This cast iron pork tenderloin with onions and apples has exactly three goals: make the house smell amazing, convince everyone you're a better cook than you admit, and leave you with only one skillet to wash. Honestly? This easy recipe is more thoughtful than 90% of your relatives.
It's , it's quick, and it tastes like you got the recipe from a French innkeeper in Honfleur.
Table of Contents
- 🥰 Is this pork tenderloin with onions and apples recipe for you?
- 🧾 Ingredients
- 📖 Recipe
- 🔪 How to cook pork tenderloin with onions and apples
- 😱 What can go wrong (and how to fix it)
- 🍎 Best apples for this pork tenderloin recipe
- 👩🍳 Let's answer those questions: FAQs
- 🍽️ What to serve with pork tenderloin with onions and apples
- 📚 More pork recipes you'll want to try
- 💬 Comments
🥰 Is this pork tenderloin with onions and apples recipe for you?
- You'd like pork tenderloin to stop acting like it's only invited over for holidays.
- You think apples and pork are a classic combo.
- The cast iron skillet has been giving you lonely, judgmental looks from the cabinet.
- One skillet, 30 minutes, zero stress. Dinner wins, sink loses. More time for you.
- You like dinners that earn compliments without requiring an emotional support spreadsheet.
🧾 Ingredients
Pork,onions, apples, a splash of bourbon… it's basically classic Southern goodness with a flannel shirt and a glass of hard cider.
- Pork tenderloin - because chicken AGAIN is how family mutinies start. (Don't substitute pork loin unless you plan on adding hours to cooking time.)
- Herbes de Provence - fancy talk for "a spice blend that makes you look like you went to culinary school."
- Oil - so your pork doesn't weld itself to the skillet.
- Bourbon - for the sauce and for you (chef's tax). Apple cider works, too.
- Yellow onion - sweetens and caramelizes as it cooks.
- Honeycrisp apples - sweet enough to caramelize beautifully but sturdy enough not to collapse into applesauce halfway through dinner.
- Dijon mustard - a little tang, a little sass, just like you. (We like you that way).
- Brown sugar - adds depth and a little sticky sweetness.
Be sure to download the free printable Pork Tenderloin with Onions and Apples kitchen cheat sheet. It's got tons of tips, storage info, faqs, and more.
📖 Recipe
Pork Tenderloin with Onions and Apples
Print Pin Recipe Rate RecipeIngredients
- 1 ½ pounds pork tenderloin
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 teaspoon sage, or herbes de provence
- 2 tablespoons oil
- ½ cup brown sugar
- 3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
- 2 tablespoons bourbon, you may substitute apple cider
- 1-½ pounds honeycrisp apples, sliced into wedges
Instructions
- Season pork with salt and pepper.
- Let stand for 30 minutes if possible - or wrap and store in the refrigerator overnight. You can skip this step but it does make the meat more flavorful.
- Stir together brown sugar, dijon mustard, herbes de provence, and bourbon. Rub mixture all over pork.
- Heat oil in a heavy skillet over medium heat and brown the pork on all sides.
- Add apples and onion and cover. Turn heat to low.
- Cook until apples are tender and pork is done, stirring the apples and onions occasionally. This will take about 15 minutes. Current practice is for the pork to be a little pink in the center - 145F with an instant-read thermometer. This will ensure it's tender and juicy.
- Let stand 5 to 10 minutes before slicing. Garnish with fresh parsley or thyme.
Notes
- Let the meat rest for 10 minutes before slicing.
- Transfer the pork from the skillet to a cutting board to prevent it from overcooking while it rests. Cast iron stays hot for a while.
- Don't overcook the pork or it will be dry!
Nutrition Facts
Nutrition information is estimated as a courtesy. If using for medical purposes, please verify information using your own nutritional calculator. Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
This recipe has been tested several times. If you choose to use other ingredients, or change the technique in some way, the results may not be the same.
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🔪 How to cook pork tenderloin with onions and apples
No culinary degree required-just follow these simple step by step images and let the cast iron do most of the work. Before you know it, dinner smells like somebody's been cooking all afternoon, and nobody needs to know otherwise.
- Toss the brown sugar, Dijon, herbes de Provence, and bourbon in a bowl. Stir until it looks less like a science project and more like something you'd actually eat.
- Core the apples, peel 'em if you want, slice 'em up, and wrangle that onion into strips. Nothing fancy-just edible.
- Rub that saucy goodness all over the pork like you mean it.
- Sear the tenderloin in hot oil until it's got a good crust going. Add the apples and onions, slap on a lid, and let the magic happen while you look smug about your life choices.
😱 What can go wrong (and how to fix it)
🍎 Dry pork tenderloin? You cooked it too long. Pull it off the heat when it reaches 145°F, then let it rest for 5 to 10 minutes before slicing. That's where the juicy magic happens.
🍎 Apples turned to mush? They cooked longer than they wanted to. Honeycrisp, Pink Lady, or Granny Smith hold their shape better than softer apples.
🍎 The glaze is getting too dark. Brown sugar burns if the heat gets feisty. Turn the burner down to medium-low once the pork is browned and let everything finish cooking gently.
🍎 Pork is browned outside but not done inside? No panic. Cover the skillet, lower the heat, and let it finish cooking slowly instead of cranking up the burner.
🍎 Everything's sticking to the skillet? Your pan probably wasn't hot enough before the pork went in. Let the cast iron preheat well, then add the oil before you start cooking.
🍎 Best apples for this pork tenderloin recipe
Not all apples survive a trip through a hot cast iron skillet with their dignity intact. Some turn into applesauce before the pork is done. These are the ones that hold their shape and bring just the right balance of sweetness and tartness.
- Honeycrisp: My first choice. Sweet, crisp, and sturdy enough to stay in slices instead of disappearing into the pan.
- Pink Lady: Slightly tart with a firm texture that caramelizes beautifully.
- Granny Smith: If you like a little tang to balance the sweet bourbon glaze, these are your friend.
- Fuji: Sweeter than Honeycrisp but still firm enough for skillet cooking.
Skip softer apples like McIntosh or Red Delicious. They're wonderful for applesauce but tend to wave the white flag once the heat hits them.
My favorite? Honeycrisp. They're sweet enough to caramelize, sturdy enough to hold their shape, and they don't turn dinner into an accidental bowl of pork and applesauce. That's a win in my book.
👩🍳 Let's answer those questions: FAQs
Have other questions? Ask me in the comments!
Pork tenderloin is a long, round, lean cut of meat. It tastes best cooked at a high temperature, like we do in this recipe. Pork loin is a flatter, fattier cut of pork and usually tastes better slow-cooked.
An instant-read thermometer is my kitchen BFF. Stick the probe into the middle of the meat-don't go all the way through, or you'll temp the pan instead of the meat! You're good at 145 degrees F.
You can use apple juice or apple cider instead of the bourbon if you want to keep the alcohol out of the dish. The alcohol does cook off, though, so it's safe for all family members.
🍽️ What to serve with pork tenderloin with onions and apples
This pork tenderloin already checks the "main character" box. All it needs is a couple of dependable side dishes to play nice with that sweet bourbon glaze and convince everyone you planned the meal instead of improvising at 5:37.
📚 More pork recipes you'll want to try
If your family has officially decided pork deserves a permanent place in the dinner rotation, I've got plenty more where this came from.
These side dishes for ham also go well with this
🏡 Around here, any recipe that leaves people scraping the skillet and arguing over the last slice earns a permanent spot in the recipe box. This one's been doing exactly that for years. Hardly any cleanup means I get to spend extra time with my family. Or Netflix, depends on the day.
Terry says
Do you pour the extra bourbon/spice mixture, if there is any, into the skillet with the apples and onions, after the meat has been seared?
Marye says
Sorry Terry, didn't see this. Yes I do sometimes if I haven't dipped the brush into it. Once the clean brush is dipped into the glaze then brushed over raw meat it either doesn't get dipped again or the glaze gets tossed. It depends on my mood honestly.