How-To Guides

How to cook a chateaubriand

What cut of meat is chateaubriand?

Named after a 19th century French romantic writer, chateaubriand is one of the most decadent, flavoursome and tender cuts of beef.

Taken from the thickest part of beef tenderloin, this compact, evenly sized joint is located directly on the lower two sides of the animal’s spine. An ideal size for a luxurious meal for two, it has a buttery-soft, melt-in-the-mouth texture.

Chateaubriand cooking time

For maximum flavour and juiciness, we recommend serving your beef chateaubriand medium-rare. This will take approximately 12-14 minutes in the oven once it’s been seared in a hot pan.

Alternatively, you could try our low roasting temperature technique. This method will result in uniform cooking, and a more moist result than traditional roasting – using a meat thermometer is essential. Allow a minimum of one hour if roasting your chateaubriand in this way.

Best way to cook chateaubriand

Traditional roasting technique

  1. Take your chateaubriand out of the refrigerator.
  2. Remove your meat from the vacuum packaging and pat dry with kitchen paper. Allow it to come up to room temperature. This helps it cook more evenly and stay even more succulent.
  3. Preheat oven to 230°C/Fan 210°C/Gas 8 and heat a griddle or heavy-based frying pan on the hob until it’s on the verge of smoking.
  4. Rub olive oil all over the joint and season it with salt and pepper, before popping it into the pan.
  5. Sear it hard and fast on all sides to achieve browning, flipping every 30 seconds or so. Developing a rich, dark crust should take around 5-6 minutes.
  6. Once your chateaubriand is seared, add a tablespoon of unsalted butter to the pan, allow it to crackle, and then scoop over the meat to baste.
  7. Transfer the chateaubriand (still in the pan) and roast in the oven for 12-14 minutes. An internal temperature of 53°C is ideal.
  8. When the chateaubriand is cooked to your liking, remove it from the oven and place on a suitable board to catch any resting juices.
  9. Allow to rest for 10-15 minutes before carving. This allows the juices brought to the surface by the high cooking heat to immerse back into the flesh, which also relaxes and becomes more tender.
  10. Slice the meat into ½-inch thick sections, take your seat at the table and enjoy an unforgettable eating experience.

Low temperature roasting technique

  1. Take your chateaubriand out of the refrigerator.
  2. Remove your meat from the vacuum packaging and pat dry any moisture. Allow it to come up to room temperature.
  3. Set your oven to 60°C – this is very low and, if gas, the pilot light may be sufficient. It will almost certainly be as low as your oven will go – even if marginally hotter than 60°C, this technique will still work well. Heat a griddle pan or heavy-based frying pan until smoking hot.
  4. Rub the beef with a little olive oil and season generously with sea salt and black pepper.
  5. Sear the beef at high temperature, turning frequently until coloured all over – around 5 minutes should be sufficient.
  6. Roasting is likely to take approximately 1 hour. Aim for 49-51°C for rare, 53-55°C for medium-rare, 57-59°C for medium.
  7. Rest loosely covered in foil for 10-15 minutes before carving into ½-inch sections.

Top tips

  • The bigger the joint of beef, the longer the resting time should be.
  • To gauge how done your chateaubriand beef joint is while cooking, you can carry out a quick and reliable finger test to ensure it is medium-rare. Gently press the tip of your middle finger to the tip of your thumb. Feel the palm of your hand just below your thumb – this is medium-rare. It should feel like your cheek: tender and soft but still fleshy.

Chateaubriand for two recipe

Our chateaubriand weighs approximately 700g and generously feeds two people. For a special occasion, why not try your Chateaubriand with triple-cooked chips and a silky béarnaise sauce?

Jorge hails from the Black Mountains where he grew up surrounded by hardy, native livestock. His passion for cookery was sparked by his upbringing, but developed and intensified alongside his respect for British breeds, and zeal for nose-to-tail eating. In 2009 trained chef Jorge launched Swaledale in Haworth, and took his native-breed led whole-carcass butchery philosophy to high profile restaurateurs. Jorge is a passionate procurer and hanger of meat, and is keen to showcase the sublime taste and texture that comes from ageing, higher fat content, and an older carcass. Jorge proudly invests in native-breeds, as maintaining their market demand is crucial to their very survival. Jorge studied Creative Writing at Leeds University, and is a former Welsh athletics champion. He lives with his wife, ceramicist Amy Thomas and their 2 children, Fynn and Bea, on a remote grouse moor in West Yorkshire.