Slow Roasted Tenderloin with Arezzo Sauce

I thought I had perfected roasting beef tenderloins long ago with the high heat and Dijon mustard-smeared recipe featured in my Nantucket Open-House Cookbook. However, once I sampled this slow-roasted method, inspired by reading Barbara Lynch’s Stir cookbook, I was persuaded otherwise. The texture of the meat is phenomenal, the taste sublime, and the color a wonderfully even rosy hue throughout. I’ll often drizzle a wonderful Tuscan steak condiment, called Arezzo Sauce, over the slices as a departure from the more traditional Béarnaise sauce accompaniment.

Written by Sarah Leah Chase

Sarah Leah Chase moved to Nantucket, Massachusetts, as a year-round resident in 1980 and opened a specialty food shop and catering business called Que Sera Sarah, which soon became an island institution.

Sarah develops recipes and concepts for her husband Nigel’s specialty food company, Coastal Goods. She lives with her family on Cape Cod, where she enjoys oystering and gardening as much as cooking.

Recipes

Ingredients:

Instructions:

  1. Preheat the oven to 275 F.
  2. Fold the tail end of the tenderloin under to create a roast of even thickness and circumference and then tie the beef with twine at 4 or 5 intervals to help maintain the shape during cooking. Season the tenderloin generously all over with the Fleur de Sel and Kampot Pepper blend. Tuck the branches of rosemary beneath the twine to make an herb armor enveloping the entire tenderloin. Place the tenderloin in a roasting pan and brush lightly all over with the olive oil.
  3. Cook until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center of the meat reads between 130 and 140 F. for medium-rare meat, 1 ¼-to 1-½ hours. (When I roast tenderloins with high heat, I generally cook them to 125 F. because they continue to cook after being removed from the oven. With the slow roasting, the tenderloin does not cook much more when removed from the oven – hence the higher thermometer reading.)
  4. Transfer the tenderloin to a carving board and let rest at least 10 to 15 minutes before carving into slices. Plate the tenderloin slices, drizzle with Arezzo Sauce and place a lemon wedge alongside for squeezing over the meat in the Tuscan style of serving Bistecca alla Fiorentina.

Serves 10 to 12

AREZZO SAUCE

  • 6 oil-packed anchovy fillets, drained
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 2 tablespoons capers, drained
  • ½ teaspoon coarse sea salt
  • ¾ cup best-quality Tuscan olive oil

  1. Place the anchovies, garlic, capers, and sea salt together on a cutting board and mince together with a chef’s knife to make a paste. Transfer the paste to a bowl and pour in the olive oil. The sauce tastes best when used within a few hours of making it.

Makes about ¾ cup

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