Pork tenderloin is one of those great cuts of meat that is juicy and packs in all the flavors of the seasoning…every time I make it I always wonder why I don’t make it more often because it is so easy to work with!
This particular recipe is a quick prep one that can be served with a side of veggies.
See how easy the prep is in the pics below – just pat the meat dry, press brown sugar salt and pepper on, cook in a mixture of balsamic vinegar and olive oil and then bake, let rest and voila, you have yourself a beautiful and tasty pork tenderloin.
I’ve made this Balsamic Glazed Pork Tenderloin numerous times since publishing this recipe with great success each time. I even included it in my Five Ingredient Friday ecookbook (which you can get for free by signing up for my enewsletter!)
Ingredients
- 1. 2 Pork tenderloins about 1.25 lbs each-mine always come in a packet of 2, if you have only one then just half the other ingredients
- 2. 3 Tbs Brown Sugar
- 3. 3 Tbs Balsamic Vinegar
- 4. 2 Tbs Extra Virgin Olive Oil plus 1 Tbs for cooking
- 5. 1 tsp each Salt & Pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking dish with aluminum foil. Wash your hands well, then set out a few sheets of paper towel and pat the pork tenderloin dry and set on paper towel. With hands press the brown sugar onto the pork tenderloins and then sprinkle each tenderloin with salt and pepper. In a small bowl mix together the balsamic vinegar and the extra virgin olive oil.
- In a large skillet over medium-high heat, add the remaining 1 tbs olive oil and then put the tenderloins in and spoon about 1 Tbs of the balsamic-olive oil mixture over each tenderloin- sear both sides for 2 minutes (or until a nice brown crust forms.) Transfer tenderloins to foil lined baking dish and spoon remaining balsamic mixture over the tenderloins. Bake for 20-30 minutes or until internal temperature is 160 degrees (I use a little meat thermometer). Remove from oven and let sit for 10 minutes (so that it retains the juices) and then slice and serve!
Nancy says
So—-had a slight problem searing tenderloin. I used my cast iron skillet (on high – like recipe said) but when I added olive oil it filled house with smoke and added meat and burnt before 2 minutes were up. Should I not have used cast iron skillet ?
Sweetphi says
Oh no – so sorry that that happened, your stove must be super powerful!! Mine never gets that hot to burn in 2 minutes.
I think what it sounds like is that you let your pan heat, and then added the oil after. Usually one adds the oil to the pan and then turns on the heat to warm it, that might help. You can use cast iron or a different kind of pan. If you’re experiencing burning/sticking, I’d recommend using a non-stick pan.
Hope that helps!
Julie says
I made this tonight and it was amazing!
Sweetphi says
I’m so happy to hear that Julie 🙂
Corla says
Making it tonight. It’s in the oven now. Smells delicious! Can’t wait to taste it!
Sweetphi says
Hope you love it!! It’s a favorite in our house 🙂
Jessica says
Loved the flavor of this – so simple but delicious. I used pork tenderloin steaks – they were on sale 🙂 – maybe it’s because of this, but even though they had plenty of flavor I wanted more so I doubled up the quantities of the marinade so they would soak up more – turned out great!
Sweetphi says
YAY I’m so glad to hear it – thank you for coming back and letting me know how this turned out for you, we make this recipe all the time in our house 🙂
Tami Pinson says
Can this be finished in a crock pot instead of the overn?
Sweetphi says
Oh very good question. I have never done that, but I don’t see why that wouldn’t work, I’d love to know how it turns out for you.
Richard Mason says
My wife sent this to me before she went to bed. Going to try it tonight. Working on it now.
Nothing can be bad with pork and balsamic!
Sweetphi says
That’s so exciting to hear! I think you’re going to absolutely love it, let me know how it turns for you!
Jenn says
This looks absolutely amazing, I’m really excited to try this!! What type of side dishes would you recommend to go with this awesome pork dish?
Sweetphi says
Thank for the comment Jenn! I’ve made grilled peaches on the side, or I’ve made my 5 ingredient mac and cheese (super easy and goes perfectly with pork) or I’ve done roasted veggies 🙂
Michael Lambert says
This looks good, will have to give this a try.
Sweetphi says
Thanks for the comment Michael, I think you’ll love it!
Caliens Contests says
I’m jealous! I can never get mine to look this good. Of course, I don’t usually cook them at 400 so maybe that’s what I’ve been doing wrong. Thanks for sharing, I’m going to try this next!
Sweetphi says
Thanks for the nice comment! Let me know how it turns out-I think searing it before really helped with getting the color!
Allison H says
Oh my goodness, this looks amazing. We’re in a recipe rut so to speak, and this looks like something my family would inhale. Going shopping for the ingredients today!
Sweetphi says
Thanks for the comment Allison! Let me know how it all turns out-I think your family will love it! Right after I posted this recipe my husband asked when I was making it again lol, so I think everyone will love it!
eric rivera says
oh my how juicy does that look!!! im a huge pork fan and we buy tenderloin every month so its nice to see a new way to make it
Sweetphi says
Thank you for the comment! It definitely was juicy-as i’m sure you know, letting the pork sit a few minutes keeps in the juices. But this way of cooking it with the brown sugar and balsamic vinegar really turned out well!
md kennedy says
How easy-peasy and yummy-sounding! I am not much of a pork person, but this would work great for tofu.
sweetphi says
This preparation would be fantastic with tofu, it would crisp up the edges, yum! I just saw this comment, sorry it’s taken me so long to reply to it!
Suzy from Ontario says
This looks so good!
Sweetphi says
Thanks for the comment Suzy-it definitely was delicious 🙂