Easy recipe for bacon wrapped pork tenderloin. Simple preparation, a few ingredients and minimal clean-up! Follow the recipe for the juiciest pork tenderloin!
The post includes serving suggestions as well as lots of tips and useful information for first time cooks.
Ingredients needed for pork tenderloin wrapped in bacon
Pork tenderloin – if you can, buy one that has the white membrane already trimmed off. Sometimes getting rid of it can be challenging.
If you can’t find such, then try to buy a slightly heavier piece (slightly more than 1 pound/450 grams). This way, you should still be able to end up with a pound of tenderloin for roasting.
Bacon – remember that the level of saltiness varies from brand to brand. Try to get one that is not extra salty (the easiest way is to check their package information and pick the one with a lower sodium level). If not possible, you might need to use less salt for seasoning, when making baking pork tenderloin for the first time.
The quantity will depend on how wide the slices are. Also, the longer strips the better.
Seasoning – I like using a simple seasoning mix of salt, onion flakes, paprika, black pepper, and thyme. You can either sprinkle this over your pork tenderloin (this will yield lighter flavor) or spread it onto a sheet of baking parchment and roll pork tenderloin in it (this will ensure a ton of flavor).
How to make bacon wrapped pork tenderloin
The prep is simple: Season the tenderloin with seasoning, wrap in bacon, secure with toothpicks, and roast until ready to your liking (recipe card at the bottom of this post has detailed instructions).
Let it rest for 10 minutes, slice and serve with a side of your choice.
Possible variation
If you don’t have toothpicks or your bacon is rather short, wrap the tenderloin as good as you can and place it onto a baking tray “seam” side down.
Is searing pork tenderloin necessary?
Searing helps keep the juices inside which prevents tenderloin from turning dry.
However, in this tenderloin recipe, you don’t need to sear it at all! This is because the bacon will keep it from drying out and if the recipe is followed, you will end up with perfectly juicy pork tenderloin.
What are good sides to serve with roasted pork tenderloin?
There are many great options to choose from but if you are stuck and need some inspiration, here are some ideas for you:
- Couscous
- Oven or pan-roasted vegetables
- Potatoes (roasted, smashed, mashed, …)
- All kinds of salads
- Steamed vegetables
Tips for making bacon wrapped pork tenderloin
- To make sure pork tenderloin is cooked, use a food thermometer. This is quite important as each oven works differently. Some heat more than others and for this reason, it is not possible to set one temperature for everyone.
- I have tested this recipe in 2 different ovens and got different results. In general, this bacon-wrapped pork tenderloin will need somewhere between 25-35 minutes in the oven. Like I have already mentioned, using the thermometer allows you to avoid over or undercooking it. Once it reads 145 Fahrenheit (64 Celsius) in the thickest part, take it out and let it rest.
- Resting is important and should not be skipped!
- This pork tenderloin wrapped in bacon should feed 4 people.
- You can roast vegetables in the same tray/sheet pan as the tenderloin, but you might want to throw the veggies in the oven ahead of time to make sure they will be cooked through. Alternatively, you can leave them in 10 minutes longer (while the meat is resting).
More dinner recipes you might like to try:
Bacon Wrapped Pork Tenderloin
Ingredients
- ¾ teaspoon salt , see note 1
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 teaspoons onion flakes , see note 2
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- 2 teaspoons dried thyme , see note 3
- 1 pound pork tenderloin (450 grams), see note 4
- 10-12 slices bacon , see note 5
Other:
- toothpicks
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350° Fahrenheit (180° Celsius).
- Line a baking tray with baking parchment.
- Combine together the seasoning (salt, pepper, onion flakes, paprika and thyme – you can do this on the parchment paper or in a small bowl). Spread the seasoning evenly across the parchment paper and roll pork tenderloin in, making sure it is evenly coated. Place the tenderloin on a plate and set aside.
- Arrange bacon slices next to each other on the baking parchment, making sure, they are slightly overlapping. Place the tenderloin on top (in the middle).
- Now, lift a slice on both ends and wrap towards the center and secure on top (see photos). Repeat until the whole tenderloin is wrapped and secured with toothpicks.
- Transfer the tenderloin in the oven and bake until its internal temperature reaches 145° Fahrenheit (64° Celsius), 25-35 minutes (see note 7).
- Take it out from the oven and let it rest for 10 minutes before slicing (and removing toothpicks).
- Serve with any side you like.
Notes
- If you feel that your bacon is very salty or if you are trying to keep sodium intake low, you can reduce the salt to ½ teaspoon.
- Garlic or onion powder are good substitutions.
- Thyme can be substituted with oregano or marjoram.
- If your tenderloin has the membrane on, please remove it with a sharp knife. You can use a slightly larger tenderloin as well. The seasoning should be enough for up to 1.2-pounds.
- The number of bacon slices may vary. This will depend on their size so I suggest buying more rather than less. Mine were about 1.5-inch (4-centimeters) wide.
- The seasoning is plenty for a 1-1.2-pound tenderloin (450-540 grams).
- Cooking time will vary. This will depend on your oven as well as the thickness of the tenderloin. It can vary between 25-35 minutes. For the best result, I highly recommend using a food thermometer. Once the temperature reaches 145 Fahrenheit (64 Celsius) you can take it out.
- More cooking tips and serving suggestion ideas can be found in the full post above this recipe card.
Dannii says
You had me at bacon wrapped. My husband would love this, so I think I am going to make it this weekend.
Julia | Happy Foods Tube says
Enjoy!
Vicky says
You had me at bacon! Such a fabulous meal!!
Jen says
Pretty much any recipe including bacon is going to be a hit in my house! It kept the pork so moist and tender. Loved it!
Julia | Happy Foods Tube says
That’s great to hear, Jen!
Angela says
Wow! What a show stopper. Wrapping in bacon makes the tenderloin extra moist. YUM!
Julia | Happy Foods Tube says
Thanks, Angela!
Jacqueline says
You have to love a meal that’s all cooked in the one dish.
Julia | Happy Foods Tube says
Right? :)
Eve says
This was delicious. I change the seasoning around a little bit. But my husband adores this recipe. I would definitely give it a try
Julia | Happy Foods Tube says
Thanks so much for your feedback, Eve!
Debra King says
I cut my tenderloin down longways (but not all the way through) to open it out, bashed it a bit (technical term!) to flatten it out, and then laid sausage meat and apple sauce down the middle, and then rolled it up with the bacon – needs at least 45 mins in the oven to ensure the filling is cooked, but it’s lovely with mashed potatoes, steamed vegetables and some extra apple sauce on the side. Enjoy, with greetings from England x
Julia | Happy Foods Tube says
That sounds wonderful, Debra!
Jamie T says
Delicious! But I had bacon problems: my bacon did not really brown up. I ended up broiling it for a few minutes. And the bacon was so long, I had to wrap it around the tenderloin. No pretty meetup in the middle. But it turned out yummy and wasn’t very difficult. My kind of recipe! I roasted red potatoes and butternut squash cubes on the side.
Julia | Happy Foods Tube says
Thanks for your feedback, Jamie. I’d say it depends on the bacon you use. I don’t have a favorite brand and buy every time something different but they vary in thickness, length as well as width. Broiling it sounds like a great solution!
Maria says
Can anything else be used as a substitute for the bacon?
Julia | Happy Foods Tube says
Haven’t tried anything else, Maria so not sure.
Kristina says
Breadcrumbs. I often substitute for bacon and depending upon what I’m cooking sometimes add cheddar cheese to the breadcrumbs.
Julia | Happy Foods Tube says
Sounds delicious, Kristina. Thanks for your tip!
Elaine says
Made this tonight but my bacon didn’t brown. My husband likes his bacon cooked very crispy. I tried to broil it too but didn’t help. Do you think the temperature should be higher initially? Recipe calls for 350. It was tasty and moist but couldn’t eat the bacon.
Julia | Happy Foods Tube says
You could try with a higher temperature at the beginning if you want the bacon crispy. Or, try using a higher shelf in the oven. Hope this helps!
Sherry says
I make this recipe as well, and love it. I also glaze it with 1/4 c. Brown sugar, 2T. Apple juice,1t. Dijon mustard mixture. It adds a kick of flavor.
Julia | Happy Foods Tube says
Thanks so much for your feedback, Sherry! Will try your version next time! :)
Sherry says
For people who watch their salt, you can wrap it in low-sodium bacon.
Terry says
I just made this recipe it was very good my bacon didn’t brown but when my tenderloin was done I took the bacon off put it back in the oven with the vegetables and let it cook till the bacon was brown and crispy I also took a paring knife and made little slits in the meat and cut up two cloves of garlic and slice them and tuck the garlic in side of the meat