If you’re looking to shake up your dinner routine, this Honey-Orange Pork Tenderloin, adapted from Cooking Light, is a total winner! It’s quick and easy, with the perfect mix of sweet and savory flavors. The tenderloin gets a beautiful golden sear before roasting to juicy perfection. The simple glaze of orange marmalade, apple cider vinegar, honey, soy sauce, and garlic turns into the most delicious, sticky sauce. It’s fancy enough to serve guests but easy enough for a quick weeknight dinner, making it a really great addition to menu.
Ingredients Needed
This is just a preview of ingredients and method, keep scrolling for full printable recipe.
- Pork tenderloin – (Not to be confused with pork loin.) Pork tenderloin is a lean, tender cut of meat that comes from the muscle along the backbone. It’s often sold in a two pack. Just be sure to grab a plain version, since it’s frequently pre-seasoned or marinated in the packaging! Although this recipe calls for a tenderloin that weighs about a pound, it would really work for any pork tenderloin. Just keep an eye on the temperature and adjust the baking time as needed.
- Orange marmalade – If you haven’t used orange marmalade, it’s a citrus-based preserve made with both orange juice and orange peel. You’ll find it near the other jams and jellies at your grocery store.
- Apple cider vinegar – As always, use a quality brand that includes the mother, like Bragg’s.
- Soy sauce – Regular or reduced sodium is fine.
- Minced garlic – Fresh is always best in my book!
- Honey
- Vegetable or olive oil
- Kosher salt and black pepper
How to Make Honey-Orange Pork Tenderloin
- Start by whisking together the sweet glaze while your oven preheats. This simple glaze is just orange marmalade, apple cider vinegar, soy sauce, garlic, and honey. Reserve a couple of tablespoons for topping later.
- Season the tenderloin and give it a quick sear in a hot pan.
- Once the pork is well seared on all sides, pour about half of the remaining glaze over the top and transfer everything to the oven. Bake for about 10 minutes, then pull the pan out, flip the tenderloin, cover with the remaining sauce (except the two tablespoons you set aside) and place the pan back in the oven.
- Cook the tenderloin for another 10 minutes, or until a meat thermometer registers 155°F. The sauce will thicken and caramelize as it roasts.
- When it’s done cooking, allow the tenderloin to rest for a few minutes to let juices redistribute, then top with the reserved glaze, slice, and enjoy!
Storing and Other Tips
- Store leftover pork in an airtight container in the refrigerator and enjoy within 3-4 days for best results.
- This recipe is written for use with a pan that can go from stovetop to oven. It’s smart to place a hot pad or towel over the handle of the pan after removing from the oven. You would be amazed how easy it is to forget that the handle is hot and get burned!
- If you don’t have a skillet that can go from stovetop to oven, simply transfer the pork to a baking dish or sheet pan covered in foil before adding the glaze and moving to the oven.
- Serve with a side salad or veggie. The sauce here is delicious over hot white rice as well!
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I make this ahead of time?
This pork is best cooked fresh. You can certainly mix your glaze up ahead of time, though!
Can I use anything other than orange marmalade in the glaze?
Apricot or peach preserves would be good options if you can’t find orange marmalade.
Can I make this gluten free?
Yep, just replace the soy sauce with coconut aminos or another gluten free soy sauce alternative.
Can I use pork loin instead of tenderloin?
You can, just be aware that the texture is not as tender and it will take longer to cook. It would still be delicious with the glaze, though!
Honey-Orange Pork Tenderloin
A sweet and tangy glaze makes this quick pork tenderloin a delicious addition to your dinner menu.
Servings 4-ounce servings
Equipment
- Stovetop to oven safe skillet See notes if you don't have a skillet that can go from stovetop to oven.
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup orange marmalade
- 3 tablespoons cider vinegar
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 ½ tablespoons minced garlic
- 1 ½ teaspoons honey
- 2 tablespoons vegetable or olive oil
- 1 pound pork tenderloin (larger or smaller will still work)
- Kosher salt and black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400℉.
- 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℉. 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.
Notes
- Store leftover pork in an airtight container in the refrigerator and enjoy within 3-4 days for best results.
- This recipe is written for use with a pan that can go from stovetop to oven. It’s smart to place a hot pad or towel over the handle of the pan after removing from the oven. You would be amazed how easy it is to forget that the handle is hot and get burned!
- If you don’t have a skillet that can go from stovetop to oven, simply transfer the pork to a baking dish or sheet pan covered in foil before adding the glaze and moving to the oven.
- Serve with a side salad or veggie. The sauce here is delicious over hot white rice as well!
Nutrition
Serving: 4ounces pork, Calories: 231kcal, Carbohydrates: 16g, Protein: 25g, Fat: 8g, Saturated Fat: 2g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 4g, Trans Fat: 0.04g, Cholesterol: 74mg, Sodium: 574mg, Potassium: 487mg, Fiber: 0.3g, Sugar: 14g, Vitamin A: 15IU, Vitamin C: 2mg, Calcium: 20mg, Iron: 1mg
Calories: 231kcal
Cost: $8
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Questions & Reviews
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!
I just finished eating this. It was fabulous ! I love a recipe that doesn’t require me to buy crazy ingredients I’ll never use again. My pork did longer to cook.
I recently discovered fresh herbs in plastic tubes in the produce section of my grocery store..genius idea !! I added some spicy red pepper paste and rosemary paste.
I served this with brussel sprouts and roasted potatoes.
I made this a few nights ago, and we all loved it, but for some reason the sauce turned into a big burned mess on the bottom of my pan. I made it again the following night, and omitted the honey thinking that would help, but the sauce still burned really bad. Any thoughts?
Made this tonight and it was delish! I read Cooking Light, but didn’t even tag this…I guess I just need someone to say, “hey, try this…it’s great!” Thanks for giving me the push…for some reason pork kind of intimidates me! I have made several of your healthy meals this month and everything has been terrific! Thanks so much!
I did a slight variation on this tonight, I omitted the marmalade and soy sauce and used some homemade applesauce instead. It turned out soooo good! I paired it with your garlic-rosemary roasted potatoes. Great dinner, Thanks!
Hey!! Would this recipe work in a crockpot? We throw a pork roast in every Sunday before church, I thought this would make a great addition to our usual roast.
I wouldn’t. Pork tenderloin is SUPER lean and tender. Most roasts that work best in the crockpot are tougher, fattier roasts that require a long time cooking at low heat to become tender. On the flip side, when you cook a cut like this low and slow, it makes it dry and flavorless. This needs to be cooked for a short amount of time at a high temperature to make it taste its best. The good news is that it cooks so fast that it’s done in no time. 🙂
I made this for dinner tonight along with a carrot souffle (very time consuming and involved). The pork was the star of the show and much faster and easier. Yum!