Name: Roast Beef Tenderloin with Red Wine Sauce
Prep time: 35 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 65 min
Ingredients: 1 (2 pound) beef tenderloin, excess fat trimmed; 1 teaspoon Kosher salt; ½ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper; Olive oil for pan; 2 tablespoons olive oil; 3 cloves garlic, finely minced; 1 small shallot, finely minced; 1 sprig fresh rosemary; 3 sprigs fresh thyme; 2 cups beef broth, plus ¼ cup for dissolving the flour; 2 cups dry red wine, such as Pinot Noir or Merlot; 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce; 1 ½ teaspoons granulated sugar, or to taste; 3 teaspoons all-purpose flour; Salt and pepper to taste

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You’ll love this tender and juicy Roast Beef Tenderloin served with a delicious homemade red wine sauce. It’s best cooked to medium doneness, but you can definitely adjust it to your liking. This dish is a true showstopper!

red wine sauce being poured onto sliced beef medallions

This impressive Roast Beef Tenderloin with Red Wine Sauce is the perfect main dish for the holidays! It comes out so flavorful, tender, and juicy. Plus the homemade red wine sauce is so delicious and delicate.

Roasting beef tenderloin is very easy. Only salt and pepper for seasoning and no brining required at all. All you have to do is tie it with kitchen twine, season it, sear it, and then roast in the oven for about 30 minutes for medium.

For this year’s holidays, if turkey isn’t your thing, try this roast beef tenderloin. I promise you will absolutely love it! Plus, it’s way less work than roasting a whole turkey for sure.

sliced roast beef tenderloin on a rectangular plate and with thyme garnish

Ingredients You’ll Need

Here is an overview of the ingredients and what each ingredient is for. And per usual, you can find all the ingredient quantities in the recipe card below.

For the roast beef tenderloin:

Beef tenderloin: I used 2 pounds. Make sure it’s a whole beef tenderloin.
Salt and pepper: For seasoning.
Olive oil: For the pan, to sear the meat.

For the red wine sauce:

Beef broth: Homemade or store-bought are fine.
Dry red wine: I used Pinot Noir. Merlot would work too.
Minced shallots and garlic: For flavor.
Fresh herbs: rosemary and thyme, for flavor.
Worcestershire sauce: More flavor!
All-purpose flour: To help thicken the sauce. Dissolve it with broth before adding.
Sugar: This will remove some of the acidity from the wine.
Salt and pepper to taste

Let’s Make It

To give you an idea of the process, here is an overview of the steps to make this roast beef tenderloin recipe. Specific instructions and cooking times can be found in the recipe card below.

Prepare the beef tenderloin: Let it sit at room temperature for 1 hour first. Season with salt and pepper. Then tie it with kitchen twine, as this will help with better heat distribution and therefore even cooking.
Sear it: Searing on all sides will add tons of flavor.
Roast it: Transfer to a baking dish and roast for about 30 minutes for medium. For more cooking times, see Recipe Notes in the recipe card below.
Make the red wine sauce: Simmer until reduced by half (about 20 minutes), and then thicken with some flour.
Let the meat rest and serve! Let it rest for 15 minutes before slicing.

Some things that can be prepared the day before are tying the meat with the kitchen twine and making the red wine sauce, which can be stored in the fridge.

sliced medallions of beef tenderloin on a rectangular plate and cooked to medium doneness

The Red Wine Sauce

Let me tell you all about that amazing red wine sauce! It’s tangy, yet delicate and full of body. I love that it is infused with fresh herbs and how much depth it has.

To make the red wine sauce for the roast beef tenderloin, I used Pinot Noir, a dry red wine. Dry red wine is perfect for red wine based sauces, and here are great options:

Pinot Noir: This dry red wine is light, so it’s not overpowering. It’s perfect for sauces.
Merlot: It is similar to Pinot Noir but it’s more fruity. Great for sauces.
Cabernet Sauvignon: This one has more body than Pinot Noir and Merlot. Cabernet Sauvignon will make a more robust sauce.

My personal choice is Pinot Noir. It makes a delicate red wine sauce that does not overpower the beef.

The red wine sauce can definitely be made a day in advance. It keeps very well in the fridge.

roast beef loin cooked to medium and served with red wine sauce

How Long to Cook the Beef Tenderloin

Beef tenderloin is best when cooked to medium or even medium rare. I personally prefer medium.

Definitely use a meat thermometer check for doneness. That’s how you’ll for sure know that it’s cooked exactly how you like it.

Here are some approximate internal meat temperature and times when roasting at about 425 degrees F in the oven. This is for a 2 pound tenderloin.

Rare: 125 degrees F, about 22 minutes.
Medium-rare: 135 degrees F, about 25 minutes.
Medium: 145 degrees F, about 30 minutes.
Medium-well: 150 degrees F, about 33 minutes.
Well-done: 160 degrees F, about 35 minutes.

Remember that after pulling the meat out of the oven, the internal temperature will rise about 5 degrees F more.

I like my roast beef tenderloin medium-rare or medium. It’s that perfect spot that leaves the meat tender and juicy, without making it taste raw or overcooked. It’s totally up to you!

Whole cooked beef loin tied with kitchen twine on a white baking pan

Side Dishes for Roast Beef Tenderloin

I can think of so many delicious side dishes to serve with roast beef tenderloin. I served mine with cauliflower au gratin and mashed sweet potatoes.

Other side dishes that would pair really well:

a platter with mashed sweet potatoes, cauliflower, and sliced beef tenderloin served with red wine sauce

You’ll absolutely love how flavorful and delightful this roast beef tenderloin with red wine sauce is. It is great for the holidays or for any special occasion.

And if you prefer not to do a wine sauce, you can always make a simple gravy. It will be good either way.

Sometimes, in my family, we make both turkey and roast beef tenderloin because we can’t make up our minds. Both are so good!

Thank you for reading. I hope you like this recipe as much as I do!

Tips for Success

Tie the meat with kitchen twine. This will keep a consistent shape, and therefore help the meat cook more evenly.
Sear the meat to seal in all the amazing flavors. You can then transfer it to a baking dish or roast in the same pan as long as it’s oven-proof. I prefer to transfer to another baking dish because the pan is so hot already that the bottom of the meat can burn while roasting.
Remember to let it rest! To ensure juicy and tender meat, let it rest for 15-20 minutes before slicing.