Traeger Smoked Beef Tenderloin
Traeger Smoked Beef Tenderloin goes on the grill as a long, sort of terrifying raw hunk of meat, and in less than an hour turns into something really incredible. This cut of steak is so tender and so full of rich beefy flavor, you're going to keep this one on deck anytime you want to feel a little fancy, but also have a simple dinner on the table.
Traeger Smoked Beef Tenderloin Recipe
I know. You guys, I totally get it. I freaked out for like a solid hour the first time I cooked a prime rib. I don't like experimenting with expensive cuts of meat. But don't be nervous! Use some cool tools and tricks and you'll have a perfectly cooked piece of steak that might just be the best thing you eat this fall and this whole holiday season.
More Easy Traeger Recipes here!
What is beef tenderloin?
The beef tenderloin comes from the same muscle that the filet mignon comes from, it just isn't cut into individual steaks. This particular cut of beef gets very little movement, so it stays super tender on the animal. It is one of my favorite cuts of beef, and if you can find a sale on it BUY BUY BUY.
I picked up this big beauty at my local tiny grocery store, and got it for a song at $7.99 a pound. If you find it that low, buy all they have because that's a great deal!
More Traeger Beef Recipes here!
How To Cook Beef Tenderloin
There are a lot of great ways to cook beef tenderloin. You can roast it in the over, you can cook it in a pan on the stovetop, you can grill it, or you can cook it my favorite way, and that is to smoke it!
Smoking beef gives it such a deep flavor, that beautiful smoke ring, and leaves it tender and at the perfect temp.
One thing I would suggest is to cut the beef tenderloin into large segments, according to how thick it is. You'll want to pull those off of your grill at different times, and if you have separate temperature probes that'll monitor the doneness, you'll want to make sure that they have their own.
Speaking of temperature probes, we ran our grill for well over a year without any kind of fancy thermometers, and then I finally broke out the ThermoPro that wirelessly tells me what temp my meat is at, and I'm now firmly on the GET ONE train. My next upgrade will be one that hooks up to my iPhone, somehow, and will yell at me when I forget I have something on the grill.
You can find the link for one of the thermometers down in my recipe below!
Serve This With
This is such an easy meal to match sides with! My first suggestion for steak is always my Perfect Grilled Asparagus. It is fast and easy, and everyone raves about it. A freshly tossed Greek Salad would also we great!
You'll already have the grill fired up, so once you pull your beef, just crank up the heat again for a few minutes and throw these on the grill while your tenderloin rests.
Next, you'll want to do some Creamy Noodles or Scalloped Potatoes.
Want to go a little fancier? Try our Smoked Parmesan Potato Stacks.
Homemade Rolls would also take this all kinds of cool places!
Personally, I prefer this smoked tenderloin to even the best prime rib, but both of them are a great option for a family gathering or a special holiday meal.
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Traeger Smoked Beef Tenderloin
Traeger Smoked Beef Tenderloin is easy to make but ultra impressive to serve.
Ingredients
- 1 - 4 pound beef tenderloin
- 3 tablespoons steak rub of your choice (or make your rub using the recipe here!
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
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Instructions
- Preheat your pellet grill to HIGH, following factory instructions.
- Trim excess fat from the tenderloin, and cut into evenly sized pieces if your tenderloin tapers significantly. Two or three are usually enough to ensure even cooking. If your tenderloin is equal thickness throughout you can skip this part.
- Coat the tenderloin in steak rub and salt and place into the preheated grill.
- Close the lid and cook for 10 minutes. Flip the tenderloin, and close the lid for another 10 minutes.
- Turn the temperature down to smoke, and leave the grill lid open for 2-3 minutes to drop the temperature of the grill down to about 200-225 degrees. Close the lid, and smoke until the internal temperature is at 130°.
- Pull from the grill and let sit for 15 minutes before slicing.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
8Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 750Total Fat: 57gSaturated Fat: 22gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 26gCholesterol: 198mgSodium: 925mgCarbohydrates: 0gFiber: 0gSugar: 0gProtein: 56g
Nutrition data provided here is only an estimate.
I noticed you grilled it first then turned down the temp. Most of the time I see recipes its the opposite, you smoke first then turn up the temp. Is it because of the short time it takes to get the temp to 130?
Hey Chad! We are big fans of the reverse sear, but there's a solid place in the line up for the traditional blast of high heat followed by a turn-down.
I got a MEATER+ for Christmas and haven’t looked back. While it does have its limitations on the grill for smoking large cuts of meat I love it. It connects to your phone, if you leave an iPad nearby you can track your grill and meat temps from anywhere. Very solid investment.
That sounds amazing and like it is totally worth it. I would love a WIFI connected controller AND temperature gauge.
You speak of your own steak rub recipe in this post, but I don't see it. What's your secret?
I updated the recipe card to include a link to our BBQ Rub. Here's a link as well: https://www.orwhateveryoudo.com/2015/05/diy-bbq-seasoning-mix.html
Thanks!~
What type of pellets?
Any type of pellets will work for this. We usually keep the hickory, maple, and cherry around really frequently, and all would work here.
Why does a smoked beef brisket take 12 to 15 hours to smoke and a beautiful beef tenderloin smokes 60 minutes or less?
They are completely different cooking methods, and brisket needs to be cooked low and slow so the fat all renders. A tenderloin is typically served medium-rare, so it doesn't need as long on the heat.
About how long per pound will this take? I get it that the temp will be the determining factor for when it’s done, but I need a guess because I’m serving it for a dinner party.
It really depends on the meat, the grill, and the surroundings. It could be 1 hour or it could be 3 hours, or it could be outside of that range too if you have a small one.
If your dinner party is at 6pm, I'd probably get a few smaller tenderloins in the 1-2 pound range and put them on at 5:30. Plan the sides to be done around 6:15, or plan sides that can hold over warm in a crockpot without losing quality.
I followed your directions and my whole tenderloin turned out great!
Thank you for sharing your knowledge.
Hi Nancy! Thanks so much for stopping by to let me know. I'm so glad your tenderloin turned out well. Share with your friends and stop back anytime! We share several new recipes every week.
If I’m smoking 2 larger beef tenderloin, how would that increase the time on the grill?
Hard to say! It shouldn't increase the overall time much at all, in theory, but as with any roast - I'd make sure to temp them regularly and always cook according to the temperature and not the clock.
I hate recipes that just go on and on about stupid crap when I just want to look at how to cook something.
I dislike people who come to a website and complain about free content when there’s a Jump to Recipe button at the very top.
Also - I’m sure there are examples on this site where posts have some “stupid crap” before the recipe, but this isn’t one of them.
Merry Christmas! Hope you find some joy in your day in-between leaving rude comments on the internet. ?
@Nicole Johnson, your attitude is every bit as snotty as the people leaving comments. Ignore them or you’re no better. Every time you take the bait you diminish yourself.
Hi Pat! Welcome to the site. One of the good things about running your own website is that you get to respond to comments however you see fit. I have many years experience in customer service, but thankfully, I don't have to have a "the customer is always right" tone here. If you think this response is "snotty" - I'd recommend avoiding my comments section. This one is pretty tame for the level of rude that someone pitched essentially at my internet front porch. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ I don't come to other people's workplaces and yell at them for receiving a paycheck, and I expect people who are reading this (free) content to have a similar level of respect for the work I do. If that's not for you, I understand! There are a lot of websites on the internet. Another might be a better fit.
@Nicole Johnson, I like you!! ?
@Nicole Johnson,
Great response Nicole. Cant control the haters and not worth the effort.
Yeah if you want a tenderloin well done lol. Also as a general rule you only let it sit for 5 minutes before cutting into. 15 minutes is ridiculous. Your steaks must be 5 inches thick or something crazy.
Nope! But that's the good thing about recipes. They are just guides. You get to make all the choices yourself, and decide how long to rest your roast. I hope your day got better, though! It must not have been going very well if this is the general tone you use to speak to strangers on the internet. :/
For the record, we've never put out a well-done tenderloin. 😉
I liked the short essay not to many ingredients or steps thank you getting ready to go try this now I'll bbs to let you know how it turned out
Thanks, Jodi!
Threw my Treager grill away ( they always break ) and purchased my second Green Mountain ( one at each house) . Reverse scene holds in all the floor of the meat and invites the smoky flavor in.