Beef cut: where it is, price, recipes

Tenderloin

The muscle that never works, which makes it the most tender and the least flavourful on the animal, so it needs a sauce or a wrap of fat to earn its price. Its centre cut is sold as châteaubriand.

Pan-seared
Roasted
Grilled

$24/ lb

Marguerite · Loin

In French: Filet
US side: Tenderloin
Around the world: Fiorentina (Italy), Solomillo (Spain)
Where it sits: Loin. The tenderloin is the laziest muscle of the animal, which is exactly why it is the most tender.
Tenderness: 5/5
Flavor: 2/5
Marbling: 1/5
Price: $24 / lb ·
Actual size: ~45 cm

Compared with its neighbors

Compared with Flank steak, Tenderloin is more tender (5/5 vs 3/5), milder (2/5 vs 5/5), leaner (1/5 vs 2/5) and costs $13 a pound more.

Compared with Strip loin / New York strip, Tenderloin is more tender (5/5 vs 4/5), milder (2/5 vs 4/5), leaner (1/5 vs 4/5) and costs $8 a pound more.

Cut	Tenderness	Flavor	Marbling	Price	How to cook it
Tenderloin	5/5	2/5	1/5	$24 / lb	Pan-seared, Roasted, Grilled
Flank steak	3/5	5/5	2/5	$11 / lb	Grilled, Pan-seared
Strip loin / New York strip	4/5	4/5	4/5	$16 / lb	Grilled, Pan-seared, Roasted