Best Beef Tenderloin Recipe with Garlic Thyme (2024)

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This is the Best Whole Beef Tenderloin Recipe you will ever make! My recipe for garlic thyme beef roast is melt-in-your-mouth delicious but is also so easy to make. Everyone at the table will love this show-stopping holiday recipe. You’ll be asked for the recipe, and guests will take home leftovers—if there are any!

Simple Beef Tenderloin Recipe

Along with prime rib, beef tenderloin is one of my favorite roasts to make for the holidays. It’s so juicy and tender, with the most amazing buttery beef flavor. My family loves this dish, especially alongside a dish of garlic-roasted potatoes and horseradish sauce!

I guarantee you’re going to love this roast beef tenderloin for the holidays. Trim it, tie it, and roast it to perfection with a simple seasoning that brings out the best flavor in the beef. It’s truly luscious!

Whole Beef Tenderloin Recipe Ingredients

• Whole Beef Tenderloin roast, trimmed
• Kosher salt or sea salt
• Fresh ground black pepper
• Dried thyme leaves
• Garlic powder
• Olive oil

How to Whole Beef Tenderloin

1. Four hours (or more) before you plan on cooking the roast, prepare your rub by mixing salt, pepper, dried thyme, and granulated garlic in a small bowl. Coat the beef with the spice mixture.
2. Then, wrap it in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours to allow the spices to pack into the meat.
3. When ready to start cooking, preheat your oven to 450°F. While the oven is preheating, unwrap the roast and place it on a rack in a small roasting pan or a small baking sheet with sides. Drizzle olive oil over the roast.
4. Place your roast in the oven. When 15 minutes is up, reduce the oven temperature to 325°F.
5. Continue cooking to the degree of doneness you desire. I like mine medium-rare, so I roasted mine for 35 minutes until it reached the internal temperature of 125°F.
6. Remove your roast from the oven and pack it with foil. Allow it to sit for 10 to 15 minutes before carving.

Whole Beef Tenderloin Recipes Tips

• Trim your tenderloin roast:Always trim your tenderloin roast. It’s a necessary, but thankfullysuper easy,step!
• Tie your tenderloin roast:Beef tenderloin roasts have a skinny end that should be tucked underneath the roast. Tie your whole beef tenderloin to ensure it stays together as it roasts. This helps make sure it roasts evenly. Your butcher can help you with this step if you don’t feel comfortable doing it.See the post for tips on how to tie a roast.
• Use a rack:Make sure you use a rack and a shallow baking pan or roasting pan. Using a rack to roast tenderloin will help the warm air of the oven circulate around the roast for more even roasting.
• Use a meat thermometer: Always use a meat thermometer to make sure you cook your roast to the desired temperature.

Beef Tenderloin Rub

Simple seasoning is all you need for great beef, like this recipe. Just salt, pepper, granulated garlic, and dried thyme highlight the natural flavors of the beef perfectly.

I’ve also tried a rosemary sea salt rub that is delicious and have used my prime rib seasoning on this recipe too. I recommend giving that a try, too!

I love topping off my tenderloin with a homemade creamy horseradish sauce! It’s so easy to make and adds flavor to this dish!

How Long to Cook a Tenderloin Roast

Follow these beef tenderloin cooking times to achieve your desired doneness after the initial 15-minute sear.

• Three lb. roast:30 minutes
• Four lb. roast:40 minutes
• Five lb. roast:50 minutes
• Six lb. roast:1 hour

These cooking times will give you amedium-rareroast. For a more well-done temperature, roast for an additional 10 minutes or so.

Beef Tenderloin Temperature

For best results, always use a meat thermometerto check for the desired doneness. We love using this handy guide for the perfect We make it easy to follow with our easy-to-follow.

How to Tie Beef Tenderloin to Roast

Tying your whole roast helps it cook evenly by evening out the thickness of the roast. Trim your roast first, then tie it.

Your butcher will tie the roast for you if requested, but if you forgot to ask or want to learn how to do it yourself, it’s easy!

1. Loop one end of the beef using a kitchen string and tie it into a tight knot.
2. Loop the string around your hand, then pull the loop over the beef.
3. Continue to make loops about 1 inch apart from one another. Make sure each is snug against the beef.
4. Tie the end with a knot once you have an even amount of loops.

How to Trim Beef Tenderloin

You will need to trim the silver skin. It’s a fibrous connective tissue that’s shiny and easy to spot.

Thankfully, getting rid of that skin and the excess fat you’ll also want to trim away is so easy!

1. Lay your beef flat. Carefully cut just under the connective tissue with your knife. Keep the knife close to the meat without removing too much of the meat itself. Make sure always to cut away from yourself.
2. Pull the tissue tightly against the blade with your free hand for a clean cut.
3. Cut through the tissue, facing away from the meat, until you trim it off completely. Do the same for any excess fat, which will appear as large white sections on the meat.

Whole Beef Tenderloin FAQ

How to Freeze Beef Tenderloin

1. Tightly wrap in plastic wrap.
2. Add the plastic-wrapped beef to a zip-lock freezer-safe bag. Squeeze all of the air out and make sure it’s sealed tightly.
3. Place the bag in the back of the freezer to reach freezing temperature more quickly.
Enjoy your leftover holiday roast no more than two months after freezing, and do not re-freeze after thawing. Make sure to label it with the freezing date!

How to Reheat Beef Tenderloin

To reheat, use low heat so the roast does not cook any further and becomes well done. If you freeze your leftover roast, you must thaw it first.

1. Wrap in foil with cooking juices or sauce (like au jus) so it retains moisture.
2. Carefully reheat in the oven at low heat (225˚F) until a meat thermometer inserted into the beef reads 150˚F.

Beef Tenderloin Recipes

Our other favorite way to prepare a tenderloin is by grilling or cooking it sous vide (in a water bath).

• Grilled Beef Tenderloin: Free up oven space by grilling, instead! Easy, so delicious, and ready in only 30 minutes.
• Sous Vide Beef Tenderloin: One of my favorite ways to prepare it! If you’re unfamiliar with sous vide, it refers to cooking food in a water bath to ensure the perfect degree of doneness every time.

Side Dishes for Beef Tenderloin

• Brown Sugar Glazed Carrots
• Gluten-Free Au Gratin Potatoes
• Green Bean Almondine
• Creamy Mashed Potatoes

My best side dishes for roast beef are also perfect!

Did you try our recipe? We would love to hear from you! Leave us a comment and a rating below to let us know what you think.

📋 Recipe