This post may contain affiliate links.
This Oven Roasted Pork Tenderloin is an ideal dinner! Easy prep, quick cook time, and absolutely delicious. This is my favorite method for cooking pork tenderloin and can be iterated on time and time again.
With this recipe, you’ll start by searing the pork tenderloin then rubbing it with a homemade spice blend that can be used on just about any protein. The tenderloin is then finished in the oven until perfectly cooked.
Why You’ll Love This Pork Tenderloin Oven Recipe
- Quick-Cooking: Surprisingly, pork tenderloin cooks incredibly quickly. A brief stint on the stove top to brown the outside and then just 15 minutes in the oven and it’s done.
- Affordable: pork tenderloin is an affordable, lean protein that’s always easy to find.
- Versatile: the mild flavor of pork tenderloin makes it the perfect candidate for just about any spice rub, sauce or glaze.
Ingredient Notes
- Pork Tenderloin: you’ll need one large pork tenderloin—it should be about 1½ pounds. Do not use a pork loin for this recipe.
- Vegetable Oil: it’s important to use a high-heat cooking oil to sear the tenderloin in. Canola oil, avocado oil or grapeseed oil are all great options.
- Seasoning Blend (optional): in the recipe card I share a homemade spice rub that’s perfect for pork tenderloin. It’s made with dried oregano, chili powder, garlic powder, brown sugar, rosemary and smoked paprika.
Pork Tenderloin vs Pork Loin
Pork tenderloin is a long, narrow boneless cut of pork that’s from the muscle along the backbone of the pig. It’s generally about a foot in length and 3 inches around.
Pork loin, on the other hand, is wider, flatter and can be bone-in or boneless.
How to Cook Oven Roasted Pork Tenderloin
- Trim silver skin and extra fat from tenderloin. Gently glide a small knife underneath the silver skin to remove. This ensures the pork is tender and not tough after cooking.
- Tuck and tie tail end of tenderloin. Not all tenderloins will need this, but most will. If your tenderloin has a smaller, thinner end, be sure to tuck and secure the last 2 inches or so of the tenderloin underneath itself. Use kitchen twine to secure.
- Sear the tenderloin in a sauté pan. Searing adds flavor and helps to create a delicious crust on the outside.
- Coat tenderloin with dry rub (optional) or season with salt and pepper. Don’t be afraid to season! Cooks often under season meat, don’t be afraid to use more salt than you think you need.
- Roast at 375°F (190°C). Place a baking rack inside a rimmed baking sheet and place the browned tenderloin on the rack. This encourages air flow and will ensure even cooking of the pork tenderloin.
- Remove tenderloin from oven when thermometer inserted in center registers between 142ºF and 145°F (62.7°C). Be vigilant in measuring the internal temperature. An instant-read thermometer will be your best friend here because it measures super fast and incredibly accurately.
Temperature Tip
Roast pork tenderloin just until it reaches 142°F (61°C). I recommend you measure this using an instant-read thermometer inserted in the center of the pork tenderloin. The meat will continue to rise in temperature as it rests. The final temperature should reach 145ºF (63ºC).
- Let tenderloin rest 5–10 minutes before slicing and serving. Let the tenderloin rest just a few minutes before slicing. Resting helps the tenderloin retain its flavorful juices.
Expert Tips
- Let the tenderloin sit out 30 minutes prior to cooking. This allows the meat to evenly cook.
- Sear the pork tenderloin for extra flavor. Searing on all sides prior to roasting adds extra golden brown caramelization to the pork for deeper and richer flavors.
- Roast the tenderloin on a wire rack set inside a baking sheet. This helps the hot oven air circulate around the pork tenderloin and cook the tenderloin at an even rate throughout.
- Rest the meat. After roasting, allow it to rest for 10 minutes tented with foil. This brief rest will keep many of the juice from running out when you slice into it.
Storing Roasted Pork Tenderloin
For the Fridge: Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
For the Freezer: Raw pork tenderloins are great for freezing. Just wrap in plastic wrap and place in a freezer safe bag for up to 2 months. Thaw completely overnight in the fridge.
You can also freeze cooked pork tenderloin meat. Again wrap in plastic wrap and place in an airtight container. Freeze for 2 months. Thaw at room temperature for a couple of hours or overnight in the fridge.
To Reheat: Warm the cooked pork in the microwave for a couple of minutes or in a 300ºF oven for 5 to 10 minutes.
What to Serve Oven Roasted Pork Tenderloin With
Oven Roasted Pork Tenderloin
Description
Save This Recipe!
We’ll email this post to you, so you can come back to it later.
Ingredients
Pork Tenderloin
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 (1½ pound) boneless pork tenderloin, tail end tucked and tied (if needed), silver skin removed
Spice Rub
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar or coconut sugar
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- ½ teaspoon dried ginger
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
Instructions
- Heat oven to 375°F (190°C) with rack set in middle position. Line a baking sheet with a wire rack
- Heat vegetable oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high until just before shimmering. Season tenderloin lightly with salt then add to skillet, reduce heat to medium, and sear until browned on all sides, 8–10 minutes. Transfer tenderloin to a plate and let cool slightly.
- For the rub, combine sugar, salt, pepper, chili powder, rosemary, garlic, paprika, ginger, cinnamon, and nutmeg; set aside.
- Rub spice mixture all over tenderloin; transfer to prepared baking sheet.
- Roast tenderloin until a thermometer inserted in center registers 142°F (61°C), 15–20 minutes. Remove from oven and loosely tent with foil; let rest 10 minutes before slicing and serving.
Notes
Nutrition
Can I do this recipe in a dutch oven and do I cover it if so.?
Hi Krista,
I haven’t tested this in a Dutch oven and my only concern is the spices on the side of the pork touching the Dutch oven could burn since they would be directly touching the pan (instead of lifted off the hot surface on a wire rack as written). If you want to do this in a Dutch oven, I would sear as directed using your Dutch oven, then remove the tenderloin from the Dutch oven and coat with spices as directed. Wipe out the Dutch oven then add the spice-coated tenderloin and roast, uncovered, until the internal temperature registers 142-145 degrees F. This will likely happen a bit faster in a Dutch oven, so I would start checking the temp after 10 minutes of cooking. Once the tenderloin has reached the desired temperature, remove the Dutch oven from the oven and immediately transfer the tenderloin to a cutting board to rest. Let me know how this works! Goodluck!
I cook porktenderloin on stove top. I slice the pork and saute it with balsamic infusion, salt & pepper, onion flakes, garlic, ginger, powder., and some red chili flakes.Then I add olive oil to a frying pan and cook the pork on stove top to which I add the sauce in which I marinaded the pork. it is delicious and not dry at all. I prefer this to baking it on the oven.
Just a heads up there looks to be a significant typo in the cook time of the recipe.
Oh gosh, thank you for your comment and for bringing this to my attention. Looks like there’s a lot of issues with incorrect loading (or lack thereof) happening. Working on it now!
Made as written and it turned out great. This is a very easy two-step technique that I’ll definitely try with additional flavor combinations. (Though I also liked the rub in this recipe! Just the right amount of heat!)
Hi Lainey! I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed this one! The two-step of browning and roasting creates such great flavor!