Brown Sugar Dijon Pork Tenderloin

Delicious, juicy and tender pork tenderloin easily prepared in the oven. This pork tenderloin is rubbed with a flavorful mixture of Dijon mustard, brown sugar, and spices. All together, it will take only 30 minutes to prepare this wonderful main dish.
4.47 from 26 votes
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two pork tenderloins sliced and stacked on a cutting board with a spoon of mustards.

After many years of preparing pork tenderloin in both restaurant kitchens and for my own family, I can tell you it’s one of the best proteins to work with. It’s incredibly forgiving for home cooks, and its naturally soft and tender texture makes it a guaranteed crowd-pleaser when cooked correctly. The real magic of pork tenderloin is how versatile it is because it pairs beautifully with countless flavor profiles and sides.

This recipe features the classic combination of brown sugar and Dijon mustard, a pairing that delivers that perfect balance of sweet and tangy and creates a perfect, juicy roast every time.

sprinkling brown sugar over Dijon mustard rubbed pork tenderloins.

Key Ingredients and Substitutions

Pork tenderloin – it is a thin, long cut of meat the comes from the muscle running along the backbone. It’s very tender and pleasant to eat and just as easy to cook. There are many ways to prepare pork tenderloin. It can be roasted in the oven, seared on stove top, or grilled. It’s best cooked at a fairly high temperature for less amount of time.

Brown sugar – either light or dark brown sugar will work but I recommend light brown sugar. Dark brown sugar contains more molasses so it will have a deeper flavor of it. Do note that dark brown sugar does tend to be a little more sticky, it clumps more, so it won’t be as easy to sprinkle over pork tenderloins.

Dijon mustard – I highly recommend using Dijon mustard rather than yellow because it has a bolder, spicier, and more complex taste but it’s also smoother and more aromatic. Another good option could be whole grain mustard of a gourmet one you love.

uncooked pork tenderloins side by site in a roasting dish with seasoning over it.

How to Cook Pork Tenderloin In The Oven

This is a quick recipe that only uses an oven to roast the pork tenderloin. All you really need to do is season the pork and pop it in!

Preheat the oven to 400°F and while it’s preheating, you can prepare the pork.

In a small bowl, combine brown sugar, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper and mix it well.

Take tenderloin out of the package and place it in the greased roasting pan (preferably metal because it’s the best heat conductor). Pat them dry first and if silverskin was left on the tenderloins, you should remove it. Silverskin is easy to spot because it’s white, shimmery connective tissue running along the outside of the tenderloin. To remove it, simply slide a sharp, thin knife under it and slide it across to separate from the meat.

Rub both tenderloins with Dijon mustard all over, even on the bottom and sides. Try to keep the coating in one even layer so the flavor is distributed evenly. It will also act as as glue for the seasoning.

Sprinkle the seasoning all over the top of the pork and sides and make sure to work slow and gently so the seasoning spreads evenly. Pat the seasoning down into the pork but don’t rub.

Place the roasting pan into the oven and cook for 18-25 minutes. Time will depend on the size (thickness) of the meat. Have a meat thermometer ready and start checking internal temperature after 18 minutes. (If you have a leave-in meat thermometer, you can insert the probe into one tenderloin, through the thicker end, and keep track as it cooks.)

For juicy pork, it’s important not to overcook it. Cook pork until the internal temperature reads 145º and remember it will continue to cook a few more degrees after you take it out of the oven.

Take it out and take the pork out of the roasting pan and onto a cutting board. Let it rest for about 5-10 minutes before cutting into it. This will give time for the meat juices that were condensed while cooking to spread back through the tenderloin. Resting meat is an important step to help keep it juicy and tender.

two cooked oven roasted pork tenderloins in the roasting pan.

Serving Suggestions

Pork is wonderfully versatile when it comes to side dishes but since this recipe has a sweetness from the brown sugar, you want to stay away from sweet sides or sides cooked with sugar or honey.

Potatoes are wonderful to serve with pork and you can go with the classic mashed potatoes of bump up the flavor with Instant Pot garlic mashed potatoes. Even more comforting is a hashbrown casserole or cheesy potato casserole.

As far as vegetables, you can try roasted green beans and mushrooms, green bean casserole, sauteed mushrooms, creamed spinach, or really any vegetables you love.

How much pork to get per person?

It is recommended to get 1/2 lb. of meat per person, but sometimes you can get away with 1/4 lb. if you have hearty sides.

  • Personally, I think it’s a tough call. How much meat your guests will eat will depend how many and the kind of sides you will be serving with it. Potato, pasta, cheesy, and creamy sides are more filling, where green vegetables and salads are lighter sides. That would effect the amount of meat to serve with them.
  • It also highly dependable on how much a person can eat.
  • To be safe, err on the side of more rather than less because pork is actually just fine reheated. It’s better to have some meat leftover and make a sandwich the best day, than not have enough.
sliced pork tenderloins stacked side by side on a serving with with chives on top.

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two pork tenderloins sliced and stacked on a cutting board with a spoon of mustards.

Brown Sugar Dijon Pork Tenderloin Recipe

Delicious, juicy and tender pork tenderloin easily prepared in the oven. This pork tenderloin is rubbed with a flavorful mixture of Dijon mustard, brown sugar, and spices. All together, it will take only 30 minutes to prepare this wonderful main dish.
4.47 from 26 votes
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Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American
Diet: Gluten Free
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 22 minutes
Resting time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 27 minutes
Servings: 6 (serves 6-8)
Calories: 252kcal
Author: Lyuba Brooke

Ingredients

  • 2.5 lbs pork tenderloins
  • 3 tbsp Dijon mustard
  • 2 tbsp brown sugar
  • 1.5 tsp garlic powder
  • 1.5 tsp onion powder
  • 1 tsp fresh cracked black pepper
  • salt

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 400°F and grease bottom of a roasting pan. It's best to use metal roasting pan because it's the best heat conductor.
  • Take out enough mustard from the jar and place it in a little bowl. (This will insure that you won’t have to touch the main jar with dirty hands after touching raw pork.)
  • In a small bowl, combine brown sugar, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper. Mix well.
  • Take pork tenderloin out of the package and place it in the prepared roasting pan. Pat it dry and remove the silverskin if there is some left on the tenderloin.
  • Rub pork with Dijon mustard all over, even on the bottom and sides.
  • Sprinkle the seasoning all over the top of the pork and sides. Pat the seasoning down.
  • Place roasting pan in the oven and cook for 18-25 minutes. Time will depend on the size of the meat. Have a thermometer ready and start checking internal temperature after 18 minutes.
  • For juicy pork, it’s important not to overcook it. Cook pork until the internal temperature of the thickest side reads 145ºF.
  • Take it out and let it rest for about 5-10 minutes before cutting into it.
  • Expert tip: remember it's completely normal to see a slightly pink hue in the center of pork.

Notes

Silverskin: Silverskin is a white, shimmery connective tissue running along the outside of the tenderloin. To remove it, simply slide a sharp, thin knife under it and slide it across to separate from the meat. Try not to cut off any actual meat with it.
 

Nutrition

Calories: 252kcal | Carbohydrates: 5g | Protein: 39g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 122mg | Sodium: 185mg | Potassium: 768mg | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin C: 0.2mg | Calcium: 21mg | Iron: 2mg
Tried this recipe?Mention @willcookforsmiles or tag #willcookforsmiles!

More Pork Recipes To Try

Pork is one of my favorite proteins to work with and especially tenderloin. Try my other pork tenderloin recipes like roasted pork and apples, bacon wrapped pork tenderloin, Italian stuffed pork tenderloin, and roasted pork tenderloin with pork rub.

Pork loin is also great and you can try my garlic pork loin, pot roasted pork loin (gravy is divine), stuffed pork loin and apple maple Dijon pork roast.

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All images and text ©Lyubov Brooke for ©Will Cook For Smiles. Please do not use my images without prior permission. If using my posts in collections and features, please link back to this post for the recipe.
Disclaimer: Nutrition information shown is not guaranteed to be 100% accurate as most ingredients and brands have variations.

4.47 from 26 votes (21 ratings without comment)

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23 Comments

  1. Hello, This looks so good I am going to try this I was wondering do you cover the pork ?

    1. Thank you so much! I’m so glad you’re excited to try it! 😊 For this recipe, I don’t cover the pork while cooking. Let me know how it turns out for you!

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