Reverse Seared Beef Tenderloin and Snow Crab on MAK Pellet Grill

Grilling snow crab and beef tenderloin is a great way to take your pellet grill to the next level.

Reverse Seared Beef Tenderloin and Snow Crab on MAK Pellet Grill

There is nothing more enjoyable than a surf and turf dinner on a MAK 2 Star pellet grill. Combining seafood with steak will always go down as one of the best food pairings in history. We decided to splurge a little and cook beautiful marbled beef tenderloin with grilled snow crab legs on our MAK 2 Star pellet grill.

The Cook

  • Beef Tenderloin and Snow Crab Legs
  • SuckleBusters 1836 Beef BBQ Rub
  • MAK 2 Star Pellet Grill
  • Reverse Sear Using Side Smoker
  • Mak Grills Searing Grates
  • Lumber Jack wood pellets

Reverse Seared Beef Tenderloin

Beef tenderloin in MAK 2 Star Pellet Grill side smoker
Beef tenderloin in MAK 2 Star Pellet Grill side smoker

The beef tenderloin we purchased was about 2-2.5” thick. We seasoned them with our SuckleBusters 1836 Beef Seasoning. We have grown very fond of this seasoning due to its amazing flavor and large cracked pepper.

The MAK 2 Star pellet grill features a side smoker that can be used for multiple purposes. It comes in handy for reverse searing steak. You can place your raw steaks in the side smoker and let them get up to temperature while the main chamber is heating up to grill mode.

As the main chamber gets warmer, so does the side smoker as there are two vents that feed the smoker. Once your steaks get to your desired internal temp, you can move them over to the main grill for the final sear.

The MAK 2 Star pellet grill will get close to 600 degrees in the main chamber if you are using good pellets. The MAK Searing Grates will be well over 600 degrees and provide that amazing sear and crust on your steaks.

The reason for this is the aluminum they use in their searing grates combined with their FlameZone system that allows you to grill and smoke on the MAK. It makes for a truly versatile cooker.

One of the most unique features of the MAK 2 Star pellet grill is the side smoker. At lower smoking temperatures the side smoker runs on average about 100-125 degrees cooler than the main cooking chamber. When set to “Grill” mode, you can expect the side smoker to run about 200 degrees cooler than the main chamber.

Grilled Snow Crab Legs

Snow Crab Legs in MAK 2 Star Side Smoker
Snow Crab Legs in MAK 2 Star Side Smoker

We first put the snow crab legs in the side smoker once we moved the steaks to the main chamber. They cooked there for about 10 min or so at around 350-385. After removing the steaks from the pit we moved the crab over to the main chamber for a minute or so.

Our garlic butter for the crab legs was prepared with Kerrygold Irish butter, minced garlic, and SuckleBusters Lemon Pepper Garlic Seasoning for seafood. The natural lemon oil they use in this seasoning sets it apart from the rest. The flavor was amazing on the crab legs and it complicated the beef tenderloin as well.

MAK Grills Searing Grates

Beef tenderloin on MAK 2 Star grill searing grates
Beef tenderloin on MAK 2 Star grill searing grates

We have been using our new MAK Grills searing grates and have had great success with getting a good crust on our steaks. These searing grates are made exclusively for the MAK 2 Star General and they get blistering hot which does a great job on the outside of a steak. We will be doing a separate review on the searing grates after we have used them more with other foods.

Lumber Jack Premium Wood Pellets

The pellets we used were the Lumber Jack Supreme blend and they put off a great flavor. Wood pellet blends are popular because they go well with most foods and are a blend of different hardwoods. This was a very successful cook that had us wanting more.