Pepper-Crusted Center-Cut Beef Tenderloin Roast

Name: Pepper-Crusted Center-Cut Beef Tenderloin Roast
Yield: Serves 6
Ingredients: 2 1/4 teaspoons, kosher salt; 3/4 teaspoon, sugar; 1/4 teaspoon, baking soda; 4 1/2 tablespoons, olive oil; 1/4 cup cracked, black peppercorns; 1 1/2 teaspoons, grated orange zest; 1/4 teaspoon, ground nutmeg; 2 pound, beef tenderloin (1 roast), center-cut, trimmed

6 comments

Appears in Cook's Illustrated November/December 2012

Tenderloin with a crunchy peppercorn crust sounds ideal—but not when it cracks off the roast or has a flavor so spicy that it overpowers the beef.

SERVES6

TIME1¼ hours, plus 30 minutes resting

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WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS

Rubbing the raw tenderloin with an abrasive mixture of kosher salt, sugar, and baking soda transformed the surface into a magnet for the pepper crust. Cracking the pepper into rough pieces and sifting off any powdery grounds created the cru...

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