How to Tie a Beef Tenderloin

A beef tenderloin tied on a wooden cutting board.

How to Tie a Beef Tenderloin

Beef tenderloin recipes are ideal for holiday menus or Sunday dinner. But before you even preheat the oven, it's important to study up on how to tie a beef tenderloin so the meat cooks evenly.

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Prep Time 5

Total Time 5

Servings servings

Calories 505kcal

Author Meggan Hill

Equipment

kitchen twine (see note 1)

Ingredients

1 (2-pound) center-cut beef tenderloin roast trimmed (see note 2)

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

To trim the beef tenderloin:

On one end of the roast, slide the blade of your knife between the meat and the shiny connective tissue.
Immediately begin to pull the connective tissue back away from the meat as you continue to cut between the two until you've reached the other side of the roast. Work in strips if necessary and repeat as needed.

To tie the beef:

Using 12-inch lengths of kitchen twine, tie a loose knot around one end of the meat and pull until snug to make an anchor knot.
Pull a length of twine away from the anchor to create a large loop, then loop it around the tenderloin, spacing it about 1 1/2 inches from the anchor knot.
Pull more twine to create another loop and secure it 1 1/2 inches from the second loop.
Continue tying the roast crosswise at 1 1/2-inch intervals until the toast is evenly tied.

Notes

Kitchen twine: My top pick is any butcher’s twine made from cotton. Linen twine is a close runner-up, and if you don't have access to either of those, unflavored dental floss can work in a pinch.
Beef tenderloin: My Roast Beef Tenderloin recipe calls for a 2-pound portion, but feel free to use this method for how to tie beef tenderloin with whatever meat serving matches your crowd size. Look for center-cut beef tenderloin, also known as Châteaubriand, which has a thick layer of fat that needs to be removed before roasting.
Yield: This technique for tying beef tenderloin uses a 2-pound portion of beef which feeds about 6 adults, but the technique can be used for any roast.

Nutrition