For many people, pork tenderloin is the tastiest and most delicate part of pork. It has many fans around the world, which is why there are plenty of recipes with this type of meat. I love both pork tenderloin and pasta, so I decided to combine these two wonderful ingredients to create something delicious.

When I was making this dish for dinner, I told my guests that they would get pork tenderloin in an amazing mushroom sauce. They expected me to combine meat with fried potatoes, but I decided to use pasta, specifically paccheri pasta, which I just love. And it was a hit. My mum said this idea for pork meat and pasta was a killer.

The beauty of this dish is that paccheri pasta can be replaced with potatoes, rice, gnocchi, or other types of pasta. There is complete freedom here.

Why You Will Love This Recipe?

Quick and Easy, Yet Fancy! This dish is really simple and fast to prepare. Pork tenderloin does not need to be marinated. Just fry it, prepare the mushroom sauce and mix it with cooked pasta. The dish is additionally fancy, pleasing to the eye, and great for photos 😉

Seriously Tasty and full of flavors! This is the main reason why you should use this recipe. This pasta is delicious!

Crowd Pleaser! Most guests will love this recipe. And what’s not to like? Delicate tenderloin, favorite type of pasta, and creamy mushroom sauce make the dish unique.

What’s the difference between pork tenderloin and pork loin?

The names are almost the same, but it’s just a different cut of meat. Pork tenderloin and pork loin are not cut from the same part of the animal.

Pork tenderloin is a long, narrow piece of boneless meat that comes from the muscle that runs in the back of the animal along its backbone. Its popularity does not come out of nowhere! The pork tenderloin is a good piece of soft, juicy, delicious meat. The reason for its delicacy lies in the physiology of the pig - they do not use these muscles to move.

Meanwhile, pork loin comes from the back of the animal and is wider and flatter than pork tenderloin. Pork loin can be cut into individual servings, such as boneless steaks or chops (bone-in).

Can you substitute pork tenderloin with pork loin?

Not exactly. The thickness, shape, and sizes of these meats are so different that using them instead of each other is not the best idea. The timing and heat indications will not be the same for these two kinds of meat.

Ingredients You’ll need to make Pork Tenderloin Mushroom Pasta

Pork tenderloin – Choose a pork tenderloin with pinkish-red color with some marbling in the meat. Avoid meat that is too pale or has dark, odd spots.

Mushrooms – I used fresh champignon mushrooms (white button mushrooms) for this recipe.

Pasta – Paccheri Pasta is great for this dish (I used DeCecco brand). Unfortunately, in some parts of the world, it is expensive and difficult to buy. You can replace this type of pasta with your other favorite. It is best to cook it al dente.

Heavy Cream/Whipping Cream – to make the sauce creamier.

Onion – choose one medium-sized onion. You can replace it with shalotts.

Salt and Pepper – Salt and pepper enhance and add flavor.

Olive Oil – for frying, you can replace it with vegetable oil.

Fresh herbs – Fresh herbs are optional but are a good addition to this dish. An interesting choice is a parsley, thyme, oregano, chives, and dill. I chose dill. You can also replace them with dried herbs.

How to make Pork Tenderloin Mushroom Pasta?

Step 1. Pour water into the deep pot. When the water comes to a boil, add salt, let it come to a boil again, and add the pasta of your choice. Cook the pasta until al dente according to the instructions on the pasta package. Reserve half a cup of pasta at the end of cooking.

Step 2. Trim the fat from the pork tenderloin. This type of meat has a silverskin that is tough and chewy, so it’s best to get rid of it. It’s called silverskin because it has a certain iridescent sheen and looks like a little silver.

Cooking Tips : How to Trim Fat from Pork Tenderloin – YouTube

Then cut the pork tenderloin into smaller, thin slices. Season with salt and pepper on both sides. Heat vegetable oil or olive oil over medium heat in a skillet/pan and fry until pork is no longer pink inside and skin is slightly brown. It will be 2,3 minutes per side. Remove the meat from the skillet and set aside.

Step 3. Cut the onion into small pieces and fry in a skillet for about 2 minutes. If there is not enough olive oil, you can add a little more. Then add the chopped mushrooms, mix and fry them for about 6.7 minutes. After this time, add heavy cream and when it boils add pasta water. Stir and when the sauce boils again, add the tenderloins, salt and pepper. Cook for a few minutes until the sauce thickens. Finally, add the pasta and mix well so that the sauce covers all the pasta. At the end, you can sprinkle with chopped fresh herbs.