Dwight Schrute & Beef Tenderloin

When you are gifted the most precious gift a human can receive - the gift of a beef tenderloin - and given freedom to cook it however you like, you best treat it with the respect it deserves: all the butter. It is in moments like this that one realizes the universal truth of Dwight Schrute's motto: K.I.S.S. Keep It Simple, Stupid. When the quality of the food product you are handling is so high, you really don't need to do a lot to it. 

found here

So below, a Dwight-approved recipe for making a juicy, tender, crispy, peppery Christmas/Special Occassion Filet. Enjoy! And sorry not sorry for the blurry photos - it was Christmas and I began drinking glögg at noon. 

K.I.S.S. Filet 
Feeds 4 normal people or 2 of me 

INGREDIENTS
2 lb beef tenderloin (US) / filet (UK) 
2 tbsp black peppercorns 
1 stick / 4 oz unsalted butter, room temperature
salt to taste 

EQUIPMENT
mortar & pestle
cast iron skillet 

METHODA few hours before you are going to cook the beef, take it out of the fridge. It needs to be at room temperature when you apply heat to it in order to ensure tenderness. While you're at it, take the butter out too - so much easier to mix and spread when it's not ice cold. (Secret just between us - I always forget to take the butter out. Not just with this recipe - always. Just put the stick in a mug and microwave for 10 seconds.) 

Preheat your oven to 450°F. Preheat your cast iron skillet over medium heat so that by the time you're done prepping the beef it'll be nice and smoky hot. You don't need to put any fat in the pan because the beef will be coated in butter. 

I always forget to bring my butter to room temperature. So if you are like me, at this point just pop the butter in the microwave for a few seconds. Nobody needs to know. 

In a mortar & pestle, grind your black peppercorns until they are still coarse but have broken down a bit and released all their delicious aromas. Move them into a small bowl and mix in the butter and salt to taste. 

Slather this succulent compound butter all over your piece of meat. Place it in the skillet and do. not. touch. Wait 1 minute, then turn it onto another side. Repeat until all surfaces, including the top and bottom, are browned. Then place it in the oven, in the skillet, until a thermometer stuck into the middle of the beef 

Let it rest.  If you cut into it too soon the beef will be dry and tough and the only way to get it juicy will be with your tears, because you've ruined it. Leave it be for 15-20 minutes, so the juices can redistribute into the meat. 

This'll give you a beautiful, even medium rare. I'm not going to give you temperatures for more cooking because if you want well done beef you can GTFO.