5 Ingredients or Fewer

Beef Tenderloin with Black Truffle Steak Sauce

by:
May 24, 2018
4.3
6 Ratings
Beef Tenderloin with Black Truffle Steak Sauce
Photo by James Ransom
  • Prep time 5 minutes
  • Cook time 1 hour
  • Serves 4-6 people
Author Notes

This recipe is more about the sauce than the steak. You can use this sauce on any roasted meat, from beef to pork to chicken (and it will taste wonderful on eggs too). Using a full can of truffle peelings is a luxury, and this sauce ends up being pretty much 50% truffles and 50% sauce. It's delicious.

The sauce in this recipe is derivative of the sauce found in the classic French dish Tournados Rossini. It has the deep savory black truffle flavor of a classic French sauce, yet it is much easier to prepare. Most traditional French sauces take hours to prepare and years to master. Yet this recipe features chicken stock instead of demi-glace, and dry sherry replaces madeira. What you get is a rich and luxurious sauce that has all the flavor of a French classic with only a fraction of the time and effort. —Josh Cohen

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • For the Truffle Sauce
  • 4 cups chicken stock (preferably homemade)
  • 1/2 cup medium dry sherry
  • 1 seven-ounce can black truffle peelings
  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • 1 pinch salt
  • For the Beef Tenderloin
  • 1 Cleaned beef tenderloin, about 7 or 8 inches long
  • 1 pinch salt
  • 1 splash canola oil
  • 1 handful thinly sliced chives, for garnish (optional)
Directions
  1. Set a large pot over high heat and add the chicken stock. When the stock has reduced to about 1 cup of total liquid, reduce the heat to medium and add the sherry along with the the can of truffle peelings (the truffles and all of the accompanying truffle juice). Let the liquid in the pot reduce until the liquid appears less watery and slightly sticky. The difference will be subtle. When you are happy with the consistency and texture of your sauce, remove it from the heat.
  2. Preheat the oven to 375. Season the beef tenderloin liberally with salt all over. Set a large skillet over high heat and add enough canola oil to just barely cover the skillet in oil. When faint wisps of smoke just begin to appear, add the beef to the skillet. Sear the beef on all sides, so that the exterior looks brown and caramelized. Next, transfer the beef to the oven. After 10 minutes in the oven, use a digital thermometer to check the temperature of the beef. For pink steak, remove the beef from the oven when the thermometer is inserted into the center of the tenderloin and reads 130 degrees. Keep checking every 5 minutes or so until you have reached the desired temperature. When you are happy with the temperature of the beef, remove it from the oven and let it rest for 10 minutes before slicing it.
  3. While the beef rests, finish the sauce. Set the pot of sauce over low heat, and add the butter. Stir gently to incorporate the butter into the sauce. Taste the sauce and add salt as necessary. When your sauce is perfect, slice the beef tenderloin into medallions that are 1 inch thick. Spoon some sauce onto a plate, add a few slices of beef, and top with more sauce. Garnish with chives. Serve and enjoy.
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6 Reviews

Igor D.
Igor D. January 12, 2019
Would preparing the beef sous vide instead of using the oven and then searing as the last step work for this recipe?
 
Josh C.
Josh C. January 12, 2019
Hi Igor, you definitely could sous vide the meat, and then sear it at the last moment before serving it. You'll never overcook the meat that way, and you'll likely get perfect texture/color. Thanks for the question.
 
barbara
barbara October 21, 2018
What would you suggest to use for a side dish?
 
Josh C.
Josh C. October 22, 2018
Hi barbara, for side dishes I would recommend potatoes (roasted, mashed, whatever you like) and/or a salad or roasted veggies (broccoli, cauliflower, delicata squash, brussels sprouts, whatever you're in the mood for). I'd serve this dish in the colder weather, so heartier veggies come to mind for side dishes.
 
dboy82
dboy82 June 29, 2018
Would beef bone broth work with this...or would it be too much beef flavor?
 
Josh C.
Josh C. July 20, 2018
Hi dboy82,

I think that a lighter neutral-flavored stock like chicken stock or veal stock would work best here. I suspect that a beef stock could reduce and become too strong in flavor, but I haven't tested the recipe with beef stock so perhaps it would taste good. I always encourage folks to experiment and get creative, so if you ever make this recipe with beef stock, let me know hot it turns out!