Grilling pork tenderloin is a delicious and easy way to enjoy this lean cut of meat. Follow our step-by-step instructions to ensure perfectly juicy and flavorful pork every time.
This Grilled Pork Tenderloin recipe is easy enough for a weeknight meal and fancy enough for company. Prepare the dry rub in advance and apply the rub to the pork tenderloin. Refrigerate for two hours up to overnight.
Juicy Grilled Pork Tenderloin
Learn how to grill pork tenderloin to perfection with this easy and healthy recipe. The result is juicy and flavorful meat that will satisfy your taste buds.
The pork is tender and flavorful on both a gas grill and a charcoal grill. Roasted asparagus, roasted corn on the cob, garden salad, and Southern green beans are perfect vegetables to serve with this recipe.
Ingredients Needed
- Pork tenderloin: not to be confused with pork loin
- Brown sugar
- Seasonings: cumin, chili powder, kosher salt, black pepper and ground cayenne pepper
- Honey: a little bit for the sauce
- BBQ sauce: use your favorite brand
- Mustard: Dijon or prepared yellow mustard
How to make Grilled Pork Tenderloin
This is the nutshell version. Please see the recipe card below for the full list of ingredients and instructions.
If you haven’t already, trim the silver skin off your pork tenderloin. Then, combine the paprika, brown sugar, cumin, chili powder, salt, black pepper, and cayenne pepper in a large Ziploc bag.
Rub the mixture all over the pork tenderloin. Place the pork tenderloin in the bag and store it in the refrigerator for several hours, up to overnight.
Preheat the grill to medium-high heat or about 425-450 degrees using half of the burners. Add the pork tenderloin to the side of the lit grill (direct heat) and cover. Cook for about 5-6 minutes undisturbed to sear it. Roll the tenderloin over and cook the other side for 4-5 minutes. Move the tenderloin to the side that is not lit (indirect heat) and baste with the barbecue sauce mixture every couple of minutes or until it reaches 145 degrees.
Remove the meat from the grill, plate it, and cover it loosely with an aluminum foil tent. Let the pork rest for 10-15 minutes before slicing.
Recipe Tips
- Pork tenderloin is one of my favorite cuts of meat, but you must remove the silver skin. Pork tenderloins have an area of connective tissue known as silver skin, which is silvery-white in appearance. Silver skin doesn’t dissolve when the tenderloin is cooked, so it needs to be trimmed away with a sharp knife.
- The dry rub has more flavor than any marinade I have tried. Prepare the dry rub in advance and rub it into the pork tenderloin. Cover and refrigerate for several hours up to overnight.
- Pork tenderloin is a lean cut of meat, so don’t overcook it. Make sure you purchase pork tenderloin, not pork loin. The National Pork Board recommends cooking pork tenderloin to an internal temperature between 145° F. (medium rare) and 160° F. (medium). An instant-read thermometer is inexpensive and a valuable asset in the kitchen.
- After grilling the pork tenderloin, cover it loosely with an aluminum foil tent and let it rest for 10-15 minutes. This allows the meat to redistribute the juices driven to the center by the grill’s heat.
What To Serve With It
Storage and Reheat
Store leftover pork in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Reheat in a skillet on the stovetop over low heat, frequently turning, in the oven on low heat or in the microwave at reduced power. Cold leftover slices are delicious on a sandwich.
To freeze, first cool completely. Then, freeze in a heavy-duty freezer bag for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight. Reheat in a skillet on the stovetop over low heat, frequently turning, in the oven on low heat or in the microwave at reduced power.
More Pork Tenderloin Recipes
Grilled Pork Tenderloin Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 -1 1/2 lb pork tenderloin trimmed
Rub
- 1 1/2 teaspoons smoked paprika
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon cumin
- 1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
Sauce
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 2/3 cup of your favorite bbq sauce
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
Instructions
- In a Ziploc bag, combine paprika, brown sugar, cumin, chili powder, kosher salt, black pepper, and cayenne pepper. Dry the pork tenderloin with a paper towel. Rub the mixture over the pork tenderloin and refrigerate from 2 hours to overnight.
- In a small bowl, combine honey, barbecue sauce, and Dijon mustard.
- Preheat the grill to 425-450 degrees, lighting only half the burners. Add the pork tenderloin to the side of the grill that is lit and cover. Cook for about 5-6 minutes. Roll the tenderloin over and cook for an additional 4-5 minutes. Move the tenderloin to the side that is not lit. Baste with barbecue sauce mixture every 2-3 minutes. Continue cooking until the pork tenderloin reaches an internal temperature of 145 degrees. Remove the meat from the grill, plate it, and cover it loosely with an aluminum foil tent. Let rest for 10-15 minutes before slicing.
Notes
- Pork tenderloin is one of my favorite cuts of meat, but you must remove the silver skin. Pork tenderloins have an area of connective tissue known as silver skin, which is silvery-white in appearance. Silver skin doesn’t dissolve when the tenderloin is cooked, so it needs to be trimmed away with a sharp knife.
- The dry rub has more flavor than any marinade I have tried. Prepare the dry rub in advance and rub it into the pork tenderloin. Cover and refrigerate for several hours up to overnight.
- Pork tenderloin is a lean cut of meat, so don’t overcook it. Make sure you purchase pork tenderloin, not pork loin. The National Pork Board recommends cooking pork tenderloin to an internal temperature between 145° F. (medium rare) and 160° F. (medium). An instant-read thermometer is inexpensive and a valuable asset in the kitchen.
- After grilling the pork tenderloin, cover it loosely with an aluminum foil tent and let it rest for 10-15 minutes. This allows the meat to redistribute the juices that have been driven to the center by the grill’s heat.
Nutrition
Are you on the hunt for more delicious recipes? Follow Small Town Woman on Facebook, Pinterest, and Instagram.
https://www.smalltownwoman.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/Beth-1.pdf
Alita Pacio
Such a moist, tasty, hearty pork tenderloin Ive ever made! It was quite impressive.
Beth Pierce
Thanks so much, Alita!
Alita Pacio
I cannot wait for more recipes!
Stephanie
The rub is definitely what makes this one so good! I love a pork tenderloin but don’t think about grilling it most of the time. The sauce mixture was delicious, too. Thanks!
Beth Pierce
You are most welcome, Stephanie!
Lesa
This is so good, five stars!!
Kimberley
This recipe looks absolutely delicious. I will have to add it to my meal plan of next week and try it out. I can’t wait!
Brittney
I’ve never grilled pork tenderloin and will need to try this recipe asap. I love how easy your recipe is to follow, too.
Ivana
What a great recipe, the mixture of spices is amazing, cumin works so well with paprika and chili, just lovely.
Beth Pierce
Thanks, Ivana! So glad that you liked it!
Stephanie
There is not much better than sitting down to grilled pork tenderloin for dinner. We enjoyed this recipe and hope to make again soon. The ingredients in the rub really make this a special dish.
Beth Pierce
Thanks, Stephanie! So glad that you liked it!
Brian
This is a fabulous recipe…of the three I’ve tried so far on the outside grill it’s the hands
down winner!! I did boost the pepper in the rub a bit (hey, we live in Texas! 😁) and I tripled the Dijon mustard but this is probably because of the base BBQ sauce I used….taste yours as you add mustard until you like it): Finaly I recommend drybrining for a few to several hours after you trim away the fat and silver skin. Bon apetit!!
Beth Pierce
Glad that you liked it Brian and thanks for the tips!
Amanda Wren-Grimwood
I love using pork tenderloin but have never used a dry rub like this. Fantastic flavours, I can’t wait to try it!
Tammy
I used a 1 1/2 lb pork loin for the recipe (I didn’t have a tenderloin).
There was no pink showing but I was afraid that it wasn’t cooked enough because it was so moist. When I cook pork it’s usually really dry. The meat was tender, juicy and delicious.
This is a great recipe!
Thanks
Beth Pierce
So glad that you liked it. Pork really only needs to be cooked to 145 degrees and then a short rest. I think most of us have been overcooking our pork for years…myself included.
Kathryn Donangelo
This dry rub is amazing!! It was so delicious and perfect with the pork, I am curious to see if it will go with chicken. I will give it a try 🙂 Thank you so much for this awesome recipe!
kim
Oh my goodness this was so good! My family’s new favorite pork recipe! I’ll definitely be making this again!
Nart at Cooking with Nart
This is such a great pork tenderloin recipe. It’s easy easily everyone’s favorite and so easy to make.
Jess
Just printed this recipe out to save to use again and again!
Bintu | Recipes From A Pantry
I love how quick and easy this is – so delicious too! Definitely making this for a weeknight meal for my family.
Pat
I am not a great cook and don’t grill that often, but it was my night to cook! This recipe is awesome. Grilled a 1.5 lb. pork loin, and let it sit in the rub for a few hours. Used a smoker box with cherry smoker very fine wood chips, and basted it with the sauce recipe using Sweet Baby Rays BBQ sauce until it reached 160 degrees on my meat thermometer. After searing, cooked on indirect heat guessing at approximately an hour, or after a couple of glasses of wine. It was the most succulent pork and very flavorful. I was happily shocked it was so good and tender. My husband was happy to have the night off and enjoy looking forward to leftovers!!
Beth Pierce
So glad that you and your hubby liked it! Thanks for all the great tips too!