Honey Garlic Beef Tenderloin Recipe (2024)

Slow Cooker Honey Garlic Beef Tenderloin – A must-try recipe for the holidays. This is the easiest way to prepare a beef tenderloin without overcooking!

Slow Cooker Honey Garlic Beef Tenderloin

Hi Guys! Christmas and New Year’s are sneaking up on us. Do you know what’s on the menu yet for your holiday dinner?

I’ve got a spectacular main dish idea for you.

Today’s recipe is an offshoot from one of our most popular recipes several years back… Crockpot Beef Tenderloin with Balsamic Glaze.

Remember this one?

A few years ago we shared our secrets to making perfect medium-rare beef tenderloin every single time.

When you spend the big bucks on a luscious piece of red meat for your holiday dinner, it’s a tragedy to overcook it.

Yet with all the bustling around the kitchen, making co*cktails, and whipping up side dishes, it’s easy to do!

Slow Roasted Beef Tenderloin Ingredients

• Beef Tenderloin (10 inches long, the thick end of a whole tenderloin)
• Thick Pepper Bacon Strips
• Large Fennel Bulbs
• Peeled Garlic Cloves
• Beef Stock
• Honey
• Worcestershire Sauce
• Flour (this is an optional ingredient)
• Salt and Pepper

How to Make Beef Tenderloin

Our Slow Cooker Honey Garlic Beef Tenderloin recipe follows the same crockpot method of wrapping the tenderloin in bacon, and searing the outside to crisp the bacon.

1. Grab your crockpot. Season the tenderloin thoroughly with salt and pepper, and set to the side.
2. Lay out the bacon strips, all lined up next to each other, forming a rectangular sheet of porky goodness.
3. Place the beef over the bacon and wrap the strips around the beef. Secure the ends of the bacon with toothpicks as if they were sewing needles.
4. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, sear the bacon on all sides of the tenderloin, until it has browned evenly. *This can be done ahead! The seared tenderloin can then be refrigerated for 1 to 2 days if needed.
5. Then in your slow cooker, layer the fennel and garlic at the bottom. Place the seared beef tenderloin on top, along with all the pan drippings drizzled as well. Then take the broth, honey and Worcestershire sauce and drizzle them over top of the beef.
6. Insert an oven-safe meat thermometer into the thickest part of the beef and let it cook low and slow in the crockpot until it reaches 130 degrees F.
7. To serve, make sure to remove the toothpicks before slicing it into thin rounds, and top with the honey garlic glaze from the slow cooker.

This ensures an ultra-tender medium-rare interior. And since the temperature rises extra slowly in the slow cooker, you can tend to other kitchen duties and hosting without much concern of over-cooking.

In fact, if you forget to check the tenderloin right at the two-hour mark, there’s no need to stress.

See the Recipe Card Below for How to Make Slow Cooker Honey Garlic Beef Tenderloin.

A Tenderloin Recipe You Can’t Mess Up!

The Slow Cooker Honey Garlic Beef Tenderloin rests on a bed of shaved fennel and garlic, then is drizzled in broth and honey before cooking.

The honey gives the bacon a lovely savory-sweet note, and makes a delicious garlic-y sauce in the bottom of the crock while cooking.

Give it a try this holiday season!

Frequently Asked Questions

What Is The Best Way To Cook A Beef Tenderloin?

Although placing an expensive cut of meat in a crockpot might seem strange, it actually safe-guards you from ruining Christmas dinner.

After sharing our original crockpot beef tenderloin recipe, we had so many positive responses, and so many requests for additional ways to flavor the tenderloin, we thought we’d share a variation this year.

Rare, Medium-Rare, or Well Done?

Beef tenderloin is meant to be served at a rare to medium-rare temperature, with a bright ruby pink interior. Because it’s such an expensive cut of meat, it’s a shame to overcook it!

If you are feeding guests that will not eat medium-rare beef, I suggest skipping the tenderloin and making a lovely beef roast instead.

A crockpot beef tenderloin will be perfectly medium-rare when the temperature reaches 130 degrees F, about 2-4 hrs, depending on weight and thickness. Make sure to check the tenderloin at the 2-hour mark, and every 20 minutes after until it reaches the desired temperature.

Rare – 120-125 degrees F.

Medium-Well – 145 degrees F.

Can I use agave instead of honey?

Yes, you can. Adjust the measurement by using ¼ cup liquid agave syrup.

Can I make this in the oven or instant pot?

Although a beef tenderloin won’t fit well in an Instant Pot, you can certainly roast it in the oven. Place it in a roasting pan, set the temperature to 400 degrees F, insert the meat thermometer, and roast until it reaches 125 degrees F, about 20 minutes. (Or to your desired temperature.)

Keep in mind, because you are cooking at a higher heat, the beef will continue to cook to 5 degrees warmer, after it comes out of the oven.

Could I make this slow cooker recipe with a pork tenderloin or chicken breast?

You can! If using a pork loin (or tenderloin) cook the roast to 145 degrees F. Chicken breasts will take 2-3 hours on high.

Looking for Additional Side Dishes?

• The Best Mashed Potatoes
• duch*ess Potatoes
• Roasted Root Vegetables with Miso Glaze
• Company Potatoes
• Roasted Vegetable Flatbread
• Garlic Butter Scalloped Sweet Potatoes
• Honey Butter Roasted Carrots
• Creamed Spinach
• Zucchini Parmesan Bread
• Perfect Sautéed Mushrooms
• Green Risotto
• Maple Cinnamon Sweet Potatoes with Oat Crumble