Smoking pork tenderloin timings.

[Chef Mongo]

Hi, I am a new member, got my Ironwood 650 a couple of weeks ago and was keen to try it out.
tried the Traeger smoked pork tenderloin recipe which said 3 hours to smoke, internal temp got
there in 1.1 h….has anyone else had this divergence and are they common or is it now a case of
trial and error….?

 

[RustyJake]

Recipes are guidelines when it comes to smoking. Times will vary based on the meat itself, but add in the variables on the grills and it varies even more.
Cook by your desired temperature, and use look and feel as you get comfortable. Use the timeline they give you as a guidelines only.
Keep in mind that the temperature probes in your grill may not be accurate. Best is to have a secondary method to verify pit temperature and temperature of whatever you are cooking

 

[Chef Mongo]

Thanks for that, I just don’t want to spoil any great recipes.
I have had an electric smoker for years and I guess I can use the same timings and temps for this grill?

 

[Slimpicker]

Thanks for that, I just don’t want to spoil any great recipes.
I have had an electric smoker for years and I guess I can use the same timings and temps for this grill?

You cook food to Internal Temperatures, not timing.
Use the same cooking temps you want but you really, really need a good probe system telling you actual pit temp at all times and actual IT meat temp at all times, or a really good INSTANT PROBE for internal temps, pit temps can just be close to what your used to cooking at.

 

[RustyJake]

Thanks for that, I just don’t want to spoil any great recipes.
I have had an electric smoker for years and I guess I can use the same timings and temps for this grill?

As 'guidelines', yes.
Every grill is different, as well as the meats. Different levels of marbling will yield different results in the time-line. Hot spots in the grill, the probes not being accurate, it all plays into it.
Don't use a recipe as a set in stone time-line

 

[Chef Mongo]

I have the ironwood 650 with the separate probe, also have the wifire set on it ….works nicely for viewing remote cooking and keeping tabs on temps…

 

[Chef Mongo]

But surely you need to know a rough time for cooking… so you can plan the meal.

 

[RustyJake]

But surely you need to know a rough time for cooking… so you can plan the meal.

That's why you use the recipe timing, should give you a rough idea.
But if your timing is way off, you should be keeping notes of what you cooked and it weight, temperature cooked at and how long it took to get to the desired temperature.
Always plan to have the meat finish early and hold and rest the meat until it is time to eat.

 

[RayClem]

The best advice I can provide is NEVER trust the Traeger thermometers. Always use 3rd party thermometers you know to be accurate. Some grills operate hotter than the temperature shown on the controller and some operate cooler. Thus, always adjust the controller to achieve the cook temperature you desire as measured by an independent thermometer placed a few inches from the cook, but not touching either the cook or the metal grate. You can use the recipe as a guideline as to cook temperature and time, but never rely on them. ALWAYS cook to a final internal temperature measured by an independent thermometer you know to be accurate. Even a few degrees difference in final temperature can make a big difference in the quality of the cook.

 

[midwest]

We have a few cows butchered each year. I have cooked the briskets out of the same cow at the same time and one takes hours longer than the other, even though both looked pretty much identical at the start. As stated above each piece of meat could have different fat content, moisture, etc. The good thing about larger cuts is you can stick them in a cooler and hold them for several hours. I usually plan my briskets, pork butts, etc. to be done3-4 hours early. That way if they go long I have plenty of time, if they are done 4 hours early they go in the cooler and come out great.

 

[Smokin In Bama]

Anything from these guys. The Thermapen One is a game changer with accuracy in less than 1 second. There are other devices they make for ambient temperature too.