This Crock Pot Pork Tenderloin with Cranberry Sauce is an easy weeknight meal or a fancy holiday dinner — you decide! The BEST pork tenderloin recipe.
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So I was digging through my freezer last week and discovered I had two packages of pork tenderloins down in the bottom. I was thrilled!
Pork tenderloin is one of those things that cooks so quickly and easily that it can easily be supper on a crazy weeknight when you have a million other things going on, or it can be dressed up as Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner.
This Crock Pot Pork Tenderloin with Cranberry Sauce? I like to thing it can swing either way 😉
I long ago discovered the amazing combination that is pork and cranberry but I’ve yet to do anything with it around here. Today’s the day that changes!
Since you’re all going to have buckets of leftover cranberry sauce from Thanksgiving and Christmas, it’s probably a good idea to add this to your post-holiday-leftovers menu.
This cranberry sauce is awesome over mashed potatoes with a side of veggies or salad — it’s the perfect combination of sweet and tangy and savory — and the crock pot pork tenderloin is so tenderloin, you can cut it with a fork!
What’s the difference between a pork loin and pork tenderloin?
You can definitely use this recipe for pork loin (I love cooking pork loin in my crock pot or slow cooker, too!), but you’ll need to adjust the cook time because they are not the same thing.
A pork loin is much thicker (likely twice as thick in diameter) as a pork tenderloin, so it’s important to know the difference because a pork loin will need at least twice as much time.
A pork tenderloin is always right around the 1 lb (between .75lbs and 2 lbs) mark in weight, while a pork loin can fall anywhere between 2 and 5 lbs.
How to make Crock Pot Pork Tenderloin with Cranberry Sauce:
- Trim the silver skin. Once you unwrap your pork tenderloin, you’ll see a silver skin that runs almost the length of the tenderloin. You want to take a sharp knife and run it along the edge to remove this skin, which can become tough and chewy during the cooking process. Here is a handy little video that shows you how if you’re unsure.
- Prep the sauce. The sauce is simple and you can definitely adjust the seasonings to your tastes. Feel free to substitute homemade cranberry sauce for my shortcut of canned whole berry cranberry sauce if you have it around.
- Lay the tenderloin flat. You will likely want to cut the pork tenderloin in half to fit flat in the slow cooker, so that it cooks evenly.
- Don’t overcook. Tenderloin doesn’t actually take that long to cook, so be sure not to leave it cooking all day or it will end up dry. A thermometer in the thickest part of the tenderloin should read 150-160 degrees, depending on how well you like it done.
How to prep this Crock Pot Pork Tenderloin ahead:
This Crock Pot Pork Tenderloin is a great recipe to prep ahead for the the next day! You can simply prepare the sauce and tenderloin in the crock pot, cover, and refrigerate until the morning.
In the morning (or afternoon!), place the pot in the slow cooker and continue with the cooking process.
More pork tenderloin recipes:
- 25+ Pork Tenderloin Recipes
- Instant Pot Pork Tenderloin with Garlic Herb Rub
- Slow Cooker Pork Tenderloin with Honey Balsamic Glaze Recipe
Crock Pot Pork Tenderloin with Cranberry Sauce
written by Ashley Fehr
Ingredients
- 1 pork tenderloin (1-1.5lbs, trimmed — see post above)
- 1 1/2 cups whole berry cranberry sauce (1 348ml can)
- 1/4 cup brown sugar (35g)
- 1/3 cup low sodium chicken broth (75g)
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar (30g)
- 1 tablespoon corn starch (10g)
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 pinch black pepper
Instructions
- Place pork tenderloin in 2-4 quart crock pot, cutting in half lengthwise to fit flat if necessary.
- In a large bowl or glass measuring cup, whisk together cranberry sauce, sugar, broth, vinegar, corn starch, garlic, salt and pepper. Pour over tenderloin in crock pot, lifting the pork to let the sauce seep underneath.
- Cover and cook on high for 2 hours or low for 4 hours, or until it reaches an internal temperature of 150-165 degrees. Remove pork and place on a cutting board to rest for 3-5 minutes.
- If desired, add an additional tablespoon of corn starch mixed with a tablespoon of water to thicken remaining juices.
- Slice and serve with sauce.
Notes
Nutrition Information
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Cathy says
Sorry. I only have one word for this. DRY. I cooked my tenderloin for 3 1/2 hours on low. Awful. The “sauce” was tasteless. Perhaps watered down from all the juices taken from the overcooked pork. Had to pour the sauce into a pan and add another slurry to thicken it up. It was tasteless
Ashley Fehr says
I’m sorry to hear that Cathy! If your tenderloin is on the small side it could cook more quickly. It will also depend on the cooking temperature of your slow cooker as well as the size — a larger slow cooker that is mostly empty will cook more quickly. I use a 2.5 quart slow cooker for tenderloin for that reason.
Lynne says
So tasty! I made this for the first time. It was excellent. Thickening the sauce with a little cornstarch was a great idea. I served it with roasted Parisienne potatoes and broccoli. This recipe is definitely a keeper. Thanks so much for sharing Ashley.
Ashley Fehr says
Thanks Lynne!
emmennes@gmail.com says
I made this recipe yesterday and it turned out yummy! I did make it the oven. Cooked the sauce on the stover poured of pork and roasted it and occasionally basting sauce on top of roast.
The fam couldn’t stop hmmmmm mmmm ing
Ashley Fehr says
I’m so glad it turned out well!
Wendy says
Wow! This was incredible! I have not always had the best luck cooking pork tenderloin and this turned out amazing! Absolutely loved it! I followed the recipe exactly except I added 2 pears and 1 apple that I peeled and sliced to add to the cranberry mixture. Super easy and very yummy! Will definitely make again the next time my kids are home for a visit!
Ashley Fehr says
That’s a great idea! Thanks Wendy!
Sandy Boyer says
Yummy, but what do you do with left over, did mashed potatoes also second night rice. Now what?
Ashley Fehr says
You could serve with pasta as well 🙂
Kathleen says
I have made this for thanksgiving in the past and am adding it to our families Christmas feast this year along with turkey, stuffing, ham, pineapple mashed pot, fried sweet pot & a green bean casserole
Yum yum
Ashley Fehr says
Thanks Kathleen!
Seta says
This came out really good. It’s a great Thanksgiving main dish.
Ashley Fehr says
I’m so happy to hear that!
Kim says
Could this be made in the oven? I need to cook 5 tenderloins and that is too much for the slow cooker.
Ashley Fehr says
I would season and roast the tenderloins in the oven, and then stir together the sauce on the stove top
Megan says
I make this pork tenderloin recipe all the time especially in the Fall. It is a winner in our family every single time. Also great to serve guests. Easy and delicious.
Ashley Fehr says
Thanks Megan! I’m so glad you like it!
Maria says
This recipe sounds great..I only cook on the weekend..cannot wait to try on the family
Ashley Fehr says
thanks Maria!
Ann says
I plain on fixing this tomorrow for our dinner. I am looking for more simple and easy meals like this one to feed my family of 2 big men and me other than going the whole huge family dinners I’ve been doing and this seems to be a good one. I hope there are more like it to come. Can’t rate it yet but will after we have the meal.
Ashley Fehr says
Thank you Ann! I’d love to hear how you like it!
Herta Bedunah says
No I have not,but all your Recipes sound so good.I have to be on a Kidney Diet,would it be possible that you write the amount of one serving,that would help me a lot.Thank you very much
Herta Bedunah
Ashley Fehr says
Hi Herta! I don’t know the exact serving size in weight or volume but the number of servings is listed at the top of the recipe card
Amber K says
I over cooked my pork loin …. I did not have tenderloin, but I cooked it for 2 hrs on high and checked the temp and it was 180. But I cut it up and put it back in the sauce and it’s tolerable, but I can’t wait to make again the flavor is amazing and if it wasn’t dry it would have been amazing but that’s on me!!
Ashley Fehr says
Two hours on high is definitely not too much for a pork loin! I cook pork loin in the slow cooker for 8-10 hours as they are usually pretty large. I’m guessing that you did have a tenderloin? It is often easier to tell by the weight. Most pork loins are quite large and require a long cook time.
Laurie says
If I use a pork loin instead of a tenderloin, should I still cut it in half?
Ashley Fehr says
You will likely have to cut it to fit, but a pork loin is quite a bit larger so you will need to add a significant amount of cook time.
Sara Pearce says
I need to double the recipe. Can I do that in a 6qt slow cooker?
Ashley Fehr says
Yes, you should be able to fit them in just fine! I hope you enjoy it!
Chrisanna says
I made some sauce to go with my pre-cooked pork loin last night. I combined all ingredients and cooked it down in a little frying pan, omitted corn starch. I’m pretty picky… but this was FANTASTIC! My husband had to know how I made it. I highly suggest this simple yet delicious recipe.
Ashley Fehr says
I’m so happy to hear that! We love this sauce over pork too!
Amelia says
Made this last night and OH MY GOD!! It was amazing. Thank you for posting this!
Ashley Fehr says
I’m so happy to hear that! It’s my new favorite 🙂
Sue Mille says
This was awesome!! Served it for our Thanksgiving dinner (we served 120 members of our community turkey dinner last Sat.) as we were over turkey. Served with mashed potatoes, collards, corn and apple sauce. Thickened the sauce to serve over everything. No leftovers. Absolutely one of the best pork recipes I have ever made. Thanks!!
Ashley Fehr says
That just makes my day Sue! I’m so happy that that everyone enjoyed it!
Emily says
Can you make this in an instant pot?
Ashley Fehr says
Definitely! You’d want to cook the tenderloin first with some clear liquid, then remove and add the cranberry sauce, corn starch and other sauce ingredients just at the end on saute.