Tempered by a cooling mint-yogurt dipping sauce, Harissa Roasted Pork Tenderloin has just the right level of spice. On the table in less than an hour, this sliced tenderloin makes for an elegant and colorful presentation!
Just look at that delicious spiciness!
The husband and I filled plates up with pork tenderloin, mint-yogurt sauce, and a heaping portion of this fattoush salad.
The two of us cleaned our plates and dished up second servings. The spicy pork tenderloin had just the right amount of heat, and the minty yogurt sauce added a cool layer of fresh flavor.
This one is definitely going on the regular rotation over here!
I made my own harissa by pureeing a few ingredients in my mini food processor (Cuisinart DLC-2ABC Mini Prep Plus Food Processor Brushed Chrome and Nickel), but you can used a jarred harissa if you prefer. I like this kind by Mina – Mina Harissa – Red Pepper Sauce Mild – 10 oz – Kosher.
If you’re not the kind of person that can tell the internal temperature of a hunk of meat just by looking at it, you might also want to make sure you know where your meat thermometer is!
Spicy Harissa Roasted Pork Tenderloin Recipe
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Ingredients
For the Pork
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 1-pound pork tenderloin
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
For the Harissa Glaze
- 2 cloves peeled garlic
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon ground fresh chile paste - sambal oelek
- 1/4 cup roasted red peppers - from a jar
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
For the Minted Yogurt Sauce
- 1 clove garlic - pressed
- 1 tablespoon minced fresh mint leaves
- 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1 cup plain 2% or full fat Greek yogurt
- 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Combine the salt, coriander, and cumin in a small bowl. Sprinkle evenly over the pork tenderloin.
- Heat 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Once the oil is shimmering, add the pork to the pan and cook for 6 minutes, rotating to brown on all sides.
- Remove from the pan and transfer to the rack of a roasting pan. Brush all sides with the harissa glaze. Roast for 15-20 minutes, until a thermometer registers 145 degrees Fahrenheit. Remove the tenderloin from the oven and let stand for 5 minutes. Cut crosswise into slices. Serve with minted yogurt sauce.
Nutrition
This sounds so delicious. I love the pictures! Tenderloin is one of my favorite cuts of meat, but I have never used Harissa on it before! Thank you for sharing.
In the oven now. I hope it is good. Please revise your recipe, or clarify in the comments here, to answer the following questions:
1. What do I do with the remaining 3/4 teaspoon of salt, 1/4 teaspoon of coriander, and 1/2 teaspoon of cumin? I actually used the full measures called for.
2. If I am using a jarred harissa, how much? I guessed about 3-4 tablespoons.
3. If I am using a jarred harissa, do I include the brown sugar? I did use it.
This is my first recipe from your website I am trying and it is a good thing I know how to cook. I cannot recommend your site to friends who do not know how to cook.
Hi, Elizabeth – thanks so much for pointing out that error! It looks like something in the recipe card didn’t get inputted the right way. I’ve corrected the error — you were right, all of the salt, coriander, and cumin were meant to be rubbed on the pork 🙂
I haven’t made this with jarred harissa, so it’s hard to say how much to use. I would say that 3-4 tablespoons sounds good… enough to slather onto the pork loin! I can’t answer your question about the brown sugar because I don’t know what ingredients are already in the jarred harissa you are using. Some add sugar, some don’t.
I’m sure your pork is still going to turn out delicious – thanks for reading, and for taking the time to comment 🙂
Thanks, Anetta! The pork was extremely tasty and the MINA harissa does not have sugar as an ingredient, so adding it was the right thing to do. This is going into the rotation! Thanks, again.