A few years ago I made this walnut crusted chicken, and my family and I fell in love. In fact, this recipe is so appreciated in my family that my five year old asked for it for his birthday dinner! Of course, the crunchy fried chicken is amazing, but what really set this recipe apart was the honey dijon sauce. It is a perfect balance of sweet and tangy. Bonus that it required just two ingredients to make.
Now, one quick peak at this recipe and you’ll see that it isn’t the most macro friendly of all dishes. But, we were so obsessed with the sauce that I decided to find a way to enjoy it more frequently. Since honey and dijon go great with pork, too, we decided to try it with a pork tenderloin.
Pork tenderloin has such amazing macros at 2.5F/1C/24P for 4 oz uncooked, and is actually at a great price point for feeding a family or company. At my Costco it is just $2.99 per pound, which isn’t much more than chicken breast. So, it’s a nice way to add some variety to our protein without adding a bunch of cost.
The Recipe
This recipe starts with two thawed tenderloins. If you purchase yours from Costco, one bag contains two tenderloins. So you purchase 4 tenderloins at a time from Costco. Perhaps you knew that, but I didn’t, so I thought I would mention it to clear up any confusion. .
Anyway, before the tenderloins go on the grill, they get spread with a quick marinade with some dijon mustard, a little olive oil, salt, pepper, rosemary, and garlic. While the tenderloins are cooking on the grill is the perfect time to whisk together the sauce. After grilling them to an internal temperature of 140 degrees and letting them rest for 10 minutes, you’ll slice them for serving and drizzle with that amazing sauce.
This meal is going to be on repeat at our house. It is macro friendly, but it is also a meal that people who aren’t counting their macros could appreciate. Especially when you pair it with some mashed potatoes, veggies, and bread! I also love that it is something that could be fancy enough for company, but is simple enough to make for your family on a weeknight.
The Macros
The macros for this dish are also pretty amazing! For 100 g of cooked pork tenderloin, it is 4.2F/1.4C/26.5P, or 148 calories. For 10 g of honey dijon sauce, it is 0F/5C/0P, or 23 calories. Obviously, you can add more or less sauce if you prefer, but it really does make this dish!
Pork Tenderloin with Honey Dijon Sauce
Ingredients
For the Grilled Pork Tenderloin
- 1011 g pork tenderloin, thawed (I used one package from Costco, which contained two pork tenderloins)
- 30 g dijon mustard (2 tablespoons)
- 2 tsp minced garlic
- 11 g olive oil (~ 1 tablespoon)
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp dried rosemary
- freshly cracked black pepper, to taste
Honey Dijon Sauce
- 67 g Dijon Mustard (~4.5 tablespoons)
- 120 g honey (~8 tablespoons)
Instructions
- Combine dijon mustard, olive oil, salt, rosemary, minced garlic, and pepper in a small bowl. Spread evenly over both sides of the pork tenderloin. Allow pork to rest with dijon mixture on it for 20-30 minutes to allow pork to come to room temperature.
- While pork is resting, heat the grill to high heat. After the pork has come to room temperature, place on the grill and sear each side of the pork tenderloin for 2-3 minutes, closing the lid after flipping. Then turn down the heat to medium and continue cooking until the internal temperature of the pork reaches 140 degrees. Make sure you flip your meat every 5 minutes or so!
- Take meat off the grill and allow it to rest 10 minutes before slicing. Serve with honey dijon sauce drizzled on top!
Honey Dijon Sauce
- Whisk the honey and dijon together until evenly combined. Before serving, give it another good whisk as ingredients may separate some.
Notes