This Pellet Grill Pork Tenderloin only requires six ingredients and cooks in about half an hour. It's moist, flavorful, healthy, and so easy. It's truly the perfect weeknight grill recipe.
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What is a Pork Tenderloin?
The pork tenderloin is a long, skinny, and boneless cut of meat from a muscle on the backbone of a pig. It's lean and tender and generally cooks quickly due to it's small size.
Pork tenderloin is different from pork loin, which is wide, flat, and can be either boneless or bone-in. Pork loin is slightly less lean than pork tenderloin and takes longer to cook due to it's larger size.
Why We Love This Pork
It's easy: We marinate our pork in store-bought (or homemade, if that's your jam) salad dressing for a few hours, throw on some of our favorite seasonings (which you probably already have in your pantry), then cook it in our Traeger for about half an hour and it's the most flavorful, delicious pork tenderloin ever.
It pairs well with anything: This is a clean-out-your-fridge kind of recipe, because you can pair it with anything. I usually just use up whatever veggies we already have in our fridge and throw in a bag of frozen Jasmine rice for some starch.
It's foolproof: You can't mess this pork up. It's perfectly moist and flavorful every single time.
Ingredient Notes and Substitutions
Pork tenderloin: When choosing a pork tenderloin, look for one that has a little bit of fat marbling and is pink-ish in color. For this recipe, stay away from any pork tenderloins that are already packaged in a marinade or brine. We do not recommend substituting a different cut of meat.
Italian salad dressing: You can use your favorite brand of Italian salad dressing or make your own. We love Primal Kitchen Italian Salad Dressing, but use whatever you know and love. We've also tried this recipe with Greek Dressing and it works just as well.
See recipe card for full ingredient list and amounts.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1: Add the salad dressing and pork tenderloin to a gallon baggie and shake to combine. Then refrigerate for at least an hour and up to 24 hours.
Step 2: Preheat your Traeger or pellet grill to 425°F and remove your pork tenderloin from the refrigerator. Place it on a plate and allow it to come to room temperature.
Step 3: Season both sides of the pork evenly with salt, pepper, paprika, garlic powder, and onion powder.
Step 4: Place the pork directly on the grill grates of your pellet grill and cook for 30 minutes (or until the internal temperature reaches 145°F), flipping halfway. Do not overcook your pork or it will be dry—remove it from the heat as soon as it comes to temperature.
Step 5: Allow your pork to rest for about 10 minutes before cutting it. We like to cut ours into ½-inch thick slices.
Top Tips
- Marinate the pork as long as you have time to, up to 24 hours. The longer it marinates, the more moist and flavorful it will be.
- Try to keep the temperature on your pellet grill or Traeger steady for the duration of the cooking time. Minimize the amount of time you leave the lid open.
- Allow your pork to rest about 10 minutes before cutting into it. Otherwise, all the juices will flow out and leave you with dry pork.
Frequently asked questions
Yes! Follow the same instructions on a gas or charcoal grill, keeping the temperature of the grill around a constant 425°F and checking the internal temperature of the pork often.
Store the leftovers in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 or 4 days. To reheat, cook in a pan over medium heat until warm. We also like cutting the leftovers into small cubes and using it in dishes like fried rice.
Pork tenderloin cooks in about 30 minutes at 425°F on a pellet grill (we have a Traeger).
Side Dish Ideas
These side dishes pair perfectly with this recipe:
📖 Recipe
Pellet Grill Pork Tenderloin
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings
Description
This Pellet Grill Pork Tenderloin only requires six ingredients and cooks in about half an hour. It's moist, flavorful, healthy, and so easy. It's truly the perfect weeknight Traeger or pellet grill recipe.
Ingredients
1.5 pound pork tenderloin
8 ounces Italian salad dressing
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
½ teaspoon paprika
½ teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon onion powder
Instructions
- Add the salad dressing and pork tenderloin to a gallon baggie and shake to combine. Then refrigerate for at least an hour and up to 24 hours.
- Preheat your Traeger or pellet grill to 425°F and remove your pork tenderloin from the refrigerator. Place it on a plate and allow it to come to room temperature.
- Season both sides of the pork evenly with salt, pepper, paprika, garlic powder, and onion powder.
- Place the pork directly on the grill grates of your pellet grill and cook for 30 minutes (or until the internal temperature reaches 145°F), flipping halfway. Do not overcook your pork or it will be dry—remove it from the heat as soon as it comes to temperature.
- Allow your pork to rest for about 10 minutes before cutting it. We like to cut ours into ½-inch thick slices.
Notes
Nutritional information is only an estimate.
Marinate the pork as long as you have time to, up to 24 hours. The longer it marinates, the more moist and flavorful it will be.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Grilling
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: ¼ of tenderloin
- Calories: 217
- Sugar: 5.1 g
- Sodium: 1312.4 mg
- Fat: 4.2 g
- Carbohydrates: 6 g
- Protein: 36.4 g
- Cholesterol: 111.6 mg
Michael says
absolutely love this recipe!
Ronda M. says
The pork was super moist and had ton of flavor!
Brian says
The pork was very moist and packed with flavor!
Sharie says
I used a Trader Joe’s loin and it worked great!
Mike says
This is definitely a winner recipe! We had it the other night with friends over and we all loved it!