way it has less affect on the doneness of the meat.
 
Chris - I was surprised by the size of the tenderloin you used, 5.6 pounds. I typically buy them in the 3-4 pound range, and end up tying two together for bigger feasts. Are 5-6 pound tenderloins the norm in your area? Must be from different beef. Maybe I'm getting mine from retired dairy cows.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Rick Moore:
The beef tenderloin you did in this cook weighed 5.6 pounds before trimming - did you weigh it after trimming? Just wondering how much you lose in the trimming process. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>No, I didn't weigh after trimming, and I kicked myself later because I knew someone would ask. It wasn't much, though...less than 1/2 pound.

For slicing, I just used a sharp knife, not the electric knife.

For the video, the challenge was how to summarize 24 minutes of trimming and tying. Instead of trying to do that, I decided to speed up the whole thing. I hope it gets the point across and is somewhat entertaining in the process.

Regards,
Chris
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by JRPfeff:
I was surprised by the size of the tenderloin you used, 5.6 pounds. I typically buy them in the 3-4 pound range, and end up tying two together for bigger feasts. Are 5-6 pound tenderloins the norm in your area? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>That tenderloin came from Costco Wholesale Warehouse, most seemed to be about that size. I don't have any info about what is the norm.

At 3-4 pounds, maybe you're just getting a portion of the whole?

Regards,
Chris
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Chris Allingham:
No, I didn't weigh after trimming, and I kicked myself later because I knew someone would ask. It wasn't much, though...less than 1/2 pound. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

I'll second Chris on the that estimate. There is virtually no waste with beef tenderloin. Other than the silver skin, there isn't much there that isn't red meat. I'd guess closer to a quarter pound of waste.

Here's that 3.64 pounder I mentioned - split, doubled, tied and ready to grill. This was the one time I didn't buy cryovac (who can pass by $3.99 tenderloin?) so the market may have cut a couple pounds of filet mignons from the end.
 
Thanks all for the info - Chris, sorry to be "the one" ;-) It didn't look like much, but I didn't want to get in trouble by not having enough meat for our feast!

JRPfeff - That tenderloin looks great! I actually considered the bacon thing as well to put a little removable fat on there for the cooking process. I like that you laid it on top of the loin after tying it - I'm sure that makes removal easier!

I'll be smoking this piece of meat on Sunday - I'll try to take some pics and get them posted for you all to see - and like Chris, I'll be using a warehouse style tenderloin - mine will be Sam's though.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Chris Allingham:
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Rick Moore:
The beef tenderloin you did in this cook weighed 5.6 pounds before trimming - did you weigh it after trimming? Just wondering how much you lose in the trimming process. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>No, I didn't weigh after trimming, and I kicked myself later because I knew someone would ask. It wasn't much, though...less than 1/2 pound.

For slicing, I just used a sharp knife, not the electric knife.

For the video, the challenge was how to summarize 24 minutes of trimming and tying. Instead of trying to do that, I decided to speed up the whole thing. I hope it gets the point across and is somewhat entertaining in the process.

Regards,
Chris </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Chris, the video was fantastic. I always have a hard time with the silver skin ... it was great to see how you removed that.

maybe the soundtrack should have been "Cuts like a knife" by Bryan Adams?
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Great job!
 
JRPfeff,

Just to follow-up on the question of whole beef tenderloin weight...

This morning I was browsing the meat case at Costco (my idea of fun) and they had a very large supply of whole beef tenderloins in Cryovac. All were over 6 pounds, and a few were just over 7 pounds.

Regards,
Chris
 
Has any other Costco shoppers noticed that they raised the price on tenderloin recently. I bought one untrimmed in cryovac a few weeks ago at $8/lb. I was there last Wed. and it was up to $12/lb.

I'm guessing its a seasonal thing, but wanted to ask around in case I needed to start hoarding beef ahead of a new bio scare.
 
I just did this cook two nights ago - it turned out great! Only my third cook on the WSM, but a big success thanks to the step-by-step instructions. I was able to get a 5.64 lb tenderloin for 5.09/lb just at the local warehouse grocery store, they called it "untrimmed", but all that was left to trim was the silverskin. Chain was gone, very little external fat present. My smoker read 250 at the lid, but it took almost 90 minutes to get to 130-135 internal, so you may want to give yourself a little extra time. I was able to hold it in foil for quite a while (late dinner guests). The whole thing was tender, juicy, and delicious - definitely will be making this one again!
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Chris Allingham:

... This morning I was browsing the meat case at Costco (my idea of fun) ... </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

You are sick Chris, but not alone.
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I'm traveling on business this week, and before I checked into my hotel I stopped at a grocery to squeeze the butts and fondle the briskets, as well as check prices.

Regarding beef tenderloin weights, I checked one in cryovac in my freezer and it is less than 4 pounds. A friend tells me that these small bargain tenderloins (I buy them at $3.99 to $4.99/lb) are cow versus steer meat. At these prices, I'm not going to worry about the size.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Jane Cherry:
I could only find the video for tieing the roast. Where is this other video? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
In the Beef Tenderloin article, scroll down the page a little and click the graphic "Preparing A Whole Beef Tenderloin".

It looks like a little Windows Media Player, on the right side of the page.

Regards,
Chris
 
i just picked up a 7 lb tenderloin last night at costco. the price was $11.59 per lb. i can't wait to cook this up on christmas day.

thanks for the write up chris!
 
Chris,

I finally braved the holiday crowds to check out the tenderloins at Sam's Club. They ranged from 6.5 to 8.5 pounds, with most just over 7 pounds. I'll take this as verification of the steer versus cow tenderloin theory.

Jim
 
This was a great video. So informative. Thanks Chris. Have a dinner party for 15 for New Year's, and I suggested to my client a beef tenderloin roast. Will probably buy them two.
 
Just to let everyone know, on approximately 7.40 pound roasts, I got 2 pounds, a little less waste after trimming. I weighed it, so buy accordingly. I paid $10.99 a pound at Costco, each roast was $80.

I certainly would like to know how everyone else comes out on this. I hope I didn't do anything too excessive.
 
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