Beef Teriyaki Tenderloins

 Mock this...

You may have overlooked a well-kept secret. Several years ago, the National Cattleman's Beef Association developed, well actually came up with a name, the portion of this shoulder cut from the chuck area.  Beef Shoulder Filet or Petite Tender Cut, however you call it, is a tender and very inexpensive cut of meat. Because it works well with marinades and cooks so tender, mock tenderloin could well be another name, and the best part, this costs about eight-dollars verses about twenty-eight for the real Châteaubriand.

Taking a cue from Cook's Illustrated and doing a reversal, this is one of my favorite ways to serve tenderloin or in this case, mock. Heck, it is a better cooking method for sure and my marinade is just so darn tasty with beef, at least we think so.
We use it on steaks all the time so it only makes sense to treat a nice cut of fillet with equal respect. Notice very little grey margins on the outside, that's because of the searing at the end, not the beginning. Tender and slightly pink throughout, that's because of a slow temp oven.

Now don't think teriyaki will overpower the taste of beef; if at all, it enhances the flavor with a slight underlying Japanese steak-house taste that does beef so right. Enjoy!

Beef Teriyaki Fillets, Tenderloin or Châteaubriand

1 -3 to 4 pound beef shoulder fillet, cut into serving size portions or  1 -2 to 3 pound center-cut beef tenderloin roast (also known as Châteaubriand), left whole and tied together

Marinade for Teriyaki Garlic Steak, click for full recipe

Olive oil

for the marinade:
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon prepared minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon coarse black pepper
good dash of cayenne
3 tablespoons teriyaki sauce
2 tablespoons Worcestershire
1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke
1 tablespoon vegetable oil

Place tenderloin portions in glass dish, pour marinade over and massage to coat. Cover and refrigerate for 2 to 4 hours. Remove from refrigerator and let set out for 1 hour.

Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Pat tenderloin dry. Place 2 or 3 tablespoons olive oil in a shallow bowl and roll each roast section to coat in oil. Place on a rack in a roasting pan and immediately reduce oven temperature to 300 degrees F. Place a cast iron skillet next to or on the bottom rack of the roasting pan to heat and cook until thermometer inserted diagonally into center of meat registers 115 degrees F at the average thickest part of each fillet or 125 for a larger tenderloin.

Immediately remove skillet and place on stove over medium high heat. Add just enough oil to coat bottom of skillet. Remove roast and sear all sides of each tenderloin to evenly brown the outside to form a nice crust. The inside will remain nice and pink for medium-rare, between 130 - 135 degrees F.

We enjoyed this with Buttery New Potatoes with Parsley and Piquant Creole Asparagus.

NOTE: Serve with a horseradish sauce; about equal parts of mayo and horseradish, a shake of Worcestershire and a sprinkle of pepper will do just fine.