Instant Pot Pork Tenderloin with Honey Garlic Sauce
Quick and easy Instant Pot Pork Tenderloin with Honey Garlic Sauce. This pressure cooker pork tenderloin turns out perfectly moist, juicy and flavorful!
Pork tenderloin is one of my favorite cuts of meat because it’s lean and it cooks up tender and juicy. My favorite skillet pork tenderloin recipe is a staple meal in our house.
Pork tenderloin cooks quickly, especially when you cook it in your Instant Pot. This Instant Pot pork tenderloin with honey garlic sauce is perfect for a weeknight meal!
This Instant Pot pork tenderloin recipe includes a simple honey garlic sauce for drizzling over the pork. The pork is flavorful on its own but with the sauce it’s irresistible. If you love honey garlic sauce, you’re also going to want to try my honey garlic Instant Pot chicken breasts recipe.
You’ll need just a few ingredients for this pork tenderloin recipe. For side dishes, I like to serve Instant Pot pork tenderloin with Instant Pot mashed potatoes, Instant Pot brown rice, honey roasted sweet potatoes or roasted carrots.
How to Cook Pork Tenderloin in an Instant Pot
It’s easy to make pork tenderloin in your Instant Pot. I’ll walk you through the steps. If you are new to Instant Pot cooking, read my Instant Pot manual to learn how to use your Instant Pot.
Season and Brown the Pork Tenderloin
First, cut the pork tenderloin in half so that you have two shorter pieces that will easily fit in your Instant Pot. If you are using an 8 quart Instant Pot halving the pork may not be necessary.
Before you start cooking, season the meat. Sprinkle salt and pepper over all sides of the pork tenderloin.
Now, press the Sauté button on your Instant Pot and drizzle a little olive oil into the pot. You are going to brown the pork tenderloin in the Instant Pot before pressure cooking. When you take the time to sear the meat, you add flavor. You can skip this step but you will need to increase the pressure cooking time to about 8 minutes.
After you have browned the pork on both sides, place it on a clean plate so that you can deglaze the bottom of the Instant Pot. Add 1/2 cup of water and use a spatula to scrape up any brown bits on the bottom of the pot. This will ensure that you don’t get a burn warning during the pressure cooking cycle.
Add the Remaining Ingredients
Now you’ll add the rest of the ingredients, which will create a delicious sauce for your Instant Pot pork tenderloin. Add soy sauce (look for a reduced sodium soy sauce), honey, fresh garlic and fresh ginger to the bottom of the pot.
Place the pork tenderloin back in the bottom of the Instant Pot and close the lid.
How Long to Cook Pork Tenderloin in Instant Pot
Turn the steam release valve to the sealing position. Cook on high pressure using the Pressure Cook/Manual setting for 4 minutes and then do a 10 minute natural pressure release. Do not skip the 10 minute natural release because the pork will continue to cook during this time.
Will the pork really cook in just 4 minutes of cook time? Yes, a one pound pork tenderloin will pressure cook in 4 minutes. In addition to the 4 minutes of pressure cooking time, the pork tenderloin will cook while the Instant Pot pressurizes and during the 10 minutes of natural release. Browning the pork also started the cooking process.
What Temperature Should Pork Tenderloin be Cooked To?
You should cook pork tenderloin to at least 145 degrees F for food safety. I aim for between 145 and 155 degrees. You can use an instant read thermometer or meat thermometer to measure the internal temperature of the pork.
If your pork is not cooked through you can continue to cook it a few minutes longer on sauté mode.
Thicken the Sauce
Once you have checked that your pork has cooked through, remove it to a cutting board and let it rest while you thicken the sauce in the Instant Pot. You’ll stir in a mixture of cornstarch and water and then simmer the honey garlic sauce on sauté mode until it is slightly thickened. Now it’s perfect for drizzling over the pork tenderloin.
How to Cook Frozen Pork Tenderloin in an Instant Pot
To adapt this recipe for frozen pork tenderloin, you have a few options:
- Place the frozen pork tenderloin and sauce ingredients in the Instant Pot and pressure cook on high pressure for 13 minutes plus 10 minutes natural pressure release. Skip the browning step in the recipe.
- Partially thaw the pork tenderloin, brown on sauté mode, and then pressure cook for about 10 minutes on high pressure plus 10 minutes natural pressure release.
- You can prepare this as a freezer meal by placing the pork and sauce ingredients (except the cornstarch) in a zip-top bag and freezing for up to 3 months. Then cook as directed in option 1 above, thawing just enough so that you can transfer the sauce from the freezer bag to the Instant Pot.
Cooking Tips for Instant Pot Pork Tenderloin
- You can cook more than one pork tenderloin using this recipe. Just make sure that the pork tenderloins are separate and not stuck together when you cook them. Be sure to double the sauce if you like a lot of sauce.
- This recipe is for pork tenderloin, not pork loin. Pork tenderloin is long, round and thin and cooks much faster than a pork loin.
- Do not skip the 10 minute natural release time in this recipe. The pork will continue to cook during the natural release.
- I recommend using an instant-read thermometer to check to see if the pork is cooked through. It should be at least 145 degrees F. If not, continue cooking the pork for a few minutes using your Instant Pot’s sauté mode.
More Easy Instant Pot Recipes
Instant Pot Pork Tenderloin with Honey Garlic Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 pound pork tenderloin
- salt and pepper
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- ½ cup water
- ¼ cup low sodium soy sauce
- ¼ cup honey
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 ½ teaspoons minced fresh ginger
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
Instructions
- Cut the pork tenderloin in half so that you have two shorter pieces that will easily fit in the Instant Pot. (If using an 8 quart Instant Pot this may not be necessary.)
- Season all sides of the pork tenderloin with salt and pepper.
- Heat the olive oil in the Instant Pot on sauté mode. Place the pork in the pot and brown 2-3 minutes per side. Remove pork to a clean plate and turn off the Instant Pot.
- Pour in the ½ cup water and use a spatula to scrape up any browned bits on the bottom of the pot.
- Add the soy sauce, honey, garlic and ginger to the Instant Pot. Place the pork back in the Instant Pot.
- Close the lid and turn the steam release valve to the sealing position.
- Cook at high pressure on the Manual/Pressure Cook setting for 4 minutes. When the cook time ends allow the pressure to release naturally for 10 minutes by leaving the Instant Pot alone. (Do not skip the 10 minute natural release, as the pork will continue to cook during this time.) Then carefully turn the steam release valve to the venting position to release any remaining steam and pressure (there may be none). Make sure that the float valve has dropped down and open the Instant Pot lid.
- Check that the internal temperature of the thickest part of the pork has reached at least 145 degrees F. If not, you can cook the pork for a few more minutes on sauté mode.
- Remove the pork to a clean plate or cutting board.
- In a small bowl, stir together the 2 teaspoons cornstarch and 1 tablespoon water. Stir the mixture into the sauce in the Instant Pot. Cook on sauté mode, stirring, until the sauce has thickened, 2-3 minutes. Turn off the Instant Pot and remove the inner pot to stop the cooking process.
- Slice the pork and serve with the sauce.
Notes
- To cook from frozen, place a frozen pork tenderloin and the sauce ingredients in the Instant Pot and pressure cook on high pressure for 13 minutes plus 10 minutes natural pressure release. Skip the browning step in the recipe. Then follow the directions in the recipe to thicken the sauce.
- You can prepare this as a freezer meal by putting the pork and sauce ingredients (except the cornstarch) in a zip-top bag and freezing for up to 3 months. Thaw just enough so that you can transfer the sauce from the freezer bag to the Instant Pot and pressure cook on high pressure for 13 minutes plus 10 minutes natural pressure release. Then follow the directions in the recipe to thicken the sauce.
Nutrition
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I have a question renthe pork tender recipe Kristine. I don’t have an Instant Pot but I do have a pressure cooker. Do I follow the directions in the same way????
Hi Gina, is it an electric pressure cooker? If so, then yes you can follow the same recipe instructions.
If I want to cook 2lb tenderloin, do I increase cooking time?
Pork tenderloin usually comes in 1 pound pieces. Is it one piece that is 2 pounds? If it’s two pieces, one pound each, the cook time will be the same. For a thicker 2 pound pork tenderloin you will need to increase the cooking time. I would add just a few minutes.