This recipe for juicy pork tenderloin with apples and onions is so delicious! The pork tenderloin is first seared in a pan, and then baked with vegetables like potatoes, carrots, sweet potato, and more — all until perfectly tender. It’s all topped with a rich and flavorful apple brandy sauce made from the pan drippings. Dinner is served!
If you’ve had pork tenderloin with apples, you know they’re a match made in heaven. If you’ve ever paired applesauce for pork, you know that pork and apples are tried and true companions.
Add onions and root vegetables and you have yourself a delicious full meal. And the combination of spice rub, sauce and caramelization that happens and it turns from already delicious to wow-worthy!
This tasty meal showcases one of my favorite meats to cook with – pork tenderloin. It’s so versatile, and I love that it’s a leaner and super tender cut of meat. Pork is the perfect, impressive lean meat to serve for a gathering or simple night in. When pork tenderloin gets seared and then baked, it locks in the juices keeping it incredibly moist.
I’m obsessed with this one pan pork tenderloin recipe and if you’re looking for more pork tenderloin recipes, I also have this recipe for pork tenderloin carnitas which is well reviewed and always a hit.
If you want to check out some of my other meat forward quick and easy dinner recipes, I highly recommend my turkey quinoa cabbage rolls or these bison meatballs.
Featured Review
This was the best pork dish I’ve ever made! It was easy and super tender–delicious!
-Kelley
Why you’ll love this recipe
- Caramelized vegetables + juicy pork + rich and delicious 5 minute brandy sauce made with pan drippings = A DREAM!
- Simple one-dish meal.
- Apples with pork tenderloin is a one dish meal with veggies cooked alongside.
- Light and healthy due to using a lean cut of pork … even with brandy and butter!
- Variety fruit and filling veggies from sweet potatoes, carrots, onions, apples and baby potatoes.
- Impressive to serve for special occasions or guests yet simple to make.
- There are lot of recipes out there for pork tenderloin with apples that use as slow cooker or crockpot but in this recipe the apples stay intact and don’t disintegrate!
Ingredients, Substitutions, and Variations
There are three different ingredient groupings from the main ones, spice rub to the apple brandy sauce. That doesn’t mean the recipe is complicated though! It all comes together in no time.
Main Ingredients
- Pork tenderloin: this recipe calls for a larger tenderloin but if yours are smaller, you can do two separate tenderloins, searing separately and then baking alongside each other. If using two smaller tenderloins instead, you will need to cook the vegetables longer on the stovetop before baking with pork in the oven to make sure they are done at the same time. I do NOT recommend substituting the pork tenderloin for another cut of pork. If using a pork loin roast it will need longer to cook. Adjust cooking time to 20 minutes per pound and add the veggies and apples for the last 40 minutes of the cook time.
- Avocado oil: You’ll use this as the base when searing the pork. You can substitute it with another oil with a high smoke point but I do not recommend olive oil since it will smoke.
- Root vegetables: Sweet potato, baby potatoes carrots and onion are the combination used here. You can substitute more potatoes or cubed butternut squash or the potatoes or sweet potato if needed.
- Apples: Apples and pork are a match made in heaven! You can use whatever apples you prefer but sweet apples like Cosmic Crisp, Envy or Gala work great as does a sweet-tart apple like a Honeycrisp.
Spice rub ingredients
Here’s what you’ll need to pull from the spice cabinet to make the spice rub. Please note that we’re using the standard Mexican chili powder blend here. Coconut sugar can also be easily substituted for brown sugar if you prefer.
Sauce Ingredients
- Apple brandy – you can sub in regular brandy, whisky or bourbon or even white wine, pinot noir or whatever you’re drinking. You can use more apple juice instead if you’re avoiding alcohol.
- Unsweetened apple juice – I used a kid’s juice box and it turned out great and was just the right amount.
- Butter – can sub dairy free butter to make it dairy free or ghee.
Substitutions and variations
This recipe is easy to tweak and make your own or adjust to what you have on hand. Here are some ideas:
- Add fresh thyme, rosemary or other fresh herbs to the spice mix or use instead of the chili powder for a different flavor altogether. Dijon mustard would be lovely paired with herbs too if you go that route.
- Add a dash of cinnamon to the spice mixture and a splash of maple syrup to the brandy sauce for a unique, warm fall flavor.
Step by step process
- Cut all of the veggies and apples on your cutting board.
- Mix all rub ingredients together before rubbing the mixture onto your pork.
- Sear tenderloin in oil in a large cast iron skillet or dutch oven on medium heat. Remove from the pan.
- Sear potatoes, sweet potatoes and onion slices and allow them to caramelize. Season to taste with salt and black pepper.
- Add apples to the pan and toss, pushing veggies and apples to the sides.
- Add pork back into the center of the pan and bake until cooked through.
- Remove the veggies and pork from the oven and then place on a large platter.
- Make the butter apple pan sauce in that same skillet. Serve sauce on top of the the tender pork and veggies.
Tips and tricks for making pork tenderloin with apples and onions
Recipe Tips
- Don’t skip the sauce – I can guarantee you won’t regret it. The brandy cooks down and doesn’t taste boozy at all, just rich and delicious.
- Don’t skimp on the seasoning – If your pork is larger than the size listed in the recipe, be sure to make a bit more seasoning so that it is evenly covered.
- Scrape up the sugar – this prevents it from burning when you cook the meat. I used coconut sugar, but you could easily sub for brown sugar if you want OR if you don’t want to deal with this, you can leave out the sugar.
- Use a large pan – I used this Lodge 12” cast iron skillet, and the pork tenderloin and veggies just barely fit. If you don’t have a big oven proof skillet or dutch oven like that, you’ll have to transfer the pork and veggies to another pan to bake and then pour as much of the pan drippings as possible back into a skillet for the sauce so you don’t loose that meaty flavor.
Should I bake my pork tenderloin covered or uncovered?
Covering pork in the oven can help preserve the flavors, but in this recipe, it’s not necessary! The oven temperature and cook time can help keep this meat nice and juicy without the tent. However, I would recommend covering the dish with aluminum foil after removing from the oven to keep it warm while you make the sauce.
Juicy, Tender Pork Tenderloin with Apples and Onions
Ingredients
Rub
- 1 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 Tablespoon chili powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/4 cup coconut sugar or brown sugar
Other Ingredients
- 1.75 lb. pork tenderloin anywhere roughly between 1.5 – 2 lbs.
- 1 Tablespoon avocado oil, divided or other oil with a high smoke point
- 1/2 lb. baby potatoes, halved or quartered into 1″ pieces
- 1/2 lb. carrots, peeled and halved and cut into 1″ pieces
- 1 small sweet potato, peeled and diced into 1″ pieces
- 1 medium onion, sliced into 8 large wedges
- 2 medium apples, cored and sliced
- salt and pepper to taste
Sauce
- 2 Tablespoon apple brandy or regular brandy, whisky or bourbon
- 1 cup unsweetened apple juice
- 1 Tablespoon butter can sub dairy free butter
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400° F (205° C).
- Mix all rub ingredients together in a small bowl and then rub onto pork tenderloin.
- Heat half of the oil in an oven proof skillet* or dutch oven to medium-high heat. Add pork tenderloin and sear for 2-3 minutes per side. Remove and let rest on a plate. Scrape as much of the burned sugar off the pan as you easily can and discard.
- Add remaining oil, potatoes, carrots, sweet potato, and onion. Let vegetables caramelize, stirring every 1-2 minutes for 7-10 minutes. Do not stir too often since you want to sear the veggies.
- Season vegetables with salt and pepper and then stir in apple slices.
- Push vegetables and apples to outer rim and lay pork tenderloin in middle.
- Place pan in oven and bake for 25-35 minutes until pork, vegetables and apples are cooked through. The internal temperature of the center of the pork should be 145 – 150° F (63-66° C) since it will continue cooking as it rests.
- Remove pan from oven and place pork on a serving platter with apples, onions and vegetables around it. Cover or tent with foil to keep warm while you make the sauce.
- Place the pan on the stovetop and turn the burner to low heat. Add the brandy and use a wooden spoon to deglaze and scrape up as much of the browned bits as you can.
- Add apple juice, bring to a simmer, and reduce to about half a cup (5-7 minutes). Add butter and season with salt and pepper.
- Slice pork tenderloin and serve with vegetables and sauce.
Notes
- If using two smaller tenderloins instead, you will need to cook the vegetables longer on the stovetop before baking with pork in the oven to make sure they are done at the same time. You will also need to adjust the cooking time for the pork. Make sure to leave space between the two tenderloins so that they aren’t touching.
- I do not recommend substituting the pork tenderloin for another cut of pork. If using a pork loin roast it will need longer to cook. Adjust cooking time to 20 minutes per pound and add the veggies and apples for the last 40 minutes of the cook time.
- If your skillet isn’t oven proof, transfer pork and vegetables to an oven safe dish to bake. When finished, try to get as much of the pan drippings off and back into the original pan to make the sauce. The skillet I used was 12 inches.
Nutrition
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Originally published December 16, 2018 but post content has been revised since then.
Comments & Reviews
This was the best pork dish I’ve ever made! It was easy and super tender–delicious!
Oh I’m so happy to hear it!! 🙂