The delicious fun of making pork recipes in the Instant Pot continues as we make the Best Damn Instant Pot Pork Tenderloin. Tender, juicy and bursting with awesome flavor, then topped with a gravy made from the very juices the pork cooks in. It’s super easy to make and the whole thing is complete and on your plate in about 25 minutes.
Pork tenderloin is an extraordinary meat that is very lean, very tender, and always makes an excellent meal. Making pork tenderloin in the Instant Pot is not only super easy, the pressure cooking makes it so succulent and delicious, it’s my preferred way to make it.
The Best Damn Pork Seasonings
One of the most popular recipes on RecipeTeacher.com is The Best Damn Instant Pot Boneless Pork Chops. In that recipe we use a very simple rub and some chicken stock with a couple of added ingredients to make terrific pork chops. For this recipe, we’ll borrow the same basic ingredients with just a couple of modifications.
Make Sure It’s Pork Tenderloin and not Pork Loin Roast
Both cuts of meat can be right next to each other at the grocery store, but be aware that they are very different cuts of meat. Make sure the package clearly says “pork tenderloin”. It will be long and narrow, usually about 1.5 to 2.5 inches in diameter. I like to use the vacuum sealed packages that will say if the tenderloin contains a solution. This solution is the brine and is a big step saver and helps to keep the meat tender and juicy. So always keep an eye out for it – it’s the best buy.
Start with a Simple Rub
We start by cutting our pork tenderloin in half crosswise to have two equal lengths of meat. This will help the pressure cooking process. Then we add a rub of brown sugar, salt, pepper, paprika, onion powder and garlic powder. Fresh, course ground pepper is my choice to use and I like to go heavy on it. I personally love to use a peppercorn medley which consists of black peppercorns, pink peppercorns, green peppercorns, white peppercorns and coriander. The combination of peppercorns, especially when fresh ground creates such a wonderful flavor profile when combined with the other seasonings for this recipe. You can find peppercorn medley grinders in just about any supermarket spice section, usually very affordably too.
Prepare the meat
One of the keys to success is to let the meat sit out of the fridge for a bit. When meat goes right from the cold fridge to the hot pot, it is not going to be as good. Let the meat stay in its packaging on the kitchen counter for 15-20 minutes first. Then after unpackaging, rinse it under water and cut it in half. Coat it with some oil and apply the rub liberally. Set the Instant Pot to saute mode, and when hot, add the meat carefully and brown on all sides. This will take a total of about 5-7 minutes. Remove the meat, and press cancel. Then add the chicken stock and use a wooden spoon to deglaze the bottom of the pot. Make sure to scrape up all the little bits that have stuck to the bottom. This is important. If they’re not all scraped up, the pot can issue a burn notice when pressure cooking during the next step.
Pressure Cook Only 3 Minutes
After we’ve deglazed the bottom of the pot, we add some Worcestershire sauce and liquid smoke to the chicken broth. Then we place the pork tenderloin right into the liquid, secure the lid, make sure vent is set to “sealing”, and pressure cook on high pressure (manual on some cookers) for only 3 minutes. Yes, just 3 minutes. Then let the pressure naturally release. The NPR will take about 12-15 minutes.
When cooking in complete and pressure has naturally released, remove the pork and set on a plate for 5 minutes before slicing.
Make Some Gravy!
Once the meat is removed. Press cancel, then press saute. Scoop out about 3 tablespoons of the juices into a cup and add 2 tablespoons of corn starch. Mix it well and slowly pour it back into the pot. Everything will thicken nicely in about a minute. Press cancel and you’ve got an amazing gravy from the very juices from which we cooked our meat.
PrintRecipe
Best Damn Instant Pot Pork Tenderloin
- Total Time: 13 minutes
- Yield: 2-3 servings
Ingredients
- 1 pork tenderloin, 1.25lb – 1.5lb
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons course ground black pepper (use less to taste preference – see note at bottom)
- 1 ¼ teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 cup chicken broth
- ½ tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon Liquid Smoke
Instructions
- Let pork tenderloin stay in package out of fridge for 15-20 minutes. Remove tenderloin from package and rinse and pat dry. Trim any visible fat. Cut tenderloin into 2 pieces of equal length.
- Coat each piece with about 1 teaspoon each of olive oil. In a small dish, combine all dry ingredients and mix well. Apply the rub liberally onto meat.
- Set Instant Pot to Saute mode. When hot, add meat and brown each side for a couple of minutes each. When all sides are browned, press Cancel and remove meat to a plate. Add the chicken stock to the pot and use a wooden spoon to scrape all the bits from the bottom of the pot. Add the Worcestershire sauce and liquid smoke to the chicken broth.
- Place meat directly into the liquid, secure lid, set the vent to “sealing”. Pressure cook (manual) on high pressure for 3 minutes. When cycle is complete, allow pressure to naturally release for 15 minutes. Remove meat to a plate and let sit for 5 minutes before slicing into pieces about ¼ inch thick.
- To make gravy: After removing meat, press Cancel, then press Saute. Scoop out 3 tablespoons of the liquid to a separate cup and add 2 tablespoons of corn starch. Mix well until corn starch is dissolved. Slowly pour mixture back into the liquid in the pot. Once it starts to boil, press cancel. Mix well and sauce will thicken into a delicious gravy.
Notes
If you’re normally sensitive to pepper, please feel free to use less to your personal taste.
- Prep Time: 10 min
- Cook Time: 3 min
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Instant Pot
- Cuisine: American
VERNA GARTON says
You know this is a GREAT recipe when your picky AF kid, who doesn’t like meat. asks for a third helping! “Hey mom, you know that pork loin we had last night? Can we have it again tonight?” Yeah, it’s that good!
Deb Seeley says
Thank you for the delicious recipe. I made it Keto by using a brown sugar alternative. I will definitely be making this again. It was a big hit.
Judy says
Can you cook two small tenderloins with this recipe. Weight 3# total by just adding time
RecipeTeacher says
Yes you can. Keep the time the same.
Kory B says
1st time ever making pork tenderloin and found this recipe and I am very pleased!! The family was happy with the tenderness of the flavorful meat with those ingredients!! Thank you!! Will definitely make again!!
Dan Shackelford says
It was delicious! We had some smoked chicken broth in the freezer, so I used that. My tenderloin was also frozen when I started, so I cooked it for half an hour and did a quick release. It did fall apart when I did it that way, but it was so tender and the gravy was delicious. We had it with grilled cabbage and corn cooked in butter and seasonings. It made for a great meal with no leftovers! Thanks! Oh, my wife said she didn’t have high hopes for the meal because we’ve not had good luck with tenderloins, but this was really really good.
Cary says
Is it possible to cut this recipe in half? An entire package of pork tenderloin is too much for just the two of us.
RecipeTeacher says
Most pork tenderloins are very small to begin with and this recipe is for 1 pork tenderloin. If you did do half, just use half a tenderloin, same cook time, and half everything else.
Harriet says
I usually split the two tenderloins and freeze one, cook one. I also like to cook both and freeze one for a night when I know I won’t have time to cook a good meal. BTW, it is just the two of us as well.
Lindsey says
This was amazing! My first time to cork pork, let alone in a pressure cooker and it was perfect!!
RecipeTeacher says
Awesome! Thanks, Lindsey!
Ed Sautter says
I was in a hurry for a dinner idea. Saw this and gave it a try. Tenderloin was frozen. I changed up the recipe up in how this was to be done. I seared the meat on saute as best I could with it frozen. Instead of a rub I put all the rest of the ingredients together and added them to the instant pot. Because of the meat being frozen I added an extra minute to the cook time. Same rest time. This was a hit and done in a flash. Will make this again and try it with the gravy.
Allison Hamff says
Such a delicious recipe! We had it with rice and broccoli; it was a hit! We will be making this one again.
Dawn says
Hi. Thank you for this wonderful recipe. My Tenderloin was perfect. I didn’t have coarse pepper so I used Ground Pepper but cut it way back. Loved the flavor and the gravy was awesome. Keep those recipes coming.
Jeff Drake says
I’ve made a lot of pork tenderloin over the years, but like title says, my wife and I agree that this was the “Best Damn Instant Pot Pork Tenderloin” we’ve ever eaten! Wow!
The rub is important for this recipe, but I used my own rub which contains all the ingredients listed for the rub, plus some others. I typically leave the rub overnight, but this time it was only for 4 or 5 hours. It was fine!
The pork was perfect! Firm but very tender, not dry at all, and was easy to slice as it did not fall apart. I think the recipe had it right, another minute would have been too long.
What really makes this dish is the gravy. It’s a combination of the rub you put on the pork (another reason the rub is important), and with the liquid smoke added, yikes! It was so tasty! We’re having the leftovers tonight and can both hardly wait!
I put together a cookie sheet full of roasted root vegetables to go with the pork. For dessert, I made peach cake.
What a meal! Thank you, Jason!
Kari says
Is it possible to use 2 pork tender loins with this reciepe?
RecipeTeacher says
Yes indeed. Just double the rub. Everything else will stay the same. Cooking time is the same too.
Chris says
Used another brand electric pressure cooker and it was delicious!!! I did cut the pepper in half.