Lunch / Dinner
Salt-Crusted Beef Tenderloin
Not many dishes impress guests like beef tenderloin. But when you encase it in a salt crust it’s not only elegant, but insanely flavorful, and dazzles brighter than ever.
It's a simple fact, no ingredient is as basic to food as salt — no matter the fare, salt makes it more than the sum of its parts. And salt crusting is a spectacular way to deeply infuse flavor with penetrating steam captured by the salt dome. As the salt transforms from sandy to solid, the crust essentially creates a secondary oven, retaining heat and recycling juices into steam that, in turn, season whatever is enclosed, in this case the beef, just right.
Ingredients
FOR THE SALT CRUST, WHISK:
FOR THE BEEF, COMBINE:
HEAT:
Test Kitchen Tips
You’ll be surprised to discover how beautifully this roast is seasoned, so be sure to brush off any bits of the salt crust that remain adhered to the beef.
If you prefer your beef cooked more than medium-rare, remove it from the oven once it registers 120° for medium, or 125° for medium-well. Then, let the beef rest 5–10 minutes before cracking it open — the temperature of the beef rises about another 10 degrees while resting.
Instructions
Preheat oven to 425°. Coat a baking sheet or shallow roasting pan with nonstick spray.
For the salt crust, whisk together salt, potato starch, Italian seasoning, and pepper. Stir in egg whites until mixture feels like wet sand.
Place 1½ cups salt mixture on prepared baking sheet; press into a base roughly the size of the beef.
For the beef, combine granulated garlic, Italian seasoning, and pepper; rub onto beef.
Heat ghee in a 12-inch cast-iron skillet over medium-high until shimmering. Sear beef until golden brown on all sides, 6–8 minutes.
Transfer beef to salt base; reserve skillet for making sauce. Spread mustard and rosemary on exposed sides of beef. Mound remaining salt mixture on beef, packing it tightly to cover completely, forming the crust.
Make a hole in the top-center of the crust with a thermometer to be able to check for doneness.
Roast beef until a thermometer inserted into prepared hole registers 115° for medium-rare, 20–25 minutes. Remove beef from oven; let rest in salt crust until temperature rises to 125°, 5–10 minutes more.
Crack crust using a meat mallet. Remove and discard top of crust. Transfer beef to a cutting board then slice.
Center-cut & season: So the beef is a uniform thickness and cooks evenly, have the butcher prepare a center-cut roast from the whole tenderloin. Season it with Italian herbs, granulated garlic, and pepper, but skip the salt.
Build it: Transfer the freshly seared beef onto the salt base. Slather on the mustard and rosemary, then completely encase the tenderloin with the remaining salt mixture. The only hole you want in the crust is for a thermometer.
Cracking the shell: After the beef has rested and reached the desired temperature, give your guests a show by breaking up the crust in front of them. And it’s not just for show, it stops the cooking process
Nutritional Facts
Nutritional Facts
Per serving
Calories: 197
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 9g 13%
Saturated Fat 4g 20%
Cholesterol 87mg 28%
Sodium 768mg 32%
Carbs 2g 0%
Protein 30g
*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.