Can You Grill Pork Tenderloin? Yes, and Here Is How

Can you grill pork tenderloin? Yes, and it is one of the best things you can do with one. A tenderloin is small, lean and evenly shaped, so it cooks through in about 15 to 25 minutes. The trick is a two-zone fire: sear it on all sides over high heat, then slide it to the cooler side, close the lid, and let it finish gently until the center reads 145 degrees F. Rest it for at least 3 minutes, slice, and dinner is done.

One thing first: pork tenderloin is not pork loin, and mixing them up is the most common reason grilled pork goes wrong. The tenderloin is a narrow, tapered muscle, usually 1 to 1 1/2 pounds, that runs along the inside of the backbone. The loin is the wide, thick roast that sits above it and weighs several pounds. They cook very differently. This recipe is for the tenderloin.

At a glance: serves 3 to 4. Prep 10 minutes, salt 30 minutes or longer, grill 15 to 25 minutes, rest 5 minutes.

Gray Shipley, who runs the farm, has a plain answer for why you rarely see pigs in the mountains:

“You don't see pigs in the far, in the mountains very much. And that's because pigs are hard on slopes, uh, because they root, because they dig, they need to be on flat ground because they'll cause erosion.”

Gray Shipley

He was talking about land, not cooking. But it is a good picture of what a pig is: a heavy animal that roots and digs, with shoulders and legs that do hard work. The tenderloin, tucked under the backbone, does almost none, which is why it is so tender and why it needs only minutes over the fire.

Ingredients

• 1 pork tenderloin, 1 to 1 1/2 pounds
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 2 cloves garlic, finely grated
• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary or thyme, or 1 teaspoon dried
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon brown sugar or honey (optional, for color)
• 1 lemon, cut into wedges, to serve

Instructions

1. Trim the tenderloin. Slide a thin, sharp knife just under the silverskin, the shiny, tough membrane along one side, angle the blade slightly upward, and cut it away in strips. Pull off any loose fat. If the tail end is very thin, fold it back under itself and tie it with kitchen string so the whole piece is an even thickness.
2. Pat the pork dry and sprinkle the salt over every side. Set it on a plate and refrigerate it, uncovered, for at least 30 minutes and up to 24 hours.
3. Set up a two-zone fire. On a gas grill, heat all the burners on high with the lid closed for 10 minutes, then turn one side to low or off. On charcoal, bank the lit coals on one side. Aim for about 400 to 450 degrees on the lid thermometer. Clean and oil the grates.
4. Stir the olive oil, mustard, garlic, herbs, pepper and sugar together. Pat the pork dry again and brush the mixture all over it.
5. Grill the tenderloin over direct heat with the lid closed, giving it a quarter turn every 2 minutes, until it is browned on all sides, about 8 minutes.
6. Move it to the cooler side, close the lid, and cook until an instant-read thermometer in the thickest part reads 145 degrees F, usually 5 to 15 minutes more. Start checking after 4 minutes; a slim tenderloin can get there quickly.
7. Move the pork to a clean cutting board and rest it for at least 3 minutes, and up to 10.
8. Snip off any string, slice the pork into 1/2-inch rounds, and serve with lemon wedges and the juices from the board.

Add 1 pork tenderloin to cart

Grill temp for pork tenderloin

Two temperatures matter. The grill should run at about 400 to 450 degrees with the lid closed, hot enough to brown the outside in a few minutes without scorching the mustard and garlic. The pork is done at 145 degrees F in the thickest part, followed by a rest of at least 3 minutes, which is the USDA FSIS safe minimum for pork.

At 145, tenderloin is juicy, and the center may still have a faint blush of pink. Color is not a reliable test either way, so trust the thermometer. If you have been cooking pork to 160 out of habit, try 145 once. A tenderloin has very little fat to protect it, and those 15 degrees are the difference between juicy and dry.

Grill time for pork tenderloin

Plan on 15 to 25 minutes in all: about 8 minutes searing over direct heat and 5 to 15 more on the cool side. The range is wide because tenderloins vary in thickness and grills vary even more. Wind, cold weather and a lid that keeps opening all add time. A heavier tenderloin, close to 2 pounds, will need the long end of the range or a few minutes beyond it.

Check the temperature at the thickest part, coming in from the side, a few minutes after the pork moves to the cool side, then every 2 or 3 minutes. Take it off the moment it reads 145 degrees F.

How to cook pork tenderloin on the grill without drying it out

Three habits do most of the work. Salt it ahead, even by 30 minutes, so the seasoning reaches past the surface. Use two zones, so the outside browns over the fire and the inside cooks gently away from it. And take it off at 145 degrees F, not later. Grilling it over high heat the whole way chars the outside before the center is done; cooking it only over low heat leaves it pale and gray.

While the pork sits on the cool side, use the hot side for the rest of dinner: zucchini, corn, scallions or halved peaches all grill in the same 10 minutes. Leftover slices make a good cold sandwich with mustard.

If you bought pork loin instead

Do not use this timing for a pork loin roast. A loin is several times thicker and needs indirect heat for an hour or more, depending on its size, before it reaches 145 degrees F. For the tenderloin cooked indoors, in a skillet and the oven, see How to Cook Pork Tenderloin in the reading list below. For thicker pork on the grill, the pork chops guide beside it covers chops.

Food safety

USDA FSIS lists 145 degrees F, followed by a rest of at least 3 minutes, as the safe minimum internal temperature for pork, tenderloin included. Check it with an instant-read thermometer in the thickest part. Keep raw pork, and the plate and tongs that touched it, away from cooked food and anything that will not be cooked, and use a clean board or plate for the finished pork. Refrigerate leftovers promptly. See the FSIS Safe Minimum Internal Temperature Chart.