Pork tenderloin, baked and basted with a sweet, apple-based barbecue glaze is the star of tonight’s fall inspired dinner. Fancy enough to wow your guests, but so easy you can enjoy it any night of the week. The secret ingredient – frozen apple juice concentrate! As it simmers, the apple glaze will thicken to the consistency of a syrup, that is as beautiful as it is tasty.
4 Servings
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Ingredients:
- 1 pork tenderloin, about 1-1/2 lbs.
- 6 oz. frozen apple juice concentrate (1/2 can)
- 1/4 cup ketchup
- 2 tbsp. brown sugar
- 1 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
- 1 tsp. thyme
- 1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
- salt and pepper
- cooking spray
Preparation:
Preheat the oven to 425º. In a small nonstick saucepan [1] over low heat, stir together the apple juice concentrate, ketchup, brown sugar, cider vinegar, thyme and red pepper flakes.
Simmer on low to form a thick, syrupy glaze.
Line a baking sheet with foil and mist with cooking spray. Remove the tenderloin from the packaging and pat it dry. Use a sharp knife or kitchen shears [2] to remove any membrane or silver skin (see below). Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Tie the tenderloin with cooking twine [3] every few inches to help keep its shape and bake evenly.
Insert a meat thermometer [4] into the tenderloin, brush [5] with glaze and place in the oven. Keep the glaze on a low simmer and baste every 10-15 minutes.
Continue baking for 45 minutes, or until the internal temperature of the meat reaches 145º (if you prefer more well done, cook it a bit longer, to 160º). When the tenderloin is ready, remove from the oven and tent with foil. Let it rest for 5 minutes before slicing, to retain more of the juices.
Transfer the slices to a serving dish and drizzle glaze over the top. If you have a bit of extra glaze, you can bring it to the table in a small gravy boat [6].
Tenderloin goes well with potatoes, rice or just about any veggie. I served it with roasted sweet potatoes and asparagus.
Notes: ♪♫ Always check ingredient labels for hidden gluten. I used frozen apple juice concentrate made from 100% fruit juice with no added sweeteners.
Originally posted 09/07/2018 Updated 7/06/2022