Beef Tenderloin

To form the noodle cakes, measure them out by taking a few strands of noodles and loosely squiggling them into a tablespoon. Once you get the hang of the amount needed, you can pretty much eyeball it.

This is a special party dish, elegant and costly. Select large Chateaubriands of about 1 pound each per serving. Buy marrow bones and have the butcher cut them so the marrow can be extracted in one piece.

This elegant dish from Tony's in St. Louis, Missouri, is perfect for a small dinner party. At the restaurant, they serve it with sautéed spinach.

Using such a tender cut of beef reduces the stew's cooking time.

PROVENCE This dish is typically made with pitted, brine-cured black olives (Kalamata or Niçois work well), but if olives cassées — the green, fennel-brined olives of Provence — can be found, try them here in equal quantity after draining them. Accompany the steaks with mushrooms sautéed with garlic and herbs. What to drink: A Rhône red, such as a Gigondas, or Syrah.

Coarse kosher salt — or any other coarse salt — will add texture and enhance the flavor of the meat. Serve with: Oven-roasted new potatoes, thin green beans, and a crusty baguette.

Steaks at Tequila restaurant are offered with sautéed chard and roasted red potatoes.

Here's a centerpiece dish that really lives up to the name. Uncork a Cabernet Sauvignon, red Bordeaux or red Super-Tuscan.

This Russian dish has been around for several centuries, but it wasn’t until the fifties that it became all the rage in the United States (despite our fear of Communism). Here is a delicious rendition that pays tribute to the "gourmet" chafing-dish dinner party. Now, as then, beef stroganoff is a good thing to cook in front of a small crowd.

Active time: 35 min Start to finish: 35 min This recipe makes good use of the tail-end portion of a tenderloin.

Here's a special-occasion roast enhanced with classic Provençal seasonings. Roasting two large ends of tenderloin instead of one whole piece ensures even cooking. (The meat needs to be coated with its aromatic rub, then chilled for at least six hours before roasting.) Serve this elegant dish with <epi:recielink id="2999">Scalloped Potatoes with Goat Cheese and Herbes de Provence</epi:recielink> and a sauté of green beans, zucchini and red bell pepper. Uncork a sophisticated Rhône red such as Hermitage or Crozes-Hermitage.

Beef roasted in a kosher salt crust is tender and juicy. Once removed from the oven, the meat will remain hot for up to an hour.

(Grilled Beef Salad) The following grilled beef salad has as many versions as there are cooks in Thailand. The success of the dish depends upon starting with good-quality tenderloin and achieving a balance of hot, sour, and salty. Before serving, be sure to sample the salad and adjust the amount of chili, lime, fish sauce — and, if desired, sugar — to your taste.