Pork Tenderloin seasoned with a rub, seared until golden then oven baked in an incredible Honey Garlic Sauce until it’s sticky on the outside and juicy on the inside! A quick and easy pork fillet recipe with high returns for very minimal effort.
Pork tenderloin recipe
Pork tenderloin is like chicken breast – it’s a lean, tender cut of meat and when cooked just right, it’s juicy and succulent.
It is also easy to overcook, and overcooked tenderloin = dry and bland.
Hence the beauty of this pork tenderloin recipe. It’s unbelievable when the pork is cooked perfectly.
But if you go slightly over, no one’s going to notice with this outrageously delicious honey garlic sauce!
What you need
VERY few ingredients! This is another one of those recipes with high returns for low effort – minimal ingredients, less than 10 minutes of active effort for incredible flavours!
How to cook pork tenderloin
The best way to cook pork tenderloin is to start it on the stove and finish it in the oven. Sear the pork first to give it a nice crust (remember, colour = flavour 🙌🏻) then finish cooking it in the oven.
Can’t it be cooked entirely on the stove??
Yep, it sure can, but the outside ring of the tenderloin will be cooked more than ideal by the time the centre is just cooked. Reduce this uneven cooking by bringing the pork to room temperature before cooking.
What about in the oven?
Again, yep, you sure can, but you won’t get the same colour on the surface of the tenderloin so you’ll notice a loss of flavour. But with a sauce this good, it’s forgivable to skip the initial sear! 😇 Directions in the recipe notes.
Look at that sauce glazing the pork!!! Doesn’t it look incredible??!
The Honey Garlic Sauce used in this pork tenderloin recipe has made an appearance in various forms on my website, such as with Salmon, Chicken Breast and as a dipping sauce for the crispiest ever Baked Chicken Wings.
It’s just one of those terrific back pocket sauces that works with virtually every protein. Just a few ingredients that totally transforms when simmered on the stove into a savoury-sweet sauce.
It’s inevitable that it will make yet another appearance one of these days!
What to serve with pork tenderloin
Though you cannot see it properly in the photo above, that yellow/green blur in the background is this Lemon Potato Salad which I added steamed green beans to. A two-in-one carb + veg side that keeps for days, I’m a big fan of those! Here’s a few more:
Kale and Quinoa Salad and Garlic Butter Rice with Kale (kale is a nutrition powerhouse and these are 2 seriously tasty ways to eat it!)
Otherwise, serve it with a fresh garden salad tossed with a fresh vinaigrette like French, Italian or the everyday salad dressing used in this Cabbage Salad.
I’d also recommend something to slop up the sauce with – bread, mashed potato, or Cauliflower Mash. What looks like mash in the photo below is actually Mashed Cauliflower. Carb free, creamy smooth indulgence – you’ll see it in the recipe video! ~ N x ❤️
Watch how to make it
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Pork Tenderloin with Honey Garlic Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 pork tenderloin (pork fillet), 500g/1lb each (Note 1)
- 1 1/2 tbsp olive oil (or butter)
- 3 garlic cloves , very finely chopped
Pork Tenderloin Rub:
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp paprika
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
Honey Garlic Sauce:
- 3 tbsp cider vinegar (Note 2)
- 1 1/2 tbsp soy sauce, light or all purpose (Note 2)
- 1/2 cup honey (or maple syrup)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180C/350F.
- Mix Sauce ingredients together.
- Mix Rub ingredients then sprinkle over the pork.
- Heat oil in a large oven proof skillet (Note 3) over high heat. Add pork and sear until golden all over.
- When pork is almost seared, push to the side, add garlic and cook until golden.
- Pour sauce in. Turn pork once, then immediately transfer to the oven.
- Roast 15 – 18 minutes or until the internal temperature is 68C / 155F (Note 4).
- Remove pork onto plate, cover loosely with foil and rest 5 minutes.
- Place skillet with sauce on stove over medium high heat, simmer rapidly for 3 minutes until liquid reduces down to thin syrup.
- Remove from stove, put pork in and turn to coat in sauce.
- Cut pork into thick slices and serve with sauce!
Recipe Notes:
- Cider vinegar – white wine vinegar, rice vinegar or champagne vinegar. OR 2 tbsp normal white vinegar.
- Soy Sauce – Use light or all purpose. Do not use dark soy sauce or sweet soy sauce.
Nutrition Information:
Life of Dozer
I love the robe so much, I got another one and put his name on it. Poor boy, now he’s been named and shamed….😂
Made this for lunch with mashed potatoes and peas. Yummy on a rainy day! Or any day really. Thanks enjoy life of Dozer
Just discovered this site and you. Wow , thank you, great recipe and also followed your veggie rice at the same time. 5 * all the way, looking forward to trying more.
This was delicious but I recommend that you soak your utensils in hot water right away because the honey hardens
Delicious recipe but mine was OINKING at 350 for 20 minutes. 😆 I put that sucker back for 30 and it was magical. Had to do it again I’d start at 400 and cook for 30. Thank you though! I always need new ideas ❤️
Must have been a big tenderloin Cynthia!!! N x
Delicious
When you roast the pork tenderloin in the pan did you put a lid over it when you put it in the oven?
No lid required here Arlene 🙂 N x
Hi Nagi – my go-to recipe site has delivered yet again. This is so delicious, I can’t even believe it. Perfect instructions and great balance of the sweet, tangy, caramelised wonderfulness. I used smoked paprika since that’s all I had. Y.U.M.
Thanks so much Casey, I’m so happy you enjoyed it!! N x
Gutted first recipe the didn’t work out .was still nice but couldn’t caramelise the pork was just runny. Still enjoyed by the family mind.
This was amazing, everyone raved over it. The sauce over mashed potatoes was great. I will be making this again and again. No need to go out to a restaurant when you can have this at home and it’s better than going out! Thanks so much for a great recipe!!
Looks really good…What kind of vegetables would you serve with this?
Hi Danielle, steamed greens, roast carrots or potatoes, a green bean salad – Anything! N x
Simple and succulent, with lovely flavours. Family friendly too.
Great recipe, thank you!
My partner and I made it for dinner, and it was a huge hit…
Wahoo, that’s awesome Stephen!! N x
So simple and so delicious!
Thank you for this wonderful recipe!
Fantastic! Recipe doubled beautifully and family loved it! Thank you!
Thank you for this recipe. I had taken out a pork loin from the freezer and was looking for something quick other than my usual. It came out excellent. I had agave nector on hand and no honey. Outside of that just a little paprika in with the dry rub. Well written recipe and no muss no fuss to cook it up.
Made this tonight for dinner and everyone loved it. Thank w
Excellent, just be careful not to cook down the sauce to much.
LOVE this recipe! The pork is great but the sauce is amazing and soooo simple to make. I always double the sauce recipe because it disappears in seconds 🙂 We’ve used the sauce on chicken wings and ribs and it’s just *mmwwaaa*!
The first time I made this recipe I was convinced it was as good – if not better! – than anything you could buy in a restaurant. My family loved the tenderness of the pork but – sadly – my husband is not a big fan of sweet sauces. He asked if next time I could make it with a savoury sauce. Would it work if I just left the honey out? Is there anything else I should add to substitute for the honey that would make it a delicious savoury sauce? I love your website and use it numerous times each week – my family tease me about how every meal I cook is from RecipeTinEats!
Made this for Sunday dinner tonight. So very delicious. Love your recipes ( and Dozer as well) 🥰