Maple Glazed Pork Tenderloin

October 2024. Fall in Memphis, and I am 65, walking the neighborhood in my light jacket, watching the leaves turn on the oaks and maples that line Deadrick Avenue. The smoker is happy in fall — the cooler air holds the smoke lower, keeps it closer to the meat, and the results are always a shade better in October than in July, as if the season itself is a seasoning.

Rosetta beside me through the week, steady as ever, the woman who runs this household with the precision of a hospital ward and the heart of a mother who has loved fiercely for 40 years of marriage. Walter Jr. came by with the grandchildren, bringing the noise and energy that grandchildren bring, the house expanding to hold them the way a good pot expands to hold a good stew.

I experimented this week — smoked pork belly burnt ends, cubed and re-smoked with sauce and butter until they were sticky, caramelized, and indecent. The kind of food that makes Rosetta say "Earl, your arteries" and then eat three more pieces, because even nurses have limits, and the limit of smoked pork belly burnt ends has not yet been found by human science.

I sat in the lawn chair next to Uncle Clyde's smoker as the dark came on, and I thought about what I always think about: the chain. From Clyde to me. From me to Trey, maybe, or Jerome, or whoever comes next with the patience and the hands and the willingness to stand next to a fire at three in the morning and wait for something good to happen. The chain doesn't break. The fire doesn't stop. And I am here, 65 years old, in a lawn chair in Orange Mound, Memphis, Tennessee, watching the smoke rise, and the rising is the living, and the living is the gift.

After a week of burnt ends and lawn chairs and grandchildren filling the house with noise, I wanted to bring something to the table that carried that same sweet-and-savory soul — something Rosetta wouldn’t have to argue with herself about eating. This maple-glazed pork tenderloin is what I landed on: not the smoker this time, just the oven and a good glaze, the kind of dish that reminds you pork doesn’t always need three hours of fire to say something true. It’s the same chain, just a different link.

Prep Time: 10 minutes | Cook Time: 25 minutes | Total Time: 35 minutes | Servings: 4

Ingredients

1 1/2 lbs pork tenderloin, trimmed
3 tablespoons pure maple syrup
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves (or 1/2 teaspoon dried)
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon olive oil

Instructions

Preheat oven. Heat oven to 425°F. Line a rimmed baking sheet or oven-safe skillet with foil and set aside.
Make the glaze. In a small bowl, whisk together maple syrup, soy sauce, Dijon mustard, garlic, thyme, smoked paprika, salt, and pepper until combined.
Sear the tenderloin. Heat olive oil in an oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat. Pat the pork tenderloin dry and sear on all sides until golden brown, about 2 minutes per side.
Glaze and roast. Brush half the maple glaze generously over the seared tenderloin. Transfer the skillet to the oven and roast for 15 minutes. Brush with the remaining glaze and return to the oven for an additional 8–10 minutes, until an internal thermometer reads 145°F.
Rest and slice. Remove from the oven and tent loosely with foil. Let the pork rest for 5 minutes before slicing into 1/2-inch medallions. Spoon any pan drippings over the top before serving.

Nutrition (per serving)

Maple Glazed Pork Tenderloin — The Chain Keeps Going