Beef Tenderloin help

[rickne]

Tony posted his plans.  I figured I'd post mine, although I'm open to suggestions.

Christmas Eve, heavy appetizers with the family.  I'm cooking stuffed Jalapeno's.

20 fresh Jalapeno's halved and seeded.  Boiled for 2 minutes. Cooled on ice.

Stuffed with Cream Cheese/Chedder mix.  A little smokey laid to rest in the Cream Cheese.  All wrapped up with a piece of Bacon and smoked with Oak.

HERE IS MY QUESTION....

I purchased two small Beef Tenderloins for Christmas day.  That's as far as I've gotten.  I don't think I want to put these in the smoker.  These need to be cooked for a very short time and on fairly high heat. 

Any suggestions?????

 

[rickne]

Nothing?  I guess I will wing it and report my results.

Here is my plan so far....

Rub 2 hours in advance and bring up to room temp.  Put it on the grill for abotu 8 minutes (2 minutes per side), on a fairly high heat (400 plus).

Move to the smoker and finish at 300 degrees (thanks to the Auber) until the internal temp is 125 degrees.  Let it rest for 20 minutes and slice.  A simple and subtle oak will be used on the grill and smoker.

Also on the menu...

Jalapeno's, halved and gutted, boiled for 90 seconds, chilled on ice, stuffed with creme cheese/chedder mix, little smokey laid in the middle, wrapped with bacon and smoked with oak for 3 hours.  MMMMM!

 

[DivotMaker]

Sorry you didn't get any takers on this one, Rick - surprising!  OK, I'll throw in my 2 cents worth...

Beef tenderloins are filet mignon, right?  So, you probably want a medium-rare finish?  If that's the case, you might consider my prime rib method.  Season them, then slow cook at 200 to an internal temp of 128.  Wrap them, and bring the grill up to 500.  Then, reverse-sear on the hot grill to cook the surface.  If they only spend 5-7 minutes total on the grill, you shouldn't overcook the inside. 

Although you have conventional thinking in your plan, tenderloins are not that big.  I think grilling first, and then using the 300-degree smoker will cook them outside-in, and will result in overcooked loins.  You want to cook them slowly from the inside out, then finish the surface, in my opinion.

Good luck, whichever way you go, and Merry Christmas!

 

[rickne]

The difference between those two cuts is the amount of fat.  Everything I'm reading is that slow cooking a tenderloin will dry it out due to the lack of fat.

From researching, searing can be done before or after.  I'm following this method...

http://www.seriouseats.com/2011/06/how-to-grill-roast-a-whole-beef-tenderloin.html

Wish me luck.

 

[DivotMaker]

Sounds good, Rick!  Good luck, and Merry Christmas! ;D

 

[DivotMaker]

Any luck with the tenderloins, Rick? 

 

[rickne]

Holy schmoles!  It could have been the best meat I've ever had.

Before and after.....

 

[DivotMaker]

Beautiful, Rick!  Nice job!

 

[Walt]

Rick,

I'm putting one of these on today.  200 deg to IT 125 & reverse sear.  How much time approximately should it take in the smoker? Just looking for a ballpark figure.