Want something a little different for Thanksgiving? After I made this Chinese Five Spice Pork Tenderloin recipe the aromas in my house were out of this world! The Chinese five spice combined with the garlic and pork, and the sauce... OMG!
The pork is so unbelievably tender and the sauce seals the deal! Serve it with your favorite rice and a veggie. Use the pork leftovers for sammies or soup, like this recipe. Dig into this tasty tenderloin!
Watch the video for a visual step-by-step!
Pork tenderloins usually come in packs of two. Perfect if you're wanting leftovers for the week. Make sure to trim the silver skin and fat!
How to make perfect Chinese Five Spice Pork Tenderloin:
- In a small mixing bowl, combine soy sauce, rice vinegar, ginger, garlic, Chinese five spice, black pepper, red pepper flakes, sugar, and sesame oil. Whisk together well. Add in half of the green onions. Put half of the marinade in a small sauce pot and whisk in the corn starch.
- Place the trimmed pork tenderloin in a ziplock baggie and pour in the remaining marinade. Massage the marinade into the pork and refrigerate for one hour or overnight.
- When ready to cook, preheat oven to 375 degrees. Remove pork from the refrigerator and let it get to room temperature. Heat a heavy cast iron skillet or oven-proof pan on high until slightly smoking. Add the pork tenderloin to the pan and sear both sides, about 2 minutes.
- Transfer the pan to the oven and cook for 20-25 minutes, until an internal temperature reads at least 145 degrees. Let the pork rest for 5-10 minutes before slicing.
- Meanwhile, bring the reserved marinade to a roiling boil. Lower the heat to low and thicken the sauce for 2 minutes. Pour the sauce over the pork. Sprinkle the pork with the remaining green onions.
- Serve with a side of your favorite rice.
The marinade is so easy to assemble. Throw the marinade and pork tenderloin is a large zip baggie and marinate in the fridge for several hours or overnight.
Look how beautifully this pork tenderloin sears up in my cast iron skillet!
Boil the leftover marinade well, then lower to thicken.
Drizzle the marinade over the pork tenderloin for a perfect finish! Sprinkle some chopped green onions on top for garnish.
Tips & Tricks:
- Buy the pork tenderloins in a pack of two! That way you'll have enough for leftovers.
- Make sure to trim the pork tenderloin of the silver skin and extra fat. Keeping this on will lead to a very tough piece of meat!
- You can marinate the pork in either a large zip baggie, or you can use a large bowl covered with plastic wrap. Marinate the pork overnight for the most flavor!
- After removing from the oven, make sure to let the meat rest before cutting. You don't want the pork to bleed out all of the juices!
WANT MORE?
If you like this recipe, you’re going to love my Easy Leftover Pork Soup. Loaded with deliciousness, this noodle bowl uses leftover Chinese five-spice pork for the protein.
Update Notes: This post was originally published on October 25, 2016, but was republished with slight text changes and additions, like step by step instructions and tips in November 2019.
Print Chinese Five Spice Pork Tenderloin
This Chinese Five Spice Pork Tenderloin is an easy and incredibly flavorful dinner recipe. Enjoy it for dinner with rice and your favorite side dish, then save the leftovers for Asian sandwiches, soups, or salads.
- Total Time: 1 hour 45 min
- Yield: 4 1x
Ingredients
- ½ cup reduced-sodium soy sauce
- ¼ cup rice vinegar
- 2 teaspoons fresh ginger, minced
- 3 cloves garlic, crushed
- 2 teaspoon Chinese five spice powder
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 ½ teaspoons light brown sugar
- 1 ½ teaspoons sesame oil
- 4 green onions, sliced and divided
- 1 teaspoon corn starch
- 1 (1.25 lb.) pork tenderloin (trimmed of silver skin and fat)
Instructions
- In a small mixing bowl, combine soy sauce, rice vinegar, ginger, garlic, Chinese five spice, black pepper, red pepper flakes, sugar, and sesame oil. Whisk together well. Add in half of the green onions. Put half of the marinade in a small sauce pot and whisk in the corn starch.
- Place the trimmed pork tenderloin in a ziplock baggie and pour in the remaining marinade. Massage the marinade into the pork and refrigerate for one hour or overnight.
- When ready to cook, preheat oven to 375 degrees. Remove pork from the refrigerator and let it get to room temperature. Heat a heavy cast iron skillet or oven-proof pan on high until slightly smoking. Add the pork tenderloin to the pan and sear both sides, about 2 minutes.
- Transfer the pan to the oven and cook for 20-25 minutes, until an internal temperature reads at least 145 degrees. Let the pork rest for 5-10 minutes before slicing.
- Meanwhile, bring the reserved marinade to a roiling boil. Lower the heat to low and thicken sauce for 2 minutes. Pour the sauce over the pork. Sprinkle the pork with the remaining green onions.
- Serve with a side of your favorite rice.
Notes
- Buy the pork tenderloins in a pack of two! That way you'll have enough for leftovers.
- Make sure to trim the pork tenderloin of the silver skin and extra fat. Keeping this on will lead to a very tough piece of meat!
- You can marinate the pork in either a large zip baggie, or you can use a large bowl covered with plastic wrap. Marinate the pork overnight for the most flavor!
- After removing from the oven, make sure to let the meat rest before cutting. You don't want the pork to bleed out all of the juices!
- Prep Time: 1 hour 20 min
- Cook Time: 25 min
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Stove Top & Oven
- Cuisine: Asian Fusion
Nutrition
- Serving Size:
- Calories: 249
- Sugar: 3.1 g
- Sodium: 931.4 mg
- Fat: 5.6 g
- Carbohydrates: 8.7 g
- Protein: 38.6 g
- Cholesterol: 110.6 mg
Jenny Smith says
Hello
Instead of pan then oven method- can I use the air fryer with this recipe?. I love how pork loin comes out in air fryer. Thanks!
Asian Caucasian says
Absolutely, Jenny! The air fryer is a great option. The pork should come out nicely browned. Please let me know how it turns out!
Melinda M says
Hi Lesli and Damien!
My Taiwanese family loved this recipe. I marinated the pork tenderloin overnight. I decided to cook until the internal temperature reached 155 degree instead (it was still moist with the extra cook time). I was hesitant to use my cast iron skillet in the oven. Yet, everything turned out okay. I followed the recipe mostly. The only problem I had was that I used 2.5 lb. tenderloin. I wasn't sure if you needed to double the recipe or not for the marinade. So I doubled it. Honestly I figured out when I reduced the marinade. It really did not taste as well as the tenderloin did alone. So I am cooking the Five Spice tenderloin this Monday and everyone is excited!!!! Don't worry I will not double the recipe. Lesson learned. I am not a formally trained chef. I am a self taught. Cooking only Chinese food for at least 10 years. I will let you know the results.
Loved the backstories. The tips section was really helpful!
Asian Caucasian says
So thrilled to hear that you like this tenderloin recipe! We make it quite often and it never disappoints. Hope your family loves it too! Wishing you a very Happy New Year! If you're on Instagram, please post a pic of your tenderloin and tag us at #asiancaucasianblog and I'll share on my Stories feed!
Carolyn Ingram says
This looks divine!
Asian Caucasian says
Thank you! It's a delish dish, the pork is to tender and flavorful. Let me know if you end up making this!