How long does it take to smoke a beef tenderloin

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Ingredients
Preparation
What you’ll love about this recipe
Ingredients to Make Easy Smoked Beef Tenderloin
How to Buy Beef Tenderloin
How To Make Traeger Beef Tenderloin
Chef Jenn’s Tips
What To Serve with Easy Smoked Beef Tenderloin
Is This Easy Smoked Beef Recipe Freezer Friendly?
Like This? Also Try:
Chef Jenn’s Tips
WANT MORE DELICIOUS AND EASY RECIPES?
How long does it take to smoke beef tenderloin at 225?
How long do you smoke a beef tenderloin per pound?
How long does it take to smoke a beef tenderloin to medium
How long do you smoke beef tenderloin 300 degrees?

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1:50 - Prep 0:20 / Cook 1:30

Beginner

Our Smoked Beef Tenderloin with Horseradish Butter is an exceptional meal. It’s easy to prepare and has an inherently rich and savory flavor, enhanced by low and slow heat. Seasoned simply with salt and pepper, this tenderloin gets a spicy finish with horseradish compound butter, flavored with shallots, garlic and lemon to up the flavor profile.

About the cut: The beef tenderloin is an oblong muscle that extends along the rear portion of the spine, from about the hip bone to the thirteenth rib. It doesn't get much exercise and is encased in a thick layer of crumbly fat, which makes the meat especially tender.

We made this recipe on the Highland Offset Smoker, but you can make it on your smoker.

6 Servings

Ingredients

Beef Tenderloin

1 (2 1/2-3 1/2 pound) whole beef tenderloin, trimmed
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons kosher salt
1 1/2 tablespoons cracked black pepper
> oak wood chunks

Horseradish Butter

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
2 tablespoons horseradish
2 tablespoons finely chopped shallots
1 garlic clove, pressed or finely chopped
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon cracked black pepper

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Preparation

Step 1 Of 7

1. Preheat smoker to 225°F and toss a couple wood chunks onto hot coals.

2. Brush the tenderloin with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.

3. Place tenderloin in the smoker and cook until the internal temperature reaches 130°F, about 1 to 2 hours.

4. In a medium-size bowl, combine butter, horseradish, shallots, garlic, parsley, lemon juice and pepper.

5. Place horseradish butter on a sheet of parchment paper. Form into a log and wrap it tightly, twisting the ends. Refrigerate for a minimum of 15 minutes.

6. Remove tenderloin from smoker and let rest for 10 minutes.

Hot TipGiving your meat the time it needs to rest allows juices to redistribute, retaining moisture for tender meat. The internal temperature will continue to rise 10 to 15 degrees until it levels out and then begins to fall.

7. Slice and serve with a pat of horseradish butter on top.

Up Your Game: How to Select the Right Cut of Meat

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When you’re ready for INSANELY good flavor in a dish that’s easy and impressive, check out this Smoked Beef Tenderloin. Imagine meat so tender it practically melts in your mouth. With a sweet and boozy marinade and the subtle smoke flavor, this is a restaurant-worthy dish you can make on your back deck, and you can trust me, Chef Jenn, to show you how!

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Smoking usually takes hours and hours, but the tender nature of this cut of meat makes the process a whole lot shorter. In fact, when starting from room temperature, it only takes about 2 hours for this roast to take on a lovely smoky flavor and be cooked to perfection.

I use my Traeger pellet smoker for this job. It gives everything a lovely flavor and lets me control the temperature at the same time.

I promise you – invest in this cut of meat and smoke it. You’ll never look back!

What you’ll love about this recipe

It’s easy and impressive – perfect for special occassions
Beef tenderloin is melt-in-your-mouth tender and juicy when smoked
Leftovers are great served chilled in sandwiches, on a salad, or in apptizers

Ingredients to Make Easy Smoked Beef Tenderloin

1 1/2 – 2 lbs tenderloin roast – see my tips below about how to buy a beef tenderloin
Brown sugar
Brandy, whisky, or cognac
Dijon mustard
Worcestershire sauce
Garlic

How to Buy Beef Tenderloin

Beef tenderloin is expensive, there’s no doubt about it. BUT, there are ways to make this a bit cheaper.

Purchase beef tenderloin when it’s on sale. Beef tenderloin often goes on sale around the holidays. Buy it when it goes on sale and wrap it tightly in foil then put it into a freezer-friendly zipper-top bag and freeze it for up to six months.
Buy beef tenderloin whole and butcher it yourself. Not only is this the most economical way to buy a beef tenderloin, but you get the added bonus of having all the amazing beef tenderloin to work with, including prized filet mignon steaks.
My favorite way – buy the WHOLE tenderloin when it is on sale. I’ll buy a few of them this way, and they’re cryovaced so they’ll freeze fine for quite a few months.

How To Make Traeger Beef Tenderloin

Combine the Dijon, minced garlic, brown sugar, whisky, and Worcestershire sauce in a small bowl.
Coat the beef tenderloin with the mixture and put it on the smoker that’s preheated to 180-F.
Smoke the beef at 180-F for 1-2 hours until it comes to an internal temperature of 125-F. Use a good digital thermometer to get an exact reading – you don’t want to overcook this king of all meats!
Let it rest for 10 minutes, then slice and serve.

Chef Jenn’s Tips

Do not freestyle this smoked beef recipe without a digital thermometer. There’s nothing that’ll make me cry faster than overcooking a beef tenderloin roast.
Pull your roast out to rest when it hits 125-F for medium rare, or 130-F for medium. I don’t recommend cooking this roast beyond 130-F.
Don’t reheat this roast if you have some leftover, as it’ll probably overcook.

What To Serve with Easy Smoked Beef Tenderloin

With all the work being done by the smoker, you are freed up to make some killer sides. And, you’re working with the king of meats, so go all out with fancy sides like these au gratin potato stacks, creamed corn, Parsnip Puree, or smoked asparagus. Cobb salad is another favorite of mine with this recipe.

Is This Easy Smoked Beef Recipe Freezer Friendly?

Well, you can freeze it, but smoked beef tenderloin doesn’t heat up as nicely. You run the risk of overcooking it. So, if you freeze it, let it thaw in the fridge and serve chilled, or just enjoy this dish fresh without freezing it.

How do you cook a beef tenderloin?

You can roast beef tenderloin or grill it, but my favorite way is to smoke beef tenderloin!

Do you cover beef tenderloin when cooking?

No! Some meats need to be covered to help them cook, especially if there’s a lot of fat or connective tissue. But this lean cut of meat needs dry heat with little moisture to make it nice and tender.

Is smoked beef tenderloin on a Traeger easy?

You bet! It’s not hard to smoke this majestic cut of beef. The biggest errors come in overcooking it, or not letting it rest long enough before serving. If you can nail both of those, you’re all set!

Like This? Also Try:

Moist, melt-in-your-mouth tender, and full of smoky flavor, this Smoked Beef Tenderloin Roast is just about as good as it gets!

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Keyword smoked beef, smoked beef tenderloin, smoker, traeger beef recipe, traeger recipes

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 2 hours

Total Time 2 hours 10 minutes

Servings 6 servings

Calories 443kcal

2 pound beef tenderloin roast
3 tbsp Dijon mustard
2 cloves garlic
2 tbsp whiskey
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tbsp brown sugar

Remove the beef tenderloin roast from any packaging and let it rest at room temperature for about an hour before smoking.
Mince the garlic and combine it with the Dijon, brown sugar, whiskey and Worcestershire sauce.
Rub the mixture all over the beef tenderloin roast.
Preheat the smoker to 180-F. Smoke the roast at 180-F for 1 1/2 – 2 hours until the internal temperature comes to 125-F for a medium rare roast.
Let sit for 10-15 minutes before slicing. Serve and enjoy!

Chef Jenn’s Tips

Do not freestyle this smoked beef recipe without a digital thermometer. There’s nothing that’ll make me cry faster than overcooking a beef tenderloin roast.
Pull your roast out to rest when it hits 125-F for medium-rare, or 130-F for medium. I don’t recommend cooking this roast beyond 130-F.
Don’t reheat this roast if you have some leftover, as it’ll probably overcook.

A Note on Nutritional Information

Nutritional information for this recipe is provided as a courtesy and is calculated based on available online ingredient information. It is only an approximate value. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site cannot be guaranteed.

WANT MORE DELICIOUS AND EASY RECIPES?

Smoked Cream Cheese
The Best Traeger Recipes
Smoked Pulled Pork
Cooking Steaks on a Blackstone Griddle

By Chef Jenn

How long does it take to smoke beef tenderloin at 225?

Once the smoker is ready, place the pan/rack with the meat onto the smoker grate and let it begin to cook. You can also just place it directly on the smoker grate if you prefer. At 225°F (107°C), you can expect it to take about 2 hours but this will depend upon several things: the thickness of the meat.

How long do you smoke a beef tenderloin per pound?

Smoking the beef tenderloin Place the roast directly on the grill grates. Expect about 15 minutes a pound when smoking the tenderloin to an internal temperature of 110 degrees F.

How long does it take to smoke a beef tenderloin to medium

Rub the mixture all over the beef tenderloin roast. Preheat the smoker to 180-F. Smoke the roast at 180-F for 1 1/2 – 2 hours until the internal temperature comes to 125-F for a medium rare roast. Let sit for 10-15 minutes before slicing.

How long do you smoke beef tenderloin 300 degrees?

Place the beef on the cooler side of the grill. Smoke the tenderloin in a smoker set to 250 – 300 for 1 hour until temp reads 120 with a digital thermometer.