Beef Tenderloin with Garden Salad

What I love about Beef Tenderloin with Garden Salad

For starters, I’ve always loved a good steak. So, this Beef Tenderloin with Garden Salad has become one of our favourite quick and nourishing dinners. It’s packed with flavour, loaded with fresh ingredients, and checks so many dietary boxes—it’s gluten-free, grain-free, nut-free, low-carb and keto-friendly.

The salad is a vibrant mix of crisp bell peppers, juicy tomatoes, and crunchy cucumbers. They’re all tossed with fresh spring greens. To finish it off, I add creamy goat chèvre and slices of buttery, pan-seared beef tenderloin. The combination is simple, satisfying, and absolutely delicious.

Now, when it comes to steak, I highly recommend choosing grass-fed beef whenever possible. It’s the only kind we buy in our house, and for good reason. Grass-fed meat tends to have a higher concentration of nutrients, thanks to the cows’ natural, pasture-based diet. In contrast, conventionally raised cattle are often fed grain-heavy diets—typically from non-organic, genetically modified sources. (GMO foods are a whole topic on their own, but I’ll save that for another time.)

Aside from the nutritional benefits, grass-fed beef is just more flavourful. The quality is noticeable—tender, rich, and deeply satisfying. And of course, when you’re working with a premium cut like tenderloin, you’re already starting with something amazing. Grass-fed just takes it to the next level.

What you will need to make Beef Tenderloin with Garden Salad

Here’s a list of ingredients that you will need:

Greens – For starters, I use a spring green blend for this recipe and it’s perfect. I recommend buying organic if you can as leafy greens are often heavily sprayed with pesticides.
Peppers – Moreover, this recipe calls for bell peppers. I like to pick yellow to add another colour to the salad, but any will do.
Cucumber – Also, I recommend using long English cucumber for this salad.
Tomatoes – Cherry or grape tomatoes are perfect for this salad. They have a lower water content and are the perfect size.
Goat cheese – The ingredient that makes this salad! You will want to get soft goat cheese for this recipe. It often comes in the shape of a log. It can also be called chèvre.
Steak – We are using the ultimate cut of steak for this salad: the tenderloin! It’s a very high quality cut of steak so it doesn’t need any marinating. Just a quick sear and it’s perfect.
Whole garlic cloves – Finally, adding a couple smashed, garlic cloves when basting the steaks adds delicious garlic butter flavour. You don’t want to skip this step!

FAQ:

Can I use a different cut of beef instead of tenderloin?

Feel free to use other cuts of steak, but there sure is nothing like beef tenderloin! It’s so good, so tender, so delicious!

How do I get the steak cooked to my preferred doneness?

For medium rare, you’re looking for an internal temperature of 130F-135F, for medium it will be around 140F-145F and for well done it will be closer to 160F. I like mine medium rare!

What can I substitute if I don’t have goat cheese (chèvre)?

The creamy goat chèvre is so delicious and really makes the salad, however feta cheese or blue cheese would also be delicious!

Can this recipe be made dairy-free?

Yes! Simply omit the butter when basting the steaks and omit the goat cheese on the salad. Or, maybe try a dairy-free feta cheese?

Can I grill the steak instead of searing it in a pan?

Yes, you can grill the steaks. I just love that crispy pan-fried sear that you get with a cast iron pan. There’s more flavour that way.

What should I do if my meat is frozen or partially frozen when I want to cook it?

In order to cook the steaks properly/evenly, it is recommended that the steaks are left out of the fridge until they reach room temperature before cooking. If they are partially frozen when cooking, it may result in burning or overcooking the outside while the inside is left raw.