This easy recipe for teriyaki pork tenderloin comes out tender and juicy with a flavorful sauce!
Pork is marinated in a simple homemade teriyaki sauce (you can substitute store-bought sauce if you’d like) and cooked to tender perfection.
Like most pork tenderloin recipes this lean meat is full of flavor and cooks quickly making for a perfect weeknight meal!
Pork tenderloin is truly one of my favorite cuts of meat to make. It’s very lean, cooks quickly and when cooked to the right temperature, it is incredibly tender.
Ingredients for Teriyaki Pork Tenderloin
No need to buy pre-made teriyaki sauce when you can make it right at home with just a few ingredients!
While we often think of teriyaki just as a flavor it is actually a Japanese technique of cooking. This method refers to grilling or broiling with a combination of sugar and soy sauce (and often mirin)! In the sauce below I add a little bit of orange juice (or pineapple juice) for a citrusy flavor.
PORK TENDERLOIN is not to be confused with pork loin. Tenderloin is a long thin piece of meat, about 2″ in diameter and about 14″ long (pork loin is much thicker, about 4″ in diameter). You want the longer, thinner pork tenderloin for this recipe.
TERIYAKI SAUCE is best when homemade, it has more flavor. The homemade version contains orange juice or pineapple juice, fresh ginger and garlic and a bit of brown sugar. We use soy sauce in this recipe which both adds flavor and tenderizes the meat.
If you’re in a pinch, you can certainly use a premade sauce, try to choose one that has a thicker consistency like barbecue sauce. If using store bought, I like to add a little bit of garlic, orange zest, or juice and some sesame oil to the bottled sauce for more flavor.
SESAME OIL Don’t skip or substitute sesame oil if possible as it has a unique nutty flavor that is beautiful in this recipe.
How to Make Teriyaki Pork Tenderloin
- Marinate: Prepare the teriyaki sauce and marinate the pork tenderloin in half of it. Keep remaining sauce in the refrigerator for serving.
- Roast the Tenderloin: Roast pork tenderloin in the oven for about 20 minutes (per the recipe below).
- Thicken the Sauce: While the pork is resting, simmer and thicken the remaining sauce.
- Remove pork from the oven and let it rest before slicing.
Drizzle sauce over pork tenderloin and garnish with green onions and sesame seeds if desired. (For best results, gently toast sesame seeds in a small skillet until they are just browned.)
KITCHEN TIP: When cooking meat, I recommend an instant-read thermometer. You can find them as low as $15. This will ensure that your meats are cooked to a safe temperature yet come out tender and juicy.
What to Serve with Pork Tenderloin
A perfect marinade is all in the technique!
- We like to pair teriyaki pork tenderloin with rice to soak up the sauce.
- Add in a fresh veggie like sesame ginger snap peas, steamed broccoli, or sesame ginger bok choy.
More Pork Tenderloin Favorites
- Quick and Easy Pork Fajitas
- Instant Pot Pork Tenderloin
- How to Cook Pork Tenderloin
- Bacon Wrapped Pork Tenderloin (Grilled or Baked)
- Herb Crusted Pork Tenderloin
- Roast Pork Tenderloin with Dijon Sauce
- Air Fryer Pork Tenderloin
Did your family love this Teriyaki Pork Tenderloin? Be sure to leave a comment and a rating below!
Teriyaki Pork Tenderloin
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 pound pork tenderloin
- ½ cup teriyaki sauce or homemade below
- sesame seeds and green onions for garnish
Teryaki Sauce
- ⅓ cup soy sauce
- ⅓ cup orange juice or pineapple juice
- 3 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon fresh ginger minced
- ½ teaspoon sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch for thickening
Instructions
- If making homemade sauce, combine teriyaki sauce ingredients in a small bowl. Add half of the teriyaki sauce to the pork tenderloin (refrigerate the remaining sauce to thicken for serving).
- Marinate the pork for 30 minutes or up to 4 hours. Remove tenderloin from the marinade and discard the marinade.
- Preheat oven to 450°F. Line a baking sheet with foil. Cook tenderloin 17-20 minutes or until a thermometer reads an internal temperature of 145° F.
- While pork is cooking, combine reserved sauce with 3 tablespoons water in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer.
- Combine 1 tablespoon cornstarch with 1 tablespoon water and add to simmering sauce a bit at a time to thicken. You may not need all of the cornstarch mixture.
- Remove pork from the oven and allow to rest at least 5 minutes before slicing.
- Drizzle pork with thickened sauce and garnish with green onions and sesame seeds.
Notes
Allow the meat to rest before cutting.
Do not overcook. Pork tenderloin is very lean if overcooked can become dry.
Once the sauce is thickened, add the juices from the rested pork tenderloin for extra flavor.
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Dinner, Entree, Main Course, Pork
Cuisine American, Asian© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
Like our recipes?
Follow us on Pinterest!
Can I so this in a slow cooker?
Yes! I would follow this Crock Pot Pork Tenderloin recipe for times.
I may have reviewed this before, but … here I go (again?). We’ve used this recipe multiple times most frequently when grilling. It was a chilly & rainy night so I roasted in oven. I marinated abt 45 +/- minutes while prepping sides. The one step I do differently is that I use all the marinade for the pork. Then while it’s roasting I bring the saved marinade to a strong boil for several minutes before adding the slurry & reducing the temp. I have a Teriyaki Chicken recipe from NYT (similar ingredients to this teriyaki recipe) that uses this method and it has worked for us. Served with remaining teriyaki sauce alongside sauteed spinach and Jasmine rice with cheddar muffins from the grocery bakery section. Excellent weeknight dinner – Thank You!
I am so glad you enjoyed this recipe! That’s a great tip on how to use the marinade.
Made exactly per the recipe and it was delicious! I’m making this tonight for supper again. Hubby loved it! Thank you.
So glad your family loved it Barbara!
Found your recipe online and used it tonight. Turned out great…the sauce is soooo tasty. Looking forward to checking out some of your other recipes.
So glad you found my site Mark! Enjoy the recipes.
I used prepared teriyaki sauce and added a little more fresh grated ginger. So tender & flavorful! I served with herbed cauliflower rice and roasted lima beans with garlic. Nothing was left! This is going in the rotation!
That sounds great, Gina! Glad you enjoyed it.
I was skeptical using orange juice (I bought oranges and fresh squeezed ) , the dish turned out super delicious and my kids love the sauce. It was very nice. I probably will use less soy sauce next time as I found it too salty and had to water down a bit more than the recipe. Very happy thanks
So happy that you enjoyed it Reginia!
I made the teriyaki pork tenderloin for Sunday dinner and it was delicious! Very easy (no browning required!), the sauce was very tasty and the pork was tender and flavorful. A hit with my husband and also with my friend’s family. Thanks for another great recipe Holly!
So happy you loved it, Mo!
This was so easy and incredibly delicious! A BIG hit with the family! And it’s a great guest meal as well, especially since it’s so quick and easy.
So happy to hear this recipe was a hit, Gramma Susan! We love quick and easy recipe when we have company too!