Juicy pork tenderloin served with a creamy Mushroom Marsala Sauce that’s SO GOOD it will take serious self control not to the lick the plate! This is one of those recipes that is easy enough for midweek but fancy enough for company.
Cooking the pork tenderloin whole keeps this lean healthy cut of pork lovely and juicy!
So basically, this sauce is like gravy on steroids. Good steroids, that is. Not the kind that naughty athletes use. 😉
Have you ever had Marsala Sauce before? Or made anything with Marsala? Marsala is a fortified wine, so it’s thicker and sweeter than normal wine. It has many layers of flavours in it which makes it a fantastic secret weapon in the kitchen, one that chefs in posh restaurants use regularly.
It holds true for alcohol generally. A splash of wine, sherry, marsala or even brandy to deglaze a skillet after cooking a piece of protein = instant sauce. (PS “Deglaze” simply means simmering a liquid in a skillet to get the flavour of the brown stuck-on bits into the sauce. Fancy word, simple in reality!)
For this particular recipe, I’ve made a basic gravy but taken it up a notch by adding Marsala.
Scratch that. The Marsala takes this up 10 notches. This sauce….it’s so good it’s ridiculous. I could honestly drink it straight out of the jug. I want to drink it straight out of the jug!
While my plating up effort above might look a little sloppy and doesn’t compare to what a posh restaurant could do, I can absolutely promise you this – the flavour will knock your socks off and rival anything you can get at fine dining restaurants.
And this is easy. Easy, easy, easy (picture me jumping up and down as I chant that!). It’s as easy as 1-2-3:
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Sear pork tenderloin, plonk in oven to finish cooking, remove from skillet to rest;
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Cook mushrooms, remove, then cook onion and garlic; and
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Add Marsala wine, chicken stock/broth then cream. Simmer to reduce and that’s when the magic happens and this incredible gravy sauce is created…
Actually, it’s funny I mention posh restaurants because I actually did a photo shoot for a client for a Matt Moran recipe. (Matt Moran is one of the top serious chefs / restauranteurs in Australia). And the sauce for his recipe was very similar to this, except he used vermouth instead of Marsala. It was that photography assignment that prompted me to share this recipe. 🙂
Hope you consider trying it! – Nagi x
Pork tenderloin recipes
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Also try serving pork tenderloin with this Creamy Mushroom Sauce – just sear/roast pork per this recipe
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Pork Tenderloin with Creamy Marsala Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 lb / 500g pork tenderloin (Note 1)
Creamy Marsala Sauce
- 2 tbsp butter (salted or unsalted)
- 5 oz / 150g mushrooms , sliced (I used Swiss Brown)
- 1/4 cup finely chopped shallots or onion
- 1 garlic clove , minced
- 1 1/2 tbsp flour
- 1/2 cup / 125 ml marsala (Note 2)
- 2 cups / 500 ml chicken broth , low sodium
- 5 tarragon leaves (optional) (thyme is also lovely) (Note 3)
- 1/4 cup / 65 ml cream
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 200C/390F.
- Sprinkle pork with salt and pepper.
- Heat oil in an ovenproof skillet over high heat. Sear on all sides until nicely browned.
- Place in the oven for 15 minutes for the faintest blush of pink (pictured) or 18 to 20 minutes for no pink. See Note 4 for internal cook temperatures.
- Remove pork from skillet onto a plate, cover with foil and set aside in a warm place while you make the sauce.
Creamy Marsala Sauce
- Melt 1 tbsp butter in the same skillet over high heat. Cook mushrooms until browned, then remove.
- Reduce heat to medium high, melt 1 tbsp butter,. Add onion and garlic, cook for 2 minutes or until onion is softened. Add flour and mix.
- Add marsala, cook until mostly evaporated (about 1 minute). Add tarragon and chicken broth, whisk until dissolved. Bring to simmer and cook until the liquid reduces by half - 3 to 5 minutes.
- Add cream and mix, then return the mushrooms and pork into the skillet as well as juices pooled on the plate. Simmer for 1 - 2 minutes until the sauce thickens into a thin gravy consistency (it will thicken more as you serve).
- Transfer to serving platter with the gravy on the side or poured over the top. Serve with mashed potatoes of course!! (Here is my Make Ahead Mashed Potatoes recipe)
Recipe Notes:
Non alcoholic option: This sauce is very much based on the Marsala flavours but if you need to make this non alcoholic, you can leave the marsala out in which case this will be like a creamy gravy. SWEET OR DRY? I use sweet, I think it goes beautifully with pork. But dry is absolutely gorgeous too, and if you want a touch of sweet just add a wee bit of sugar or honey into the gravy! 3. Tarragon is a herb commonly used in French cooking. It has a very unique flavour, almost like aniseed. It goes spectacularly well with alcohol based creamy sauces like this one, and it's based on a recipe by Matt Moran, one of Australia's most famous chef's, that I made and photographed for a client. You can sub with thyme or leave it out. I promise the sauce is delish even without! 4. Internal Temperature of Cooked Pork (using a meat thermometer inserted into the middle of the thickest part):
* For a slight blush of pink, which is how I like it (per photo), take it out of the oven when the internal temperature of the pork is 150F/65C - takes 15 minutes at 200C/390F. After resting for 10 minutes, it will be 155F/68C.
* For no pink, take it out of the oven when the internal temperature of the pork is 155F/68C - takes 18 minutes at 200C/390F. After 10 minutes, it will be 160F/70C
Nutrition Information:
The best pork tenderloin I have ever made!
So glad you enjoyed this Sharona! Thank you for letting me know! N xx
Searched Pinterest for a Marsala sauce that made enough sauce. Adapted your sauce to use with some meatballs – it was delicious. Made without the cream and was loved by the family. This sauce had become my ‘go-to’ Marsala sauce for any meat. Thanks!
Just made this! Fabulous dish!!! My hubby loved it, and now he’s cleaning the kitchen!!!!! Score!!! Thanks for such a great recipe!!
I love love yr recipes,they are my go to recipes,i have never failed and the crowd always go wild
Do you have beef prime rib to share,i would like to do for christmas dinner,thank you very much
Hi Christine! I didn’t get around to doing a prime rib this year but I have it on my “must do” for next year! 🙂 N x
Delicious!
So glad you liked it Eli!
Does this recipe double easily? I would be doubling. Eat and sauce ingredients.
Yep it sure does!
Meat and sauce ingredients
Can you convert the oven temperature please ..
Hi Michele! I have both C and F in step 1 🙂 N x
Dear Nagi,
Do you think this sauce can be well reheated the say after? Since I must cook at christmas for 14 people 🙂 And I need to do as much as possible in advance, so if possible, let me know whether this sauce could be easily reheated if made the say before.
Thanks!
Sílvia.
Hi Silvia, yes it reheats great! What I would do is brown the pork per recipe (but still raw inside) then remove, cool, refrigerate, then make sauce so you get the benefit of using the flavour from browning the pork in the sauce 🙂 N x
did this tonight for dinner, it was good but next time I will reduce the amount of broth to increase the marsala flavour and to help thicken the sauce, I also used a cream made with rice to reduce the fat content.
It is a keeper
I’m so pleased you enjoyed this Michel!
I made this last night, and it was amazing. I also used dry Marsala and used thyme. I will make again. Very easy recipe. Followed directions as written.
I’m so pleased you enjoyed this Gary! N x
Cooked this tonight for the first time….it was amazing! The pork was perfect and the sauce was delicious!
We totally recommend this recipe! You will LOVE IT!
Glad to hear that Diane! Thanks for letting me know! N x ❤️
Is Pork tenderloin the same as pork fillet?
Yup!
Made it w/red wine and agave, stuffed with spinach, garlic & onions Very good
I’m so pleased you enjoyed this Deb! Thank you for sharing your feedback. 🙂 N x
How would I find more of your recipes? I am trying the marshland sauce tomorrow night. Thanks. Jim
Hi Jim! You can browse the recipe Index – it’s at the top of my website! 🙂 N x
Well Nagi you’ve done it again! A flavour delight.
Such a simple easy to follow recipe that produces such an enjoyable dish. I have a menu category entitled “WINNERS” and his is the newest addition. THANK YOU NAGI
Oh wow! I’m so happy to hear that Jimela, thanks so much for letting me know! N xx
About to make this for dinner with ricotta mashed potatoes! Do you have any recommendations for wine to pair with it? I’m not really in the mood for red. Do any whites or roses pair well?
Hi Elizabeth! Sorry for the late response, I guess I missed it 🙁 But I would have said something not too fruity or too woody. And not too sweet either because Marsala is already quite sweet. N xx
Made this tonight, it was delicious! Served it over mushroom pasta.👍
So fantastic to hear that Diane, thanks for letting me know! N xx
Love the flavour. I do a similar sauce but it has more dairy. I prefer your recipe. This is also good with schnitzel.
Oooh YES to using this with schnitzel!
Boronia Marsala brings back fond memories of the 60s and 70s…nothing like a good slurp over vanilla ice cream! It truly is wonderful with pork and veal.
OVER ICE CREAM????!!!!!
Hi Nagi, I made this dish for the first time and it was perfection (just by following your recipe to a tee)! Even made a lovely pasta lunch with the leftover mushroom sauce too. Can you believe the cheapest Marsala wine I could find in Singapore costs $35…?! Luckily I will be making this dish over and over so the bottle will not be going to waste.
That is serious commitment, I’m super impressed!! 🙂 I’m so glad you think it was worth it, and yes you are right, the sauce would be PERFECT over pasta! Thanks for reminding me, actually, I was thinking of doing a chicken version of this and serving it over pasta. Yum yum yum!!! 🙂