Beef Tenderloin Roast

For Christmas dinner this year I made a stuffed beef tenderloin roast. It was a whole beef tenderloin that I butterflied open and stuffed with a mixture of herbs and vegetables.

I started by sauteing chopped crimini mushrooms, onions, and garlic in a mixture of butter and olive oil until they were softened. I then de-glazed the pan with some red wine, added some fresh rosemary and thyme, and cooked the mixture until it was slightly reduced.

The beef was seasoned on all sides with salt and pepper and then the mixture was spread out on one side. With the some help, I tied up the beef with butcher string to close it up and create a roast.

The roast was then rubbed with a little vegetable oil to get it ready for the grill. I prefer to use vegetable oil over olive oil when I am going to cook something over very high heat because its smoke point is so much higher and it will hold up better during the cooking. I cooked the roast over lump charcoal on my grill. I started by searing all sides of the roast over high direct heat to develop a crust. Then the roast was moved off to one side and cooked with indirect heat until my remote thermometer registered 135 degrees. The roast was then pulled from the grill and wrapped in foil. Once wrapped in foil to rest the temperature continues to climb 5-10 more degrees.

We chose some simple side dishes for this meal. I made roasted broccoli and criss- cross potatoes.
The broccoli was made by marinating it in a mixture of soy sauce, sesame oil, sesame seeds, salt, pepper, chopped garlic, and rice wine vinegar. It was roasted on a foil lined sheet pan at 375 degrees for about 35-40 minutes until some of the edges started to get a nice char on them.

The potatoes are made by first slicing large baking potatoes in half. Then you can slice shallow cuts through the potato in opposite directions. Rub the potatoes with salt pepper and good paprika and then baste very liberally with melted butter. The potatoes get baked at 375 degrees for about 45 minutes or until crusty and tender.