The Best Baked Garlic Pork Tenderloin
This is the Best Baked Garlic Pork Tenderloin recipe ever… incredibly easy, delicious, and bursting with Italian garlic butter flavors the whole family loves! An easy pork tenderloin dinner in under an hour – great for meal prep and makes amazing leftovers for a healthy, low carb keto or paleo diet eating plan, too!
One of my favorite easy dinners has always been a simple pork tenderloin – its hearty, rich and delicious, super easy to make, and soooooo delicious. It’s an incredibly versatile product that tastes great with a ton of different preparations – and is great on its own, with veggies, in stir frys and salads, or even sandwiches and wraps!
This recipe for The Best Baked Garlic Pork Tenderloin is one of my favorite ways to prepare pork tenderloin – it is bursting with delicious garlic butter flavor along with savory Italian spices for an unforgettable – and extraordinarily easy – way to make the best baked pork tenderloin you’ve ever had!
This never dry pork tenderloin is quickly pan seared and then popped into the oven where it cozies up to the most amazing garlic butter seasonings – for an easy to clean garlic butter pork tenderloin recipe you will want to make again and again.
This recipe is a perfect keto pork tenderloin dish – and is naturally gluten and grain free, and is also naturally low-carb.
Serve this baked garlic pork with sauteed vegetables (this easy pan fried broccolini or this roasted green bean salad are favorites of mine), or alongside cauliflower rice, rice, or even pasta!
Just take me to the pork tenderloin recipe already!
If you’d rather skip my (very helpful, i think) tips and tricks, essential cooking info, and similar recipe ideas – and get straight to this deliciously easy never dry baked pork tenderloin – simply scroll to the bottom of the page where you can find the printable recipe card.
Where is Pork Tenderloin From
Pork Tenderloin is the major muscle along the center part of the spine.
It is known for its tender texture (if you are cooking pork quickly, it is the most tender cut of pork), delicious light pork flavor, and ease of cooking.
Pork tenderloin is fantastic on the grill or in the oven – anywhere you’re cooking it hot, fast, and quickly!
Pork tenderloin does come with a good amount of silver skin on it – if you buy one that has not been well trimmed, be sure to cut as much off as you can, as it will greatly improve the texture of your pork tenderloin, making it juicy, tender, and delicious.
How To Keep Pork Tenderloin From Drying Out
Since pork tenderloin has little fat, it can become tough very quickly when overcooked – I’m providing my best tips and tricks to keep pork tenderloin moist below:
- Marinate Pork Tenderloin
- Marinating or brining pork tenderloin before cooking will always help to soften the pork tenderloin and keep it from drying out.
- I love using a bottle of simple Italian Dressing or a cup of olive oil with some lemon juice, salt, and pepper for an easy overnight pork tenderloin marinade.
- I’m not calling for marinade in this specific recipe because we’re wrapping it in foil and slathering it in butter so it cooks in its own sort of gravy (I designed this recipe to taste great even if you didn’t remember to marinate) – but if you’d like to kick your pork tenderloin up a bit, marinating is always a great idea!
- Sear Before Baking
- Searing your pork before baking it not only helps to lock in the pork’s juices – it tastes great and gives you a perfect crunchy texture.
- Look for “Pre-Seasoned” Pork Tenderloins
- Pre-seasoned pork tenderloins from your grocer are often dry-brined with salt beforehand, so it doesn’t need additional marinating or brining.
- Don’t Overcook.
- Pork tenderloin dries out very quickly when overcooked. I often pull my pork tenderloin at 140-145 degrees and tent it with foil to continue carryover cooking as it rests for about 10 minutes before serving.
Other Pork Dinners You’ll Love:
If you love this recipe for the best baked pork tenderloin as much as I do, you will love these other easy pork dinners, too!
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- Garlic Lemon Skillet Asparagus and Pork Chops
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- Slow Cooker Pork Steaks
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- Tuscan Pork Chops
Easy Baked Ranch Pork Tenderloin and Gravy Recipe
Ranch Diced Pork Lettuce Wraps
One Pot Lemon Garlic Pork Chops and Asparagus Skillet
The Best Baked Garlic Pork Chops Recipe
Easy Slow Cooker Pork Steaks Recipe
Tips to a Perfect Baked Pork Tenderloin:
- Get a good sear on the pork tenderloin in a cast iron pan before baking.
- This helps seal in the juices from the pork tenderloin and brings a rich, caramelized flavor that makes the pork tenderloin irresistible!
- Let Baked Pork Tenderloin Rest After Cooking.
- Let the pork tenderloin rest for 5-10 minutes after removing form the oven to lock in the juices – don’t cut too early, or they will all run out! This is one of the best tips to never dry, juicy pork tenderloin from the oven.
- Follow Updated Suggested Pork Temperature Guidelines.
- With newer guidelines for animal care, trichinosis is a much smaller risk – and the guidelines to cook pork have dropped to 150 degrees internal, which might look a touch pink. Don’t overcook out of fear and turn your tenderloin tough and dry!
To Make The Best Baked Garlic Pork Tenderloin Recipe You’ll Need:
While this easy baked garlic butter pork tenderloin recipe requires no special equipment, there are a couple tried and true kitchen favorites that help making this dish so much easier – no matter your experience level in the kitchen!
- Baking sheet
- Any large baking sheet, casserole dish, or oven-safe vessel will work – make sure it has a bit of a lip in case you spill a little of the garlic butter out of the foil pouch when cooking or moving the baked pork tenderloin in/out of the oven.
- Aluminum Foil
- After searing my tenderloin before baking, I prefer to wrap my pork in foil to bake to help lock in all the garlic butter deliciousness!
- Large Skillet or Frying Pan
- This pork can be made without searing first (simply add about 5-10 minutes onto the baking time) – but I personally think getting a nice sear provides a TON of flavor, so a big pan is the best way to get that!
- Metal Tongs
- Oven
- Meat Thermometer
- To check the doneness of pork tenderloin, a thermometer is my go-to. I can usually tell the doneness of steak or chicken by the texture, but tenderloin throws me off every time! Overcooked pork is tough, dry, and not very delicious – cook it to temperature, but not over!
The Best Baked Garlic Pork Tenderloin Recipe
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If you’re looking to make this recipe but you only have pork chops – please head here for my very similar Baked Garlic Pork Chop Recipe.
And for an easy pork tenderloin that cooks in it’s own delicious ranch dressing gravy, please head here for my Easy Baked Ranch Pork Tenderloin and Gravy Recipe.
It is so simple, easy, and BURSTING with flavor – guaranteed to knock your socks off!
To see how easy this garlic baked pork tenderloin recipe is to make, please click to watch the video below!
This is the Best Baked Garlic Pork Tenderloin recipe ever... incredibly easy, delicious, and bursting with Italian garlic butter flavors the whole family loves! An easy pork tenderloin dinner in under an hour - great for meal prep and makes amazing leftovers for a healthy, low carb keto or paleo diet eating plan, too!
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tbsp celtic sea salt and fresh cracked pepper
- 3 lb pork tenderloin optional: pre-marinate pork before cooking for foolproof never dry tenderloin
- 4 oz butter thin sliced into 4-6 pats
- 2 tbsp diced garlic
- 1 tsp basil
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1 tsp thyme
- 1 tsp parsley
- 1 tsp sage
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
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Line baking sheet with aluminum foil.
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In a small bowl, combine garlic, basil, oregano, thyme, parsley, and sage. Set aside.
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Generously season tenderloin with salt and pepper.
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In a large pan, heat oil until shimmery.
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Add tenderloin to pan, and cook on all sides until dark golden brown.
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Add tenderloin to baking sheet.
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Generously coat tenderloin with herb mix.
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Place pats of butter on top of the tenderloin.
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Wrap in foil, bake until pork is 150 degrees internally at the widest part of the tenderloin (about 25 minutes.)
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When pork has come to temperature, remove and let rest for at least five minutes to lock in juices.
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Slice against the grain and serve immediately.
Elizabeth says
So, I am a bit confused. You mentioned how important it is to marinate pork overnight but the recipe itself does not call for it. Should it still be marinated in advance or just do the recipe as is?
Courtney ODell says
So – I need to work the wording a bit on that – this recipe is amazingly tender in part because we’re cooking it in butter and how we’re wrapping it in foil.
I skip marinating a lot of the time because I just plain can’t remember – and this recipe was designed to bring you perfect pork tenderloin even without the marinade – but I wanted to offer tips for if you wanted to switch it up or try making the tenderloin in a different way.
Mandi Dickey says
Delicious! Have some crusty bread for that garlicky buttery goodness too!
Amber says
Are they fresh herbs or dried?
Taylor says
I’m also wondering the same thing. I have dried so I was hoping to use those.
Courtney ODell says
I prefer to bake a recipe like this with dried herbs – but fresh can work too. Since the flavors here are so simple and straightforward and rustic, either will work just great!
Stephan JoAnn says
I just made the pork tenderloin! Amazing! I made two for my meal prep this week! This was my first attempt and I’m so pleased with the turn out. Thanks so much for the recipe!!!