There is so much flavor in this baked pork tenderloin, starting with the honey mustard glaze marinade and ending with the spice-filled dry rub we use to coat the pork. It’s flavorful, tender, and easy to make. This beautiful honey mustard pork recipe is sure to impress everyone who tries it!
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What’s in Baked Pork Tenderloin?
This baked pork tenderloin recipe is inspired by the flavors of a classic honey baked ham! It’s baked to perfection with a honey glaze, and finished off with a caramelized coating.
- Pork: Pork tenderloin is a long, narrow, boneless cut of meat that comes from along the spine of the pig. A pork loin is wider, flatter, and can be bone-in or boneless. Either works well in this recipe.
- Butter: Salted butter adds saltiness, fat, and flavor to the glaze.
- Mustard: Honey mustard adds sweetness, while whole-grain mustard adds spice and texture to the glaze, rounding out the flavors.
- Honey: Adds sweetness to the glaze and enhances the honey mustard flavor.
- Apple Cider: Apple cider fills the pan to keep the pork moist as it cooks, while adding a subtly sweet apple flavor to the roast. Do not use apple cider vinegar!!
- Sugar: Adds sweetness to the pork rub.
- Salt: Enhances the flavors of the pork rub.
- Spices: Cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, paprika, and allspice add a warming, spicy flavor to the rub.
Pro Tip: If you don’t have apple cider, apple juice works well!
Spicy Honey Pork Tenderloin
Use hot honey in the glaze for a little extra heat!
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Estimate about ⅓-½-pound of pork per person. Some will eat more, some less. But a 3-pound tenderloin should serve about 6-8 people.
You’ll want to use your thermometer as a final guide, but generally this tenderloin should take about 1½-2 hours to roast at 300°F.
Pork should reach an internal temp of 145°F before consumption. However, it will continue to cook a little after removing it from the oven, so you’ll want to take it out around the 140°F mark.
We love this Kitchen Torch from Amazon (affiliate link). It’s well-priced, easy to use, and pretty heavy-duty. It does a great job!
The tenderloin benefits from marinating in the glaze (refrigerated) up to 24 hours. So you can prep the pork a day ahead of cooking, then pop it in the oven to bake.
The best way to reheat it is the same way you originally cooked it. Set the oven to 300°F, place slices (or remaining tenderloin) in a baking pan, and cover with foil. Bake until it reaches 140°F. You can add more apple cider/juice into the pan to help keep it moist.
How to Store and Reheat Oven Baked Pork Tenderloin
Store leftover baked pork tenderloin in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Reheat in a 300°F oven covered with foil until warmed though.
How to Freeze Honey Mustard Pork Tenderloin
Freeze baked pork tenderloin in an airtight container or Ziplock bag for up to 3 months. Let thaw overnight in the refrigerator before reheating.
What to Serve with Honey Glazed Pork Tenderloin
This baked pork tenderloin goes so well with all the classic side dishes. I love serving it along with creamy mashed potatoes, and a green veggie (like green beans or asparagus). But it also tastes amazing with stuffing, roasted vegetables, and potatoes of any style.
Serve this pork tenderloin as an alternative to turkey for Thanksgiving with classic sides, like loaded green bean casserole, instant pot mashed potatoes, creamed corn, or sweet potato rolls.
Baked Pork Tenderloin Recipe
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Ingredients
For the Pork and Honey Glaze
- 3 pounds pork loin roast or pork tenderloin
- 4 tablespoons salted butter melted (½ stick)
- 4 tablespoons honey mustard
- 2 tablespoons honey or hot honey
- 2 teaspoons whole-grain mustard or old-style mustard
- 1¼ cups apple cider or apple juice – not apple cider vinegar!
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to season
For the Honey Baked Dry Rub and Glaze
- 3 cups granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon table salt
- 2 teaspoons ground cloves
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1½ teaspoons ground nutmeg or ½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- 1½ teaspoons ground ginger
- ¾ teaspoon ground sweet paprika
- ¾ teaspoon ground allspice
- 1 cup water or ½ cup apple juice + ½ cup water
Recommended Equipment
Instructions
For the Pork Loin: 2-24 Hours Before Cooking
- Line a rimmed, small baking sheet (longer and wider than the roast) with foil and coat a metal rack insert with cooking spray. Set aside.
- Unwrap the pork and pat it dry with paper towels. Liberally season the pork with salt and pepper.3 pounds pork loin roast, Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Score the roast with a sharp knife every ½ inch apart and ¼ inch down through the top and halfway down the sides of the meat.
- Make the honey glaze. Whisk together the melted butter, honey mustard, honey, and mustard.4 tablespoons salted butter, 4 tablespoons honey mustard, 2 tablespoons honey, 2 teaspoons whole-grain mustard
- Rub the honey glaze over the entire roast and in between the knife cuts.
- Refrigerate the pork, uncovered, at least 2 hours or up to 24 hours.
To Cook the Pork Loin
- Remove the pork (and pan) from the refrigerator 30 minutes before cooking. Preheat the oven to 300°F.
- Pour 1¼ cups apple juice into the pan and cover the pork and pan tightly with foil.1¼ cups apple cider
- Place the pork with the baking sheet on the center rack and roast until the internal temperature registers 140°F, about 1 ½-2 hours. Remove the roast from the oven and allow to rest 15 minutes.
For the Pork Dry Rub
- While the pork cooks, make the honey baked pork rub. Whisk the sugar, salt, cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, paprika, and allspice together. Place half of the dry rub into a small saucepan and set aside. Use the other half of the dry rub to brûlée the pork.3 cups granulated sugar, 1 teaspoon table salt, 2 teaspoons ground cloves, 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon, 1½ teaspoons ground nutmeg, 1½ teaspoons ground ginger, ¾ teaspoon ground sweet paprika, ¾ teaspoon ground allspice
For the Pork Glaze
- While the pork rests, prepare the pork glaze. Add any pan juices and enough water (to total 1 cup liquid) to the remaining half of the dry rub mixture that has been placed in a small saucepan. If there aren’t any remaining juices, use 1 cup water or part water and apple juice/cider. Whisk to fully incorporate and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to low and simmer until sauce has thickened to desired glaze consistency (like a thin syrup).1 cup water
- Remove from the heat and serve drizzled over the pork. If the glaze becomes too thick, simply reheat it over low heat. If it’s still too thick, add a little water or apple juice/cider to thin it out.
For Serving
- After the pork has cooled for about 15 minutes, uncover and brush it with the pan juices.
- Press half of the dry rub all around the pork. The sugar will eventually form a crust around the pork roast.
- To get a crunchy, crusty coating on the pork, use a kitchen torch or place the pork under the oven broiler. If using the broiler, adjust the oven rack to the lowest position and watch the pork very closely, turning it often to ensure it doesn’t burn. If using a kitchen torch (the easier method), keep the torch flame about 1 inch away from the pork. Continuously move the flame in small circles until the surface becomes bubbly then move the torch to the adjoining area until the entire pork has been brûléed.
- Cover the pork very loosely with foil and set aside. Serve within 15 minutes.
- When ready to serve, slice the pork along the precut slits and serve with the glaze.
Last step! Don’t forget to show me a pic of what you made! Upload an image or tag me @thecookierookie on Instagram!
Becky’s tips
- Use hot honey in the glaze for a little extra heat!
- Scoring helps to tenderize the pork, and helps it absorb more flavor through the entirety of the meat.
- Let the pork tenderloin sit out while preheating the oven. You don’t want it to be cold when it goes in the oven.
- If you’re short on time, the pork can marinate for just a couple of hours in the fridge. But don’t skip this step entirely.
- Use an instant read thermometer to ensure the internal temp has reached at least 145°F before consuming.
- If you don’t have a kitchen torch, place the pork under the broiler to get that crispy caramelized coating.
- Leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, and reheated in the oven.
Nutrition Information
OMG!!! I thought i knew how to cook before, but this!!! My dad said it’s restaurant level, and my brother said i never made better meat. we loved it so muchh!!! I was afraid it would dry meat at 150C but it was so soft and delicious.
That looks SO delicious! Thanks so much for sharing!