Bacon Wrapped Venison Tenderloin

A deliciously tender venison tenderloin roast, enhanced with a venison seasoning blend, wrapped in hearty bacon, and grilled to perfection on a gas grill.

This bacon-wrapped tenderloin is a joy to serve on special occasions as well as at family get-togethers.

Served with Brussels sprouts and duchess potatoes, this venison was perfect as a main course for a Christmas dinner menu.

We served beforehand a chestnut porcini mushroom soup in the Dutch Oven and, as for dessert, wonderful Buchteln (Austrian filled sweet rolls) with homemade vanilla sauce.

So a truly festive menu with a majority of dishes prepared on the grill.

🥘 Ingredients

• Venison tenderloin
• Bacon strips
• Venison seasoning - rosemary, thyme, kosher salt, pepper
• Avocado oil
• Optional: cranberry sauce

See the recipe card for quantities.

🔪 Instructions

Step 1: Prepare the deer tenderloin.

Since the marinated meat needs to steep in the refrigerator for at least two to three hours (preferably overnight), let's get started immediately.

First of all, remove the silver skin from the meat. To do this, run the tip of the knife under the silver skin. Hold the silver skin, and cut the silver skin from the meat with the blade slightly inclined to the silver skin.

It is essential to lose as little of the meat as possible. Here it is better to work calmly and carefully so that the silver skin is completely parried.

Once removed, wash the meat and pat dry with a paper towel.

Now it is time to marinate the tenderloin. You can use a ready-made seasoning or season it to taste with thyme, rosemary, salt, and pepper. It's up to you.

For the sake of simplicity, we opted for the ready-made venison seasoning.

To make the marinade, place two tablespoons of avocado oil in a small bowl and mix with two to three tablespoons of the seasoning. Stir until the mixture transforms into a paste-like consistency.

Then apply this spice paste to the meat with a brush. Wrap the marinated meat in cling film and leave it in the refrigerator for at least two hours.

One hour before you start grilling, take the meat out of the refrigerator so that it can warm up.

Step 2 - Preparation from the grill

Preheat the grill to about 392 °F // 200 °C. Keep one burner off, so you'll get an indirect grill zone after searing the tenderloin on the sizzle zone. An indirect zone means an area in the grill where the meat is not directly over the flame afterward.

Since we use a three-burner grill, we turned the burners on the right and left side on - and turned off the one in the middle.

Step 3 - The bacon coating

Place the bacon strips on a cutting board in the shape of a cross pattern. Place the marinated meat on top of the crossed bacon strips and wrap it up.

Take the wrapped fillet (or the two fillets, as in our case) to the grill. Sear them (on both sides) for about 2-3 minutes using the sizzle zone.

If your grill does not have a sizzle zone, you can also do this directly over the flame on the grill. But therefore you will need more heat. So if you sear without a sizzle zone, you must preheat the grill to 482 °F // 250 °C beforehand.

After searing, the fillet is fitted with the thermometer and grilled over indirect heat with the grill cover closed.

It remains there until it has reached the desired core temperature. The core temperature should be 140 °F // 60 °C (Then it is at a good medium cooking level).

After the meat has reached the appropriate core temperature, wrap it in baking paper (inside) and aluminum foil (outside) - This wrapping helps to keep it warm until you serve it.

Step 4 - Slice and serve

To serve, remove the wrapping and cut the bacon wrapped tenderloin into small slices about two fingers wide.

Divide the fillets among the serving plates and serve with Brussels sprouts and duchess potatoes.

If desired, you can add a spoonful of cranberry sauce. Thanks to the lovely red color, this adds a nice splash of color and pairs perfectly with the venison.

More yummy recipes for you to try

• Tafelspitz (Austrian Prime Boiled Beef)
• Smoked Prime Rib (created by girlcarnivore.com)
• Apfelkren (Austrian Horsradish Sauce)
• Chive Sauce
• Egg Salad
• Christmas Charcuterie Board

🍗 Variations

If you don't have a grill at home, you can easily recreate this recipe on the stove and in the oven. To do this, sear the meat in a pan and then cook it in the oven.

It is advisable to use an instant-read thermometer to achieve the meats correct core temperature. This way, you won't get any unpleasant surprises.

🍽 Equipment

• Gas grill
• Instant-read thermometer
• Sharp knife
• Small bowl
• Brush
• Cling film
• Aluminum foil
• Parchment paper

More recipes for you to try

• Dutch Oven Mac and Cheese
• Tafelspitz - Austrian Prime Boiled Beef
• Sweet Corn Soup
• Crockpot Turkey Tenderloins (created by glendaembree.com)
• Homemade Mini Cheeseburger
• Chive Sauce
• Old Fashioned Sloppy Joes (created by thymeforthetable.com)

🙋🏻 FAQ

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📖 Recipe

⛑️ Food Safety

• Cook to a minimum temperature of 165 °F (74 °C)
• Do not use the same utensils on cooked food, that previously touched raw meat
• Wash hands after touching raw meat
• Don't leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods
• Never leave cooking food unattended
• Use oils with high smoking point to avoid harmful compounds
• Always have good ventilation when using a gas stove

For further information, check Safe Food Handling - FDA.