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Instant Pot Pork Tenderloin with Garlic Herb Rub

written by Ashley Fehr

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4.52 from 78 votes
Prep Time 10 minutes
Total Time 17 minutes
Servings 4 servings

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Last updated on February 5, 2024

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This Instant Pot Pork Tenderloin has a garlic herb rub that gives it INCREDIBLE flavour! Simply cook it in the pressure cooker with some chicken broth or add an easy 4 ingredient honey balsamic glaze to make it extra special. An easy dinner recipe that is healthy, too! Cook from fresh or frozen.

overhead image of sliced instant pot pork tenderloin on plate with glaze

Table of Contents

I’m back to the basics this week with this Instant Pot Pork Tenderloin!

I love that pork tenderloin so easy to cook (always tender!) and a great lean source of protein. The garlic herb rub on this tenderloin gives it such incredible flavour, that the honey balsamic glaze is totally optional!

We love sauce on everything, so I wanted to add an easy glaze that’s made right in the Instant Pot on saute after you take the pork out to rest. It only takes a few minutes and 4 ingredients to whip up, and is a nice touch if you’re serving the pork with rice or mashed potatoes.

If you’re looking for more ways to cook pork tenderloin in the Instant Pot, check out my Instant Pot Honey Garlic Pork Tenderloin & Potatoes.

No Instant Pot? You’ll love this Slow Cooker Pork Tenderloin, this Roasted Pork Tenderloin and this Honey Garlic Pork Tenderloin Recipe!

Ingredients needed to make this Instant Pot Pork Tenderloin:

  • Chicken broth: Chicken broth provides the thin liquid we need to create pressure in the pressure cooker, and also adds more flavor than water. Be sure to use low sodium chicken broth or you may find your sauce is too salty!
  • Balsamic vinegar: Balsamic vinegar gives our sauce depth and some brightness from the acidic flavor — paired with the honey, it gives us the perfect sweet and tangy blend.
  • Pork tenderloin: it is easy to confuse pork tenderloin with pork loin. A pork tenderloin is long and skinny and usually weighs about 1 pound. A pork loin is very large, and will not cook in the same amount of time. Be sure that you have a pork tenderloin for this recipe.
  • Seasonings: the seasonings are simple and pair well with a variety of flavors. Feel free to get creative here and use what you have on hand!
  • Honey: honey adds a bit of sweetness and balances out the balsamic vinegar.
  • Ketchup: ketchup adds sweet, savory, and tangy flavor and completes our sauce.
  • Water + Corn Starch: a little water and corn starch slurry stirred into the sauce on saute thickens the sauce and makes it come together.
pork tenderloin cut in half with seasonings beside in bowls
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How to make Instant Pot Pork Tenderloin:

  1. Add the liquids to the Instant Pot and add the trivet. You can skip the trivet if you want to cook the pork in the liquid, but I find that it does wash away some of the seasonings.
  2. Prep the pork tenderloin by trimming the silver skin (here is a helpful video to show you how), cutting in half (to fit in the pot) and seasoning.
  3. Put the lid on and pressure cook on high for 3-7 minutes (depending on how done you like it!)
  4. Let the pressure release naturally (this means you do not touch the valve until the pin has drops) for at least 10 minutes before removing the lid.
  5. Remove the pork tenderloin to a cutting board and let rest while you make the glaze on saute.
instant pot pork tenderloin seasoning in small bowl
Stir together seasoning
seasoning sprinkled on pork tenderloin ready for the pressure cooker
rub over pork tenderloin
uncooked pork tenderloin on trivet in instant pot
Place in Instant Pot
cooked pork tenderloin on trivet in instant pot
Cook until done, then make the glaze

Tips and tricks for cooking Pork Tenderloin in the Instant Pot:

  • If you prefer, you can season and sear this pork tenderloin in a bit of oil on saute before adding the liquid for the sauce. Just be sure to deglaze and remove any brown bits from the bottom of the pot so that you don’t get a burn message.
  • You can absolutely cook frozen pork tenderloin in the Instant Pot, but if the exterior of the tenderloin is completely frozen, the rub won’t adhere well, which is why I recommend letting thaw a few hours if possible (I give cook times for all below in the recipe).
  • Pork tenderloin is one of those meats that you can eat medium or medium well, but it’s always best to check the internal temperature with a meat thermometer. You are looking for around 145-150 degrees F before resting, depending on your tastes.
  • You can absolutely cook more than one tenderloin in your Instant Pot — stack them up and it shouldn’t take any longer unless they are frozen right together. Try to stagger them so they do not overlap completely (crisscrossed works great!).
sliced pork tenderloin in instant pot with glaze

Variations on this Instant Pot Pork Tenderloin:

More instant pot recipes you’ll love!

(Yes, more!) Instant Pot recipes

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Instant Pot Pork Tenderloin with Garlic Herb Rub

written by Ashley Fehr

4.52 from 78 votes
This Instant Pot Pork Tenderloin has a garlic herb rub that gives it INCREDIBLE flavour! Simply cook it in the pressure cooker with some chicken broth or add an easy 4 ingredient honey balsamic glaze to make it extra special. An easy dinner recipe that is healthy, too! Cook from fresh or frozen. 
square image of instant pot pork tenderloin with glaze
Review
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Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 7 minutes
Total Time 17 minutes
Cuisine American
Course Main Course
Servings 4 servings
Calories 183cal

Ingredients

  • 1 cup low sodium chicken broth
  • 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
  • 1 lb pork tenderloin
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon dried parsley
  • 1/2 teaspoon seasoning salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

To Make the Glaze:

  • 2-3 tablespoons honey
  • 1 tablespoon ketchup
  • 1 tablespoon water
  • 1 tablespoon corn starch
US Customary – Metric

Instructions

  • Place trivet in the Instant Pot and add chicken broth and balsamic vinegar. Add the trivet to the Instant Pot.
  • Trim silver skin from the side of the tenderloin. Cut in half crosswise (so that it fits).
  • In a small bowl, combine garlic powder, parsley, seasoning salt, onion powder and black pepper. Sprinkle over all sides of tenderloin and place on the trivet in the Instant Pot.
  • Place lid on Instant Pot and turn the valve to sealing. Select Manual, high pressure (the default), and set timer to 7 minutes for fresh pork (10 minutes for partially frozen, or 13 minutes for frozen) — for medium-well. If you like your tenderloin more on the rare side, 3-5 minutes is sufficient for fresh pork.
  • When the cook time is done, turn the Instant Pot off and let pressure release naturally for 8-10 minutes. Open the lid and remove the trivet with the pork on it and let rest for 5-10 minutes while you make the glaze. Do not drain the liquid.

To Make the Glaze:

  • Turn the Instant Pot to saute and add the honey and ketchup. Stir together the water and corn starch and whisk into the Instant Pot. Let simmer for 2-3 minutes until thick and bubbly. Taste and adjust seasoning or sweetness to taste.
  • Slice tenderloin and serve with glaze as desired.

Nutrition Information

Calories: 183cal | Carbohydrates: 13g | Protein: 25g | Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 73mg | Sodium: 404mg | Potassium: 523mg | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 20IU | Calcium: 6mg | Iron: 1.2mg
Keywords instant pot pork tenderloin, pork tenderloin instant pot

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Meet Ashley

My name is Ashley Fehr and I love creating easy meals my family loves. I also like to do things my way, which means improvising and breaking the rules when necessary. Here you will find creative twists on old favorites and some of my favorite family recipes, passed down from generations!

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Comments

  1. LoLo says

    Thought I would double the recipe because I had more than a pound of pork. Other than that, I followed it to a “T”. Did the 7 minutes on high and it was overdone and came out pretty dry. Not enough flavor at all. Had to add salt to the pork at the end to help out with flavor. I gave it 2 stars only because it was edible. This will NOT be a definite remake.

    Reply

    • Ashley Fehr says

      I’m sorry you didn’t enjoy it! This is one of our favorites and lots of others have loved the flavor and not had issues with dryness. Can you tell me what kind of pork you used?

      Reply

  2. Deborah Peterson says

    Just wondering if you can make this with a pork loin? If so how long would I cook it, and would it be a lot different than cooking with a tender loin? Sorry I’m new to a lot of this, I have five grown children, but when they were at home it was basic easy, feeds a lot meal. So now I’m trying different yummy meals.

    Reply

    • Ashley Fehr says

      Hi Deborah! I’ve only ever cooked pork loin in the Instant Pot to shred, and then I cook it quite long, about 45-90 minutes depending on the size. The cook time would likely depend on if you want to slice it or shred it.

      Reply

  5. Andrea says

    My sister can’t eat cornstarch because she’s allergic to corn. Is there anything I can substitute for it?

    Reply

  6. Ashley Wiley says

    I wish I could edit previous comments, I just saw where it said times from frozen. Is there somewhere that says how many servings is how much weight?

    Reply

    • Ashley Fehr says

      Hi Ashley! No problem 🙂 I don’t know how much one serving is in weight unfortunately, as it will depend on the exact size of your tenderloin. But if your tenderloin is 1lb as the recipe calls for, then the serving size is 1/4 lb of meat and 1/4 of the sauce. I hope that helps!

      Reply

  7. Ashley Wiley says

    I meant to add that my instant pot has the “egg, meat/stew, soup/broth, cake, saute, rice, multigrain, porridge, steam, slow cook, adjust, delay start, manual, and keep warm/cancel” buttons. It is 6 QT

    It says IP-Lux on front if that helps

    Reply

  8. Ashley Wiley says

    I really need a “how-to” guide for my instant pot. I have the manual, but I need a “if you want to make this dish from frozen, push this…” and very specific steps on when to add ingredients. Also “if you want to make it from thawed…” Any good sites?

    Reply

  9. Ashley Wiley says

    I am still trying to learn about IP, I realize there are different ones with different buttons, but how do I thaw a little before cooking? I saw you cooked it from partially frozen for 10 minutes, but how do I cook from completely frozen and/thaw first? What buttons do I push to get it to defrost some?

    Reply

  13. Debbie k. says

    It was outstanding ?. I added a bit more basalmic because I love it so much. Ate it with baby red potatoes. . Picky hubby even agreed

    Reply

  14. Rita says

    I’m going to cook this tomorrow morning for a pot luck lunch I am going to. I have a 2 pound “tenderloin” but from what I read on your site this may be a loin. Two questions: 1. If loin how long should I cook it? 2. Should I increase any of the ingredients? Thanks,

    Reply

    • Ashley Fehr says

      Hi Rita! For a 2lb pork loin or tenderloin, I would increase the cook time by 5 or so minutes, but it really depends on what you’re looking for. If you want to shred it, you’ll want to cook it even longer, but to slice, then a few extra minutes should be sufficient.

      Reply

  15. Kristy says

    Per my 14-year-old daughter – “the glaze is AMAZING-can you put that on all of our food?” So I would say it was definitely a success. I always know when the instant pot meal has won my family over – they go back for seconds.

    Reply

  16. Danielle Beltran says

    I’m new to IP cooking. I tried this recipe tonight, so happy I did & my husband was VERY impressed. I love the basic ingredients too. Some recipes require so many spices that I don’t have in my rack. The middle of the tenderloin was a little pink but I put it in the oven for a few minutes while I made the glaze. That glaze was soooo tasty! The honey didn’t overpower the flavor like other recipes that use honey. I made baby potatoes with veggies on the side. Perfect meal! Thank you!

    Reply

    • Ashley Fehr says

      Thanks Danielle! I’m so glad you liked it! I like my tenderloin just a touch pink in the middle, but you can definitely add a minute or two for a more well-done tenderloin if you prefer!

      Reply

  17. Sara says

    Made this today and my husband and I both enjoyed it! Easy to make and tasted great. Love the sauce! We will make this again!

    Reply

  18. Ruth Guthrie says

    I made this dish last night. Both my husband and I loved it. And, it was so easy! I used a pork loin (about 1 3/4lb) because the store I was shopping at didn’t have any tenderloin. I ended up cooking it for about 25 minutes and it was done perfectly. I’ve had a Fagor LUX Multi-Cooker for about a year now and have seldom used it. I’m sure I’ll start using it a lot more now. Thanks!

    Reply

    • Ashley Fehr says

      I would say a chunk of pork that large is actually a pork loin as most tenderloins fall between .75lb and 1.5 lbs. The cook time you’d need would depend on if you want to slice or shred it — if you want to shred it, I would cook it 60-90 minutes.

      Reply

  20. Sherry says

    Made this tonight as my VERY FIRST Instant Pot effort. Turned out great! It took a good bit longer than I expected to let it release pressure naturally, about 20-25 minutes. That’s ok, though. Next time I’ll anticipate it and wait to start my sides a bit later. Otherwise, the family loved it – it’s right in line with our Keto mealplanning. Thanks!

    Reply

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