This recipe for Sous Vide Beef Tenderloin gives you the perfect roast every time. And an elegant beef tenderloin is the perfect centerpiece for a special dinner like Christmas Day or New Year’s and it is delicious and surprisingly easy to make.
Learn how to make perfectly cooked beef tenderloin with very little effort in this delicious recipe! You family and friends will be amazed at this restaurant quality meal.
👩🏻🍳Why is Sous Vide Ideal for Beef Tenderloin
A whole beef tenderloin roast is expensive! Very, very expensive, which makes it intimidating to cook. The last thing I want to do is spend $30 a pound on a beef tenderloin roast and then over cook it!
Unfortunately, it is extremely easy to over cook a beef tenderloin. Tenderloin is very lean and doesn’t have much fat, which means that it is best served rare or medium-rare.
This means if you are roasting it in the oven you need an accurate meat thermometer, and you need to watch it very, very carefully or you will cook away the tenderness that makes it so highly prized.
Before I got a sous vide cooker I solved this issue in the most practical way – I simply never bought a beef tenderloin roast. While this did prevent me from over-cooking an expensive piece of meat it also meant I didn’t get to enjoy it very often.
❓What is Sous Vide Cooking?
Sous vide uses a water bath to keep the meat at a constant and precise temperature. You set the cooker to the internal temperature you want the tenderloin to reach and after the water bath reaches that temperature it stays there.
So with a sous vide cooker it is almost impossible to over cook a piece of meat, because the temperature will simply not get high enough. Sous vide cooking means you can cook with precision and have a foolproof, perfectly cooked dinner every time.
And more than that it makes cooking something like beef tenderloin easy – once you have the meat in the sous vide cooker there isn’t much else to do. You can socialize with your guests or make some delicious side dishes to complement the main course.
🌡️Temperature for Cooking Beef Tenderloin
Here are the temperature and cook times for beef tenderloin:
Doneness | Temperature | Description |
rare | 125 °F | cool red center |
medium rare | 135 °F | warm red center |
medium | 145 °F | warm pink center |
medium well | 155 °F | slightly pink center |
well done | 165 °F | little or no pink |
I set my sous vide precision cooker at 137°F for this dish and I thought that was just about perfect. I don’t recommend a temperature under 130 F because of food safety concerns.
Unlike a conventional roast a sous vide roast will not continue to increase in temperature as it rests, so you want to cook it to your desired end temperature.
🌿Key Ingredients
- Beef tenderloin roast
- Olive oil or butter
- Salt
- Pepper
- Fresh herbs like rosemary, thyme or parsley
- Garlic
🔥Searing the Beef
The goal of cooking the beef tenderloin is to have the exterior browned while the interior stays juicy and tender. To get the outside brown you need to sear the meat.
I seared the meat twice, once before adding to the cooker and once after it was done. Searing the roast before you cook it adds flavor as it cooks, and searing again at the end makes it look better.
And if I am serving $35 a pound meat to my family and friends I want them to admire the finished dish and think it looks elegant!
🥩How to Cook Beef Tenderloin in a Sous Vide
- Heat the water – Start the immersion cooker in a container of water and set it to your desired degree of doneness, 137 degrees F in my case.
- Prep the meat – Season with salt and black pepper.
- First sear – Heat the oil or butter in a cast iron skillet on high. Sear the tenderloin on all sides in the skillet until it is brown.
- Add herbs – Put the meat in a vacuum sealer bag or a sturdy zippered bag. Add fresh herbs such as parsley, rosemary or thyme to flavor the meat as it cooks.
- Sous vide – Add the bag to the sous vide water bath for 2-3 hours.
- Cook mushrooms – Right before serving sauté mushrooms in oil in the cast iron skillet for 10 minutes. Take them out of the skillet and set them aside.
- Second sear – Take the meat out of the bag and pat it dry with paper towels, removing the fresh herbs. Quickly sear it again for about 30 seconds on each side.
- Make sauce – Let the tenderloin rest for a few minutes while you make the sauce. Return the mushrooms to the skillet along with a few tablespoons of flour. Pour the juices from the sous vide bag into the skillet. Add broth if there aren’t enough juices. Cook the sauce until it bubbles and thickens.
🍽️Serving Ideas
To serve the sous vide beef tenderloin slice it into thick medallions and serve it with the mushroom sauce. Make some tasty side dishes to go along with the roast, like roast squash and fennel or Utica greens.
I have made many meals that are more complicated and have involved lots of time and effort on my part, but it turns out that an expensive cut of meat cooked perfectly can be very delicious and simple!
This Chateaubriand is perfect for serving during the holiday season for Christmas or anytime you are celebrating a special occasion.
Looking for more sous vide dinner ideas? Try sous vide ribeye steak, sous vide pork chops, sous vide chicken breast or sous vide lamb chops.
❓FAQ
No, you can make the beef roast in a zip-lock bag if you use the water displacement method to remove the air from the bag. Check out my directions here.
Yes, you can sous vide individual filet steaks if you prefer. They will need less time in the cooker and only need 1 – 1 1/2 hours of sous vide time.
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Sous Vide Beef Tenderloin Recipe
Ingredients
Beef Tenderloin
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 pound beef tenderloin
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 4 fresh herbs parsley, thyme or rosemary
- 1 clove garlic minced
Mushroom sauce
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 8 ounces mushrooms
- 2 tablespoon flour optional
- 1/2 cup beef broth
Instructions
- Put the Sous Vide cooker in a water bath and set it to 137 °F degrees or your preferred temperature (see notes).
- Heat the olive oil in a cast iron skillet on medium-high heat.2 tablespoon olive oil
- Sprinkle the beef tenderloin with salt and pepper.2 pound beef tenderloin, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, 1 teaspoon salt
- Sear the tenderloin in the skillet, turning until it is nicely brown on all sides.
- Put the fresh herbs and garlic in a ziploc or sous vide bag and add the tenderloin. Vacuum seal the beef or use the water displacement method to remove the air.4 fresh herbs, 1 clove garlic
- Add the bag to the heated water bath and let it cook for 2-3 hours.
- Once the tenderloin has cooked about 2 hours heat the remaining olive oil in the skillet.2 tablespoon olive oil
- Add the mushrooms and cook for 5-10 minutes, until browned. Remove the vegetables to a small bowl.8 ounces mushrooms
- Remove the tenderloin from the bag, but save the juices that are in the bag. Pat the meat dry and remove the fresh herbs. Sear the tenderloin in the skillet for 2 minutes, rotating to brown on all side.
- Remove the tenderloin to a plate to rest.
- Return the mushrooms to the skillet and stir in the flour. Pour in the juices left in the sous vide bag and add the beef broth.2 tablespoon flour, 1/2 cup beef broth
- Cook, stirring, for 3-5 minutes until the sauce thickens.
- Slice the beef tenderloin and serve with the mushroom gravy.
Notes
- Rare: 125 °F
- Medium rare: 135 °F
- Medium: 145 °F
- Medium well: 155 °F
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Nutrition Information
Nutrition facts are estimates.
Why sear it twice?
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