Apple Cider Pork Tenderloin with Potatoes and Apples captures everything about autumn you love. The apples and pork are a heavenly…
It never fails. At this time of year, I’m deluged with dinner idea S.O.S. pleas from friends and readers seeking simple recipes to keep their households going on busy weeknights. I will confess I too seem to lose the school year formula after a lazy summer of casual meals at all times of the evening.
Today I’m sharing a one pan dish that’s both a cinch to make but bursting with fall flavors: apple cider pork tenderloins with potatoes and apples.
For me, pork tenderloin is synonymous with easy meals. They absorb marinade flavors beautifully and generally cook in less than 30 minutes. If I can whip up a marinade and put some meat in it overnight, leaving only the cooking the next evening, my life feels so much more manageable. Between after school activities, and homework help, the easier the meal the easier our nights go.
It’s not an option to shortcut great flavors either as that defeats the benefits of quick preparation. I love fall flavors and their hint that cooler temperatures are on the way. Apples, of course, are at their peak in fall and pair wonderfully with pork.
Adding apple cider to the marinade and sliced apples to the bed of potatoes and sweet onions, leave the pork tenderloins tasting like autumn. The potatoes, onions and apples are a great complement to the pork, making it a full meal from a single pan. Throw in a green salad and you are done!
The pork tenderloins are perfectly cooked, juicy with a wonderful texture. They are removed from the oven based on their internal temperature which ensures they are succulent and do not dry out (which can happen with leaner cuts of meat like a pork tenderloin).
Did you know meat continues to ‘cook’ once removed from the oven? Letting meat rest allows it to come to full temperature when removed at slightly less than the desired end internal temperature.
I always make two tenderloins to streamline my meal preparation for the week. Depending on how many you are feeding, pork tenderloin makes great leftovers. You could have a second meal or slice the pork for sandwiches or to top a shaved Brussels sprout salad.
If you love this homey recipe, please hop over to check out my naturally gluten-free recipes for spicy ginger chicken stir fry and hasselback sweet potatoes with creamed chipotle turkey too!
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Apple Cider Pork Tenderloin with Potatoes and Apples Recipe
Ingredients
- 12 ounces Apple Cider
- 1/4 cup Vegetable Oil
- 2 teaspoons Dry Mustard
- 3 cloves Garlic Peeled and diced
- 4 sprigs Fresh Thyme Lemon thyme if available
- 1/4 teaspoon Kosher Salt
- 1/4 teaspoon Freshly Ground Black Pepper
- 2 1-pounds Pork Tenderloin Rinsed and patted dry with paper towels
- 1/2 large Vidalia Sweet Onion Peeled and thinly sliced, yellow onion may be substituted
- 1 large Apple Cored and sliced into thin wedges
- 1 pound Small Red Potatoes Cut into bite size pieces
Instructions
- Add the apple cider, vegetable oil, mustard, garlic, thyme, salt and pepper into a gallon zippered plastic bag.
- Seal and shake to combine the ingredients.
- Add the pork tenderloins, and seal the bag squeezing as much air out as possible.
- Refrigerate for at least four hours or overnight.
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- In a 13 by 9-inch baking dish add the potatoes in a single layer, followed by the onions and apple slices.
- Place the pork tenderloin on top and evenly distribute the marinade in the pan.
- Bake for 45 minutes, check the internal temperature with a food thermometer and remove the pork tenderloins from the oven when they reach 145°F (for medium rare) or 150°F (medium).
- Allow to rest for 5 minutes before slicing.
Notes
- When removing the tenderloins, check the potatoes for doneness. If cooked, remove with the tenderloins; if needing to cook longer leave in the oven until they are done.