Best Baked Pork Tenderloin

 This Best Baked Pork Tenderloin recipe is outrageously juicy, bursting with flavor and so easy! It is melt-in-your-mouth-tender and dripping with tantalizing self-basting herb butter. It is company pleasing and holiday worthy but family friendly and everyday easy! This Baked Pork Tenderloin takes less than 60 minutes from start to finish and MOST of that time is hand’s off! 

Pork Tenderloin is one of the most tender proteins and it boasts fabulous flavor as well.  And did you know pork tenderloin is extremely low in fat – about as lean as skinless chicken breasts?!  It is also extremely easy to cook, relatively quick to cook and the leftovers don’t dry out!  There are just SO many reasons to love succulent pork tenderloin.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 pkg. pork tenderloins, trimmed (comes with 2 pieces, 2 – 2 1/2 lbs. total)
• 1/4 cup kosher salt
• 4 cups warm water
• 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 cup ice cubes
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 3 tablespoons butter sliced into 6 pads
• Spice Mix
• 1 TBS EACH chili powder, garlic powder
• 1 tsp EACH salt, onion powder
• 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper

HERBS TO ADD LATER:

• 1/2 tsp EACH dried parsley, dried basil, dried oregano, dried thyme
• up close top view of best baked pork tenderloin

Best Baked Pork Tenderloin

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Lay two long pieces of foil on a baking sheet – these will be used to fold up each tenderloin separately.
2. In a gallon-size freezer bag, mix salt with warm water until dissolved. Whisk in apple cider vinegar, brown sugar and ice, followed by pork. Brine for exactly 20 minutes then remove pork from brine, RINSE and and pat very dry. The pork becomes mealy if left in the brine any longer.
3. Whisk together all of the Spice Mix ingredients (not the "Add Later Herbs") in a small bowl. Evenly rub pork all over with spice mix.
4. Heat 2 tablespoons vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. When oil is very hot and just smoking, add pork tenderloins, you may need to work in batches. Sear each side of pork until golden, then transfer to foil.
5. Evenly sprinkle tops of pork tenderloins with remaining herbs (parsley, basil, oregano, thyme) then rub into pork. Evenly drizzle each pork tenderloin with one tablespoon of lemon juice (2 tablespoons total), then top each tenderloin with 3 pads of butter. Bring up the sides of the foil to completely enclose each tenderloin (see photos in post).
6. Bake at 400 degrees F until pork registers between 145- and 150-degrees F (63 and 65 degrees C) at the thickest part of the tenderloin, 15-25 minutes depending on thickness. This means the pork will be juicy and slightly pink in the middle. To check the temperature, carefully unwrap the foil, then wrap it back up if it need to continue baking.
7. When pork is done, loosen foil (so steam can escape) and let stand 5-10 minutes before slicing. Season with additional salt and pepper to taste (I like additional salt) and serve with accumulated butter sauce in the bottom of the foil.