This is a great recipe to use on St Valentine’s Day, as one tenderloin easily feeds two people. Reverse searing is a technique for achieving a perfectly cooked steak; it takes the stress of over-cooking out of the equation by cooking the meat at a very low temperature in your oven, then finishing the steak with a quick pan-sear at a super-high temperature. To do this recipe, you will need an internal probe thermometer (luckily, we sell awesome ones at the shop)!
Serves 2
Ingredients:
16 oz beef tenderloin steak, center cut
3 tbsp olive oil
to taste salt and pepper
4 oz ground beef
1 tbsp butter
1 shallot, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp tomato paste
3 branches fresh thyme
2 bay leaves
½ cup red wine
½ cup brandy
1 cup beef stock
½ cup whipping cream, or our additive-free European-style 45% cream from Sheldon Creek
to taste salt
2 tbsp black peppercorns, cracked and crushed with a rolling pin or the bottom of a clean pot
Method:
- Preheat the oven to 250°F.
- Season the tenderloin with salt and pepper, then rub it with 2 tbsp of the olive oil. Place the steaks on a rack on a baking sheet, and place in the oven. Cook for an hour, or until an internal probe thermometer stuck in to the center of the steak reads your desired temperature:
Rare: 120°F
Medium Rare: 130°F
Medium: 140°F
Medium Well: 150°F
Well Done: 160°F
- In the meantime, make the sauce. In a medium saucepan over a high heat, brown the ground beef in the butter. Once browned (about five minutes), lower the heat to medium and add the shallots and garlic, stirring well, and continue cooking for five minutes or until the shallots are translucent. Add the herbs and deglaze the pot with the red wine and brandy. Bring to a simmer and reduce by half. Add the beef stock, bring back to a simmer and reduce by half again. Add the cream, and bring to a simmer. The sauce should coat the back of a spoon. Season with the salt to taste, then strain the sauce into a clean pot. Add crushed peppercorns. Keep the sauce warm by placing the saucepan on a warm part of the stovetop.
- Once the steaks have reached the desired internal temperature, remove it from the oven. Heat a large pan over a high heat on the stove top. Add 1 tbsp of olive oil to the pan and heat until it’s almost smoking. Sear the steak on all sides (about 30-60 seconds per side), until golden brown all over. Remove from the pan and rest for five minutes before slicing into eight or so slices.
- Serve the sliced steak on a platter with the peppercorn sauce on the side.
