Spanish cuisine is one of our favorites! It’s filled with unique flavors and textures and pairs so wonderfully with a glass of wine or beer. We got engaged in Barcelona in 2015 and fell in love with that city. Our favorite spot was the Boqueria Market, I think we went three times in four days! It’s a foodie heaven filled with food stalls and fresh seafood, cured meats, nuts, juices, etc. We had many a meal of tasty tapas with beer and wine and like to recreate these flavors at home. This Spanish Roasted Pork Tenderloin with Piquillo Pepper Sauce is a great weeknight meal to mix things up and perfect for leftovers during the week.

We love pork tenderloin for a weeknight protein option. It cooks fairly quickly, is lean, inexpensive, and is a great canvas for so many different flavor profiles. We prepare ours very simply, by searing in some olive oil with garlic and herbs and then finishing it by roasting in the oven, while we prepare the sauce.

The sauce is made with Piquillo peppers, which are small red peppers that have a great balance of sweetness and a very mild spiciness that pairs well with pork. We find ours canned at Central Market. If you can’t find piquillo peppers, you can replace with roasted red bell peppers for a similar flavor.

The sauce contains a few Spanish flavor staples like olive oil, garlic, and smoked paprika. Bonus – the color is stunning! We love our foods to be brightly colored, they are so much more enticing this way. Just look at this bright orange hue from the Piquillo peppers.

We paired our pork tenderloin with a Spanish inspired fried eggplant recipe (coming later this week), but go wonderfully with some simple roasted potatoes, so you can dip those in the tasty sauce too.

If you love Spanish food, check out our Paella recipe or a classic Spanish Tortilla de Papa for a tasty brunch dish!

Spanish Roasted Pork Tenderloin with Piquillo Pepper Sauce

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Cook Time 30 minutes mins

Resting Time 5 minutes mins

Total Time 40 minutes mins

Servings: 2

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Spanish

Ingredients Method

Ingredients

  

Piquillo Pepper Sauce

• 8 oz Piquillo Peppers Seeds removed
• 4 cloves Garlic
• 1/2 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 1/2 Teaspoon Kosher Salt
• 1/2 Teaspoon Sugar
• 1/4 Teaspoon White Pepper
• 1/4 Teaspoon Smoked Paprika

Spanish Roasted Pork Tenderloin

• 2 tbsp Canola Oil Any high-heat oil such as avocado or grapeseed oil works too.
• 1 Whole Pork Tenderloin Approx 1 pound
• 1 tsp Kosher Salt
• 1/2 tsp Black Pepper
• 1/2 tsp Smoked Paprika
• 6 cloves Garlic Roughly Chopped
• 2 sprigs Rosemary

Method

 

Piquillo Pepper Sauce

1. Preheat oven to 325°F.
2. In a small pyrex or other shallow baking dish, layer the piquillo peppers with the garlic cloves and cover completely with olive oil. Roast for 30 minutes.
3. After 30 minutes, add all of the contents from the baking dish to a blender. Also add in the salt, sugar, pepper, and smoked paprika.
4. Blend all the ingredients until a smooth texture is achieved. Adjust seasoning to taste. Sauce can be stored in the fridge for later use for up to 1 week or frozen for up to 6 months.

Spanish Roasted Pork Tenderloin

1. Preheat oven to 325°F and heat a skillet to high heat.
2. While the skillet is heating up, combine the salt, pepper, and smoked paprika, and completely coat the pork tenderloin with the seasoning.
3. Add oil to skillet, and once it is hot, begin searing the pork tenderloin for approximately 2-3 minutes per side.
4. After flipping the pork tenderloin, add the garlic and rosemary to the pan and allow them to cook in the oil. After 1-2 minutes, take the garlic and rosemary and place on top of the pork tenderloin (to prevent it from burning).
5. Once all sides are seared, remove skillet from heat and place in the oven to finish roasting for approximately 8-10 minutes, or until the internal temperature reaches 165°F.
6. Carefully remove skillet from oven, and place pork tenderloin on a cutting board to rest for 5 minutes.
7. Slice pork tenderloin and serve on top of warm piquillo pepper sauce. Top with the crispy garlic and rosemary.