Whether or not I’m trying to eat healthy, one of my very most favorite things to eat is pork tenderloin. It’s super lean and no matter how you cook it, it’s done in a matter of minutes. When cooked right, it’s super lean, flavorful, adaptable to all sorts of flavors, and something quick and easy for a weeknight but also fancy enough to serve for company.
I saw this recipe in last month’s issue of Cooking Light and I knew when I read it that it would be amazing. I finally got around to making it last week and not only did I have all the sauce ingredients in my kitchen, but it was possibly the best pork tenderloin I’d ever eaten. My husband loved it. My kids loved it. It was a New Year’s miracle.
Luckily, pork tenderloins are almost always sold in pairs, so I happened to have another one handy for a repeat performance, which, even though I had eaten it only 3 days earlier, was just as incredible the second time around. My dog thought so, too–my tiny canine who, about 50% of the time, whines and cries because she “can’t” get up onto the couch leapt on top of my table and ate my beloved tenderloin after I took pictures. However, I would take her endorsement with a grain of salt; she subscribes to the “eat first, think later” philosophy. Unless it applies to her actual dog food, which she refuses to touch.
Preheat the oven to 400. One of the changes I made was increasing the oven temperature–I felt like it had to cook too long at 350 and didn’t come out browned on the outside and juicy on the inside.
You’re going to need 1 pork tenderloin (the recipe says a 1-pound tenderloin, but really, it could be quite a bit bigger or smaller and it would be fine), orange marmalade, soy sauce, garlic, honey, cider vinegar, salt, and pepper.
Whisk together the sauce ingredients. Reserve 2 tablespoons of the sauce and set aside.
Place 2 tablespoons of vegetable or olive oil into an oven-safe skillet and heat over medium-high. While the oil is heating, sprinkle the tenderloin with kosher salt and black pepper.
When the oil is hot, place the tenderloin in the pan and sear each side for 1-2 minutes until the tenderloin has a golden brown crust on both sides.
When the roast has finished searing, remove from heat and drain excess oil. Drizzle about 1/2 of the sauce over the tenderloin…
and place the pan in the oven. Cook for 10 minutes.
Remove the pan from the oven and flip the tenderloin. Word to the wise: Toss a hand towel or place a potholder over the hot pan handle. It’s easy to forget it’s hot. Sara and I have NO first-hand knowledge of this.
Pour the remaining sauce (except for the reserved sauce) over the tenderloin and place the pan back in the oven. Cook for another 10 minutes or until a meat thermometer registers 155 degrees. Remove from oven and allow to stand for 10 minutes. Drizzle with reserved sauce and slice.
I served ours with a produce-department salad very similar to this salad and it might be my new favorite meal. Be sure to drizzle the sauce over the individual slices!
I think the nutritional information is a little high–most of the calories/fat come from the oil used to sear the roast (which I drained, but the Cooking Light recipe doesn’t include that step) and with the assumption that the sauce will be divided among 4 servings. My first tenderloin was pretty big, serving at least 6, and we didn’t even come close to using all the sauce. I’m not lowering any of the nutritional info, though–I figure it isn’t too bad to begin with and it’s better to overestimate than to underestimate, right?
Nutritional Information:
Calories: 275
Fat: 9.5
Carbs: 21.9
Protein: 24.8
WW Points Plus: 7
Honey-Orange Pork Tenderloin
Recipe lightly adapted from Cooking Light
Ingredients:
1/3 cup orange marmalade
3 tablespoons cider vinegar
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 1/2 tablespoons minced garlic
1 1/2 teaspoons honey
2 tablespoons vegetable or olive oil
1 1-pound(ish) pork tenderloin
Kosher salt and black pepper
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the marmalade, vinegar, soy sauce, garlic, and honey. Reserve 2 tablespoons and set the sauce aside.
Heat the oil in an oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat. Season the pork tenderloin with salt and pepper. When the oil is hot, add the tenderloin and cook for 1-2 minutes or until a golden brown crust starts to form. Flip the tenderloin over and cook for another 1-2 minutes or until the entire tenderloin is golden brown. Remove from heat. Pour about 1/2 of the sauce over the pork. Place the pan in the oven and cook for 10 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and flip the tenderloin over. Add the remaining sauce (not the reserved 2 tablespoons) and place the pan back into the oven. Cook for another 10 minutes or until a thermometer reads 155 degrees. Remove from oven and allow to stand for 10 minutes. Drizzle with reserved sauce and cut into 1/2″ slices. Serve immediately with a salad or vegetables. 1 1-pound tenderloin serves 4.
Wow this was great ! I used thin boneless pork chop. I sauteed them in a pan and poured the sauce on them and put them in the oven to finish cooking. Served with rice and steamed green beans. Awesome quick and healthy meal
I’m a big fan of Cooking Light so that was one reason I tried this recipe. I made this last night for a family dinner and it turned out awesome! There were four adults and I used a 2 poundish tenderloin and there were 5 or so slices left. I made 1 1/2 the amount of sauce and left the reserve sauce off and let people put it on their own servings. Next time I will probably double the sauce for a 2 pound piece of meat so I have more reserve sauce. Also, I probably cooked it a little too long, even though I used a meat thermometer. I checked the temp every 5 min or so after the 20 min per the instructions. I ended up cooking for about 40 min total. The last 5 min the pork must of cooked faster since the temp went from 140 to over 160. I suggest shooting for 145 degrees. It was still good but not as juicy and moist as I’ve had before. Thanks for the recipe! (Every recipe I’ve made from here I’ve loved!).
Cooked this tonight for dinner. I have 5 kids and all of them like this!!! It was a hit!!! It was amazing and will be doing this dinner again!! Thank you!!
This looks similar to our New Year’s Day meal… & it might be because I’m Polish and German but we eat ours with sweet and sour cabbage with bacon & I’m not a fan of cabbage but it’s SO good!
I made this last month and it was SO WONDERFUL! My favorite thing about all of your recipes is that they actually turn out the way yours look in the photos. I was SO impressed with myself for serving a perfectly beautifully seared tenderloin with an incredibly yummy sauce. I’m making it again tonight for dinner because it was so good, so healthy, and so EASY! Thank you, you are my hero!
Had this tonight and actually made two tenderloins (yay leftovers!!). It was delicious and oh so easy. Served with sweet potatoes, a salad, and rolls. Very filling and seemed like a Sunday dinner instead of a quick weeknight meal. Everyone including the kids cleaned their plates. The meat came out perfectly. Thanks!
Made this last night for some friends and it was truly delicious. I added a few teaspoons of fresh grated ginger because I love that combo. I’m so glad there’s enough leftovers for my lunch today!
This was really good! Had my three year old who usually doesn’t like at least one thing out of every meal I make asking for more. I am so happy that one of the ladies I visit teach referred me to your blog (one of the more unexpected blessings of visiting teaching 🙂 ) Looking forward to trying more of your meals this week!
Hi ladies, I’ve been following you for a while and I have to say, my husband wants to ban me from coming here because the food is just too good. He has a hard time just eating one serving.
I also wanted to let people know that I found this homemade orange marmalade recipe, http://www.cdkitchen.com/recipes/recs/1242/Really-Quick-Orange-Marmalade125347.shtml for those of us who forget to go shopping and/or forget to pick up the orange marmalade. I used it this evening and it made this dish so tasty!
This was awesome! I followed the directions to the T and it came out perfect. My neat thermometer conked out on me but the meat was perfect after the 20 minutes. So tender and flavorful! Will definitely make this again. Thanks for another keeper recipe!