Balsamic Pork Tenderloin Recipe
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Pork Tenderloin sorta makes me happy. Okay, I lied. This balsamic pork tenderloin really makes me happy.
Let me tell ya why. It just couldn’t get any easier. Seriously.
Probably because it takes all of five minutes of my time to make, leaving my slow cooker to work its magic and make me look like the best cook ever.
Gosh, I love it when that happens.
You just open up a package of pork tenderloins from the grocery store, whisk up some simple ingredients that you have on hand in your pantry, toss it all into the slow cooker, set the timer, and then at supper time your family thinks you hung the moon – or something of grand proportions.
It’s awesome, I think.
Totally 100% awesome.
Or lazy. Or something.
But, whatever it is, I’m totally in love with the result it gives me with this fabulously tender, flavorful, and delicious balsamic pork tenderloin.
If you’ve happened to try my Balsamic Beef recipe that I shared many, many, many months ago, then you’ll realize that this uses the same balsamic mixture that I use with the beef recipe.
Let me tell you something. If you’ve not tried that recipe, you really, really should take care of that right about now! (I’m kidding. Sorta)
Once you’ve cooked your balsamic pork tenderloins, they will literally being falling apart tender. I have to use tongs and a huge slotted spoon to get mine out of my slow cooker!
Once you remove your pork tenderloins, you can spoon over more of the balsamic gravy that has cooked with the pork or you can pour it into a saucepan and cook it until it has reduced by half for a thick, sweet, delicious glaze. Your call.
For these photos, I couldn’t wait on cooking it to reduce. We were starving and I had to get supper on the table immediately!
I’m sure you all have experienced that a time or two in your lives.
Right?
So, pull out that slow cooker and toss this in as soon as humanly possible. I promise you’ll thank me.
Here’s my Balsamic Pork Tenderloin Recipe. You are gonna LOVE it!
Balsamic Pork Tenderloin Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 2-3 pound boneless pork tenderloin
- 1 cup chicken stock or broth, or broth
- ½ cup balsamic vinegar
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce, or coconut aminos
- 1 tablespoon honey
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
Instructions
- Place pork tenderloin into the insert of your slow cooker. In a 2-cup measuring cup, mix together all remaining ingredients. Pour over pork and set the timer for your slow cooker. (6-8 hours on Low)
- Once pork tenderloin has cooked, remove from slow cooker with tongs into a serving dish. Break apart lightly with two forks and then ladle about ¼ – ½ cup of gravy over pork tenderloin.
- Store remaining gravy in an airtight container in the refrigerator for another use.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Enjoy!
Robyn xo
I’m feeding a crowd today and am using a five pound pork loin. I doubled the recipe. My meat is bathing in the sauce mixture. Is that too much liquid? Any suggestions? Or should I just turn my crockpot on and not worry?
Hey Robyn, how you doin’? I just put my tenderloin in the crockpot, but with the variations below. I didn’t have any honey in the pantry so I dissolved some brown sugar in hot water and added it to the sauce. Also, for some odd reason, I didn’t have any fresh garlic cloves but had a jar of minced garlic so I through a big glob of that in. Also no red pepper flakes, but had cayenne and that went in too. I had 2 different bottles of balsamic vinegar open so did half and half and through in some lite balsamic vinaigrette just for kicks and giggles. Hopefully my variations won’t screw up the flavor profile too much, as yours sounds wonderful. Anyhoo, I’ll let everyone know how it is. I’m hoping the moral of the story is, make do with what ya’all have on hand! Next I can’t wait to try the “No churn” vanilla ice cream! I’m so happy I found your blog! Karen
Made this dish as per the recipe. Served it over a bed of basmati rice. FABULOUS! Thank you!
This was delicious, and it was completely devoured by my family…unfortunately, no left-overs! I wasn’t sure if the balsamic would be overpowering but it was a very well-balanced flavorful dish. The only thing I added was 1/2 a chopped white onion. This is a keeper.
I’m so glad your family enjoyed it, Rebecca!
I hate making pork in the slow cooker because it tends to dry out. Definitely plan to cook on low & turn off early. After draining the juices, I blended 1 1/2 cups of sour cream with 3 heaping tablespoons of flour. I tempered the warm juices into the sour cream mix & ultimately added the sour cream to the rest of the juices. Boil the sauce & serve over the pork. The creaminess helped mask the dryness of the pork. Slop it over mashed potatoes! So yum! Best gravy I’ve ever eaten!!!
I have to disagree with the slow cooker drying out pork. Perhaps you are cooking it without enough liquid added?
Do you think this would work if the tenderloin is frozen?
We’ll see! I just put mine in now on high.
I recommend for the most tender result, to use the low setting on your slow cooker.
i bought a pork loin roast since it was on sale at whole foods…so probably not as tender as the tenderloin…would you suggest changing the length of cooking time to make it as most tender as possible?
Yes Kate, I wouldn’t cook it as long as the recipe calls for. Its safe for pork to be a little pink and you can always add more of the ingredients to make it juicy and keep from becoming dry. =)
This was really wonderful and easy. Served with roasted potatoes and brussel sprouts recipe
I had a pork loin (not tenderloin), so it was a bit dry. The meat browned and caramelized IN THE CROCKPOT. I increased the honey to 2 TBS, because I thought the teens would like it a bit better that way. After cooking, I reduced the juices and poured over the meat. Very tasty! I will be making this again.
Love this recipe! I added a 1/2 cup of finely diced white onion and 1/3 cup red wine that brazed the tenderloin to perfection. Rather than reduce the remaining juices, I strained the stock and added 1 cup to 2 lbs of quartered russet potatoes along with 1 Tbsp of kosher salt covered with 1″ of water, bringing it to a boil and then simmering for 20-25 minutes. I drained the spuds and patted them dry. Over medium heat in a nonstick skillet I browned the potatoes with 2 Tbsp of non-salted butter for 8-10 minutes, finishing with flaked sea salt and 2 Tbsp of Italian Parsley (although chives would have worked just as well and the same prep using baby Yukon Gold potatoes will be a future try). I complemented the meal with blanched and then grilled asparagus. This will be a regular at my house. Thanks for an awesome recipe!!!
Can I add potatoes and carrots to this if so when can o add them? I am a guy trying to cook, lol!!
Joe, Clarify your adaptions a little…your additions of the wine braised the pork? Are you braizing in the slow cooker or did you braise it stove top first? When you strain the stock, are you then cooking the potatoes IN the stock stove top? Do you then strain that liquid and create a sauce for the pork from it?