Grilled Balsamic-Garlic Crusted Pork Tenderloin
Grilled Balsamic-Garlic Crusted Pork Tenderloin gets lots of flavor from a simple marinade. This family favorite recipe is a go-to for grilling season!
Grilled Balsamic-Garlic Crusted Pork Tenderloin gets lots of flavor from a simple marinade. This family favorite recipe is a go-to for grilling season! Get the recipe for this soon-to-be favorite today and be ready for grilling season!
One of my favorite cuts of meat is the pork tenderloin. I love how versatile it is and how it takes well to various types of preparation and cooking methods. In some ways, it’s better than a pork chop, which can be tricky for many cooks – one false move and you can end up with dry, chewy chops, and a table of sad eaters.
Pork tenderloin almost always stays moist and succulent, even if you forget to take it off the heat for just a few minutes. It’s very forgiving that way. It also goes well with many flavors. Best of all, it doesn’t break the bank.
I figured that pork tenderloin would be a great first meat to prepare with the new grill. It would allow us to test both the searing and grilling capabilities. It’s not like a piece of steak that takes mere minutes on the grill. While yummy, what fun is that? I wanted an opportunity to really be able to see how the grill would perform. After all, it’s probably going to take a little while to get used to all its nuances.
So for the grill’s inaugural firing, I decided to prepare Grilled Balsamic-Garlic Crusted Pork Tenderloins. The Lynx Grill handled it beautifully! Perfectly seared and evenly cooked, the pork tenderloins were juicy and flavorful. But this can easily be made without a grill, and I have included instructions for that version as well. Either way, you’ll be left with tasty morsels of pork that are kissed with smokey garlic flavors. And if you happen to have any leftovers (hardly the case in our house), they make an awesome filling for burritos the next day!
For more mouth-watering pork tenderloin recipes, check out the following:
Adobo-style Grilled Pork Tenderloin
Roast Pork Loin with Balsamic, Dijon & Thyme
Indonesian Pork Tenderloin
Pork Tenderloin with Cranberry Wine Sauce
Grilled Balsamic-Garlic Crusted Pork Tenderloin
Ingredients
- 4-5 garlic cloves finely minced or crushed
- 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 2 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 pork tenderloins about 1 1/4 pounds each
- 2 tablespoons canola oil if preparing in oven
Instructions
- Stir together garlic, balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper, and olive oil in a small bowl. Rub the paste all over pork. If you like or have the time, marinate overnight. If not, no worries, it will still be great!
Grill preparation:
- Sear the tenderloins on all sides, then grill for about 20-30 minutes, rotating every 10 minutes, until the internal temperature is 160 degrees. Try to let it rest before slicing.
Oven preparation:
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Heat canola oil in a large, heavy saute pan over medium-high heat. Working in batches if necessary, add pork, and brown all over, about 4 minutes.
- Transfer pan to oven. Roast pork, turning occasionally, until the internal temperature is 160 degrees, about 20 minutes. Transfer pork to a cutting board, and try to let it rest 10 minutes before slicing.
Nutrition
Comments
COOKBOOK
I have made this recipe time and time again for prob 10 years. I make it for summer dinner parties and am always asked for the recipe. So easy and sooo delish!! A huge salad, some potatoe bake and a veggie and it’s done. More time spent just chopping and making the sides than this takes. Enjoy as I’ll be checking out more recipes here
Why is the sodium soooo high???
The marinade needs salt to add flavor, but much of it will slide off the meat in the cooking process! The nutrition information provides an estimate, and unfortunately, it isn’t easy to account for the marinade that becomes discarded in the process.
recette
Cannot rate on stars because I have not made it.
I hope you give it a try, Terri! It’s a personal favorite :)
Recommend is cooked to 135°F and let it rest. The internal temp crept up to 144°F(63c)
medium (140 to 145°F) the ideal range for lean pork tenderloin, loin cuts and leg roasts. The end result promises to be tender, juicy and most important – safe to eat.
160f(71c) is old temp.
Perfect as is. We love to grill it and the meat makes amazing sandwiches the next day.
Thank you, Terry! The leftovers are my favorite part – I love how versatile they are!
This is a recipe that I make often. I thought you’d like it since your looking for something new.
Hi Dan! I believe you probably meant to share/email this recipe, but it looks like you left a comment instead! Next time, there is an email button under the “Share This” part under the recipe card that should help. Hope you enjoy the recipe!
My favorite way to grill or oven cook pork!! Delicious!
So glad, Shaz! Thank you!
Hey there! I’ve had this saved for years and have a reason to make it today, finally The coarsest salt I have in my spice cabinet is sea salt and a truffle infused cornish sea salt. Would you recommend altering the salt this recipe calls for?
Thanks in advance,
Bex
Hi! The salt I normally use in this recipe is Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt — because of its crystal structure, it’s not as salty as table salt, or even other kosher salt brands. You can definitely use a different salt in this recipe, just be aware of how salty it is. In your case, since I haven’t tried the sea salts you have on hand, I’m not sure where it is on the salt spectrum, but I would go ahead and use it! Sea salt and kosher salt have similar structures, so I would think that it will be delicious! Hope this helps!
I cannot imagine marinating this overnight. I marinated it for about an hour, and the finished product was so salty, we had to hold the pork under running water to rinse it off, twice just to make it edible. THEN, it was good and flavorful, but otherwise, marinade is way too salty. Maybe 1/2 t. is the right amount. Not 2 1/2!
I’m so sorry to hear that you found the pork too salty — this is actually surprising to me, so I am curious as to what kind of salt you use. I recommend coarse salt in the recipe, my personal choice is Diamond Crystal kosher salt. Saltiness can vary between kosher salt brands as well, due to salt crystal structure. Finally, if regular table salt is used (i.e. iodized table salt), the recipe will definitely be too salty, due to the smaller crystals, which makes oversalting a common problem. I hope this helps.
What would you serve this with?
So many things! I love serving it with steak fries and grilled asparagus, or with my favorite chickpea salad. It’s also great with summer lentil salad and Costa Rican Gallo Pinto (Rice and Beans). Hope you enjoy!
Do you think I could double this marinade for a 4.5 lb. pork loin and just cook it slower and longer?
Hi Alli,
I’m so sorry, your comment slipped through the cracks! To answer your question, you can absolutely use this marinade for a pork loin.
To cook it on the grill, I would sear the pork loin on all sides, about 3-4 minutes per side. Continue to grill, rotating periodically, for about 45 minutes, or until the internal temperature of the pork loin roast is about 145° F.
And if you do the oven preparation, then yes, just cook it longer in the oven.
I hope this helps!
Hello – are the temperatures quoted Fahrenheit or Celcius? Thanks
Hi Kate, temperatures are in Fahrenheit!
Hey Liren, I’m going to try this tonight! I’ll let you know how it goes. Oven-based though!
This is such a great recipe! Thank you for sharing it.
I always have a pork tenderloin packed up with this marinade in my freezer, and it’s my go-to meal to take to friends who need meals — always a total hit!
That makes my day, Kristyn! I’m so glad – it’s such a stand by for us, and I have also taken it to friends who need meals, too, and I think it’s such a nice change of pace from the usual casserole :)
Hi! So, we only have a charcoal grill, but really want to try grilling this (have made it in the oven before & love it). Will the garlic/marinade burn too quickly on a hot charcoal grill though? should we do it on medium heat or high heat? didn’t know if it was different depending on the grill. THANKS!:)
I got this recipe from your blog last month and I have made it 3 times in the oven since! It’s a little cold in the Midwest right now, but I cannot wait to make it on the grill this summer! Thanks for a great go-to recipe!
This looks so good. Thanks for sharing grilled pork recipes.
We made this last week and it was so good it was bananas. Just incredible and it fell apart it was so tender. We’re making it for Easter as well. http://fotowoltaikamoduly.snappages.com Thanks so much!
I usually buy pork tenderloin, but, this weekend, I got a boneless half pork loin…I will for sure try this recipe with that cut of meat…the whole family loves balsamic and garlic…it should be http://fotowoltaikamoduly.snappages.com a success.
This recipe was horrible. It was waaaay too salty and the marinade barely covered a single tenderloin. I ended up throwing the meat away because none of the 5 people in my family could hate the salt.
Just made and really love it. Thanks.
YUM!!! I’d love for you to share this at my Saturday Dishes Link Party! It’s a themed link up & this past weekend’s theme is Memorial Day & Grilling! Feel free to share other old or new posts that fit the theme as well if you have them! (:
http://lifeisfantasmic.blogspot.com/2014/05/saturday-dishes-memorial-day-grilling.html
I am making this for dinner tomorrow night. Anything with garlic or balsamic has to be fantastic. I will be leaving this in the fridge over night. Making sure everything sets in and will be that much more flavorful . Thanks for the idea.
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