Beef tenderloin: A classic elevated by the perfect pepper crust

A simple pepper crust seems like the perfect preparation for beef tenderloin, but there are challenges to overcome.

Black pepper is “such a great complement to beef” that you’d think a simple pepper crust would be the perfect preparation for beef tenderloin, said Celeste Rogers in Cook’s Illustrated. But there are challenges to overcome: First, it’s not easy to make pepper stick to a beef cut that’s normally tied before roasting and sliced before serving. Second, if the crust sticks too well, the pepper flavor is likely to be so pungent that it’ll leave you and your dinner guests wincing and reaching for water.

The recipe that I’ve developed calls for a rub that uses baking soda to give the meat a tackier surface. Sugar offsets some of the pungency of the pepper, but I also simmer the peppercorns in oil to cut their heat, then add nutmeg and orange zest to the crust to restore two particular flavor compounds that the pepper loses in the process.

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