Spicy Thai Pork Tenderloin Salad Recipe (2024)

By Melissa Clark

Spicy Thai Pork Tenderloin Salad Recipe (1)

Total Time
40 minutes, plus marinating time
Rating
5(2,124)
Notes
Read community notes

There are a lot of ingredients in this bright and bold-tasting pork salad recipe; they add up to a vibrant dish you can serve warm or at room temperature to a spice-loving crowd. Lean pork tenderloin is marinated with chiles, ginger root and cilantro, grilled or broiled, then combined with cabbage, fresh herbs and nuts and coconut for richness. A bit of reserved marinade serves as the dressing. The recipe makes a large batch; you can halve it or make the whole thing and enjoy the leftovers.

Featured in: Thai-Inspired Pork Tenderloin Salad

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Ingredients

Yield:6 to 8 servings

    For the Marinade and Dressing

    • pounds boneless pork tenderloin (usually 2 tenderloins)
    • cup thinly sliced shallots (about 4 shallots)
    • cup chopped cilantro leaves and tender stems
    • 5tablespoons light brown sugar
    • 6garlic cloves, grated
    • 5tablespoons soy sauce
    • 5tablespoons peanut or grapeseed oil
    • Juice and zest of 4 limes
    • 3-inch piece peeled ginger root, grated
    • 2tablespoons Asian fish sauce
    • ½teaspoon kosher salt, more to taste
    • 1 to 2Thai bird, serrano or jalapeño chile peppers, seeded and minced

    For the Salad

    • 8cups Napa or regular cabbage, thinly sliced
    • 5whole scallions, trimmed and thinly sliced
    • 2small Kirby or Persian cucumbers, thinly sliced
    • 1red bell pepper, thinly sliced
    • cups cilantro leaves
    • cups mint leaves
    • 1cup basil leaves
    • cups roasted cashews or peanuts, toasted and chopped
    • ¼cup unsweetened coconut chips or large flakes, toasted

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Nutritional analysis per serving (8 servings)

413 calories; 24 grams fat; 5 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 9 grams monounsaturated fat; 8 grams polyunsaturated fat; 30 grams carbohydrates; 7 grams dietary fiber; 13 grams sugars; 25 grams protein; 1115 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Spicy Thai Pork Tenderloin Salad Recipe (2)

Preparation

  1. Step

    1

    Pat pork dry with paper towel. In a bowl, combine shallot, cilantro, 2 tablespoons of the sugar, garlic, soy sauce, peanut or grapeseed oil, lime zest and juice, ginger, fish sauce, salt and chile. Pour a quarter of the mixture into a blender, add remaining sugar and purée until a smooth, loose paste forms. (Save the unblended mixture to use as dressing.)

  2. Place tenderloin in a large bowl and spread the paste all over pork. Marinate at room temperature for 2 hours, or cover and refrigerate up to 24 hours; turn the tenderloin occasionally.

  3. Step

    3

    Light the grill or heat the broiler and arrange a rack at least 4 inches from the heat. Grill or broil pork, turning occasionally, until well browned and meat reaches an internal temperature of 135 degrees, 4 to 10 minutes per side depending upon the heat of your broiler or grill. Keep an eye on it so it doesn’t overcook. Let meat rest while you prepare the salad. (Or, cook the pork 1 or 2 hours ahead and serve it at room temperature.)

  4. Step

    4

    In a large bowl, combine the salad ingredients, reserving the herbs, cashews and coconut. Whisk the dressing and use just enough to dress the salad, tossing to combine. Let sit for a few minutes for the flavors to meld, then right before serving, add herbs and toss again.

  5. Step

    5

    To serve, slice the pork. Arrange salad on a platter and top with sliced pork. Scatter cashews and coconut on top, drizzle with a little more of the remaining dressing, to taste.

Ratings

5

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2,124

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Private Notes

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Cooking Notes

brooklynjen

Tasty & quick. I found it a little fussy to slice/grate all the ingredients for the dressing, and next time I make it I'll just blitz everything in the blender as she has you do for the same ingredients for the marinade. The salad has so much texture that I don't think you'd notice the change. A keeper.

Susan

I'm going to try it with no sugar at all. I have made similar dishes without the sugar and no one misses it (even the people who eat sugar).

Carol Sacks

This was terrific. I substituted skinless, boneless chicken breast for the pork tenderloin and it worked beautifully. The marinade left the chicken incredibly flavorful and tender. We'll try this with steak next.

Sunny

This salad was delicious! It would be great with any protein. I added pieces of mango which was a great addition.

soozeq1

If Melissa's name is on a recipe, I will always try it. This was the best salad ever, no need for any changes IMO.

Delise

Quick, delicious and easy. Even easier would be to zap the dressing/marinade in the food processor as suggested by another commenter. Used a packaged shredded salad mix w/ cabbage, kale, brussels sprouts, etc.

Sandy

This was a big hit. More prep and ingredients than I ordinarily like to tackle, but that’s the nature of asian recipes. Note that the brown sugar is portioned; I caught that too late but to no noticeable detriment. Also, rather than broil, I roasted with convection at 500. I always end up with a nicer “brown” than when it try to do it under the broiler.

Val

Simply delicious. I made just as directed, prep over two days. Chop greens and herbs listening to the news while pork broils. Glass of wine as meat rests and dressing mellows the salad. Compose and serve. Life is good.

JM

I went one more round with this recipe. I had leftover pork, cabbage, red pepper and scallions, I lightly sauteed the vegetables, even added a few sliced cucumbers, made more of the dressing, then tossed all of the vegetables and sliced pork with wide, flat rice noodles.

Grant

Boneless/Skinless Chicken thighs make for a delicious pork substitute - very moist with the crunchy roughage. They take on the marinade brilliantly.

Nick

This was amazing - no real changes except I’m seeing a lot of comments about time. For those who can, put all the dressing ingredients in a food processor and let it go — suddenly you won’t have to chop any of it more than a few times!And for a faster shortcut: a bag of coleslaw mix from the store isn’t much more $ than a head of cabbage. Snag one that’s just cabbage/carrots, mix with the rest of the ingredients and you’ve got a slaw that comes together in no time. Make this!

met0813

Made this last night...I could drink the dressing! So good. I followed others' advice of putting all the ingredients for the marinade/dressing into the food processor, but found it a little chunkier than I wanted for the dressing, so I put the remainder into the blender to smooth it out a little more. I also cooked the pork at 500° per recommendations and it came out perfect. Will be making this often.

SASumner47

The entire recipe is very good but the marinade/dressing is absolutely delicious. However when I blended a portion of it for the marinade, it did not make a "paste", more like a purée, so I ended up blending it all. And used it as the salad dressing and also to dress some cold noodles. Everyone really enjoyed it.

Grant

If you slice the meat then arrange it nicely it should blend well! Also, slicing and layering avocado on top was a welcome addition.

Linda Newman

This is delicious and a great alternative for roasted pork tenderloin and a plain salad. I sued half the sugar and half the fish sauce. The coconut flakes were a great addition that I would not have thought of using. Extra mint and basil as I don't love cilantro. This was a welcomed change of pace for the family. Definitely added to my repertoire.

kwd dallas

Loved this - cut the recipe in half and to save time, used the food processor to make the marinade and dressing. Again, to save time, served over coleslaw mix and packaged chopped salad mix. We decided that the leftovers would be great as a sandwich on a baguette. Will make again following Melissa's instructions when I can do it for a group, and make it on the weekend.

jocelyn

This was delicious and took me very long time to make, which I did over two days to allow a full day to marinate. Had never broiled pork tenderloin before, which turned out beautifully. Maybe try this with a team of choppers to assist with prep.

janice

Excellent. I would add more mint & basil next time because it adds such a big pop of flavor!

AB

I see there are plenty of positive comments about this recipe so I can’t add much, except to say that I agree. The sugar creates a nice brown crust on the outside. The amount of leafy herbs seemed excessive, but it worked well from a taste perspective. I had some very large basil leaves, so I cut them into ribbons. I look forward to making this regularly and will uses some of the advice in the comments to make the prep faster. Thanks!

Dave

This was REALLY good! Thank you Melissa Clark. However I cut the cabbage very thin and the salt and sugar in the dressing caused a lot of water to seep out, diluting the dressing. Next time I'll cut the cabbage thicker, and pre-salt and sugar it, then rinse and spin dry to get some of the water out. Also the dressing had too much raw shallot (for me, I'm sensitive to raw onion); next time I'll reduce it. Delicious even so!

Casey Doll

The dressing is way too acidic, even with the brown sugar, and I am big into tang! Not to mention, a lot of work for not even a mediocre dressing… better as a marinade, but still wouldn’t make it again. Very meh.

arn

Delicious.

Cynthia

Loved this salad! Didn't have Napa cabbage but I did have bok choy so I chopped up three of those and mixed in some crunchy romaine lettuce. I could definitely see any other proteins such as chicken, cooked shrimp, flank steak slices, and even tofu to add in place of the pork tenderloin. I probably wouldn't marinate the shrimp or tofu that long--may result in rubbery shrimp/tofu but this will remain in the rotation for a nice change of pace.

Michelle

This was amazing. I made two big changes and it was still great. I blended the whole dressing/ marinade mixture to cut down on the chopping. And I use it to marinate branzino instead of pork. Baked it from frozen for about 25 min and it was awesome. Make this.

Erin

This recipe was fantastic! Quick (minus marinating time), easy, and so delicious. The salad was super fresh, the dressing was a little spicy and super flavorful, and you could easily substitute another protein (was thinking tofu would take the marinade really well). Will definitely be making this again!

Mary Young

I just threw the marinade/dressing ingredients in the blender. A tiny bit of honey (no brown sugar), 2 jalapeño and coconut milk as I had no coconut. Marinated for 2 hours, grilled and basted. Absolutely moist and delicious. Made a simpler salad and used reserved dressing to drizzle meat and greens. A winner!

Margarita

Great marinade and dressing- added coconut milk at the end and it made the dish silky and delicious.

Melissa

This was absolutely fabulous. Lots of ingredients to prep for the marinade, but chopping efforts are richly rewarded by the KAPOW! of flavors. Didn’t realize we were out of peanuts, so I subbed in macadamia nuts and they were perfect. Perfect late summer meal.

Smunter

Had all the ingredients for the marinade and pork on hand, but no salad, so tossed rice noodles and vegetables in the dressing instead, really good

LJB

I read some of the comments and decided to mix all the marinade/dressing ingredients in a food processor. It wasn’t a paste, but it worked great. I also cooked at 500. Delicious flavors and easy to put together. I don’t love coconut but it worked great with the cabbage.

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Spicy Thai Pork Tenderloin Salad Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is moo nam tok in thai? ›

Pork Waterfall | Moo Nam Tok |หมูน้ำตก This Thai grilled pork salad known as Moo Nam Tok is quick and easy to make, and the resulting flavors are just incredible. Thin slices of grilled pork are tossed with fresh herbs, toasted rice powder, and a vibrant spicy and sour dressing.

What is a good binder for pork tenderloin? ›

For a pork tenderloin, I like to use mustard to bind the spices to the meat. If you don't use mustard, oil works well! For this one, I used a good amount of salt and pepper, several pinches of paprika, three of rosemary, and a pinch each of garlic and onion powder. The mustard is just a few teaspoons.

How many calories are in pork larb? ›

Read More
Nutrition Facts (per serving)
528Calories
39gFat
20gCarbs
25gProtein

Are pork tenderloins tender? ›

Pork tenderloin is one of the leanest, most tender cuts of meat on the market, so it can also be a little spendy. Pork loin, on the other hand, can often be a bargain choice if you're looking for a tender cut of meat that cooks well for a crowd.

What does Mai Chai mean in Thai? ›

You simply respond with “chai” (yes) or “mai chai” (no — which may lead to an impromptu meal).

What does Mai Dai mean in Thai? ›

Mai Dai – Can not. Mai pen rai – Nevermind. ( politeful one, most used)

Why is my pork tenderloin tough and chewy? ›

And the lower fat content makes pork loin more susceptible to drying out and turning tough. So, why is this? 1. One of the main factors contributing to a dry pork roast is overcooking, which causes the muscle fibers to contract and release their natural juices — even if it's cooked just a couple of minutes too long.

How do you keep pork tenderloin from getting tough? ›

Salt and moisture are key

The most important element is always salt. Salt can help break down protein fibers in meat so that the meat is more tender and is able to retain more moisture.

How do you keep pork tenderloin from drying out? ›

Using a brine or a marinade will make your life so much easier. If you're not confident in your cooking skills, there is one foolproof way to guarantee your pork ends up on the tender side, even if you cook it too long: Soak it in a brine or a marinade.

What is the meaning of pork larb? ›

Meaning of larb in English

a meat salad often made with minced pork (= the meat from a pig) and common in southeast Asian cooking: I was served larb, a spicy minced pork salad, with mint and coriander on radicchio lettuce leaves. In certain parts of Thailand the leaf is eaten with raw beef larb.

What is the difference between NAM sod and LARB? ›

Larb is made using the main ingredients of beef, chicken, or pork that is mixed in with toasted rice powder, lime, and fresh herbs whereas nam sod excludes the toasted rice powder adds a mixture of minced garlic, ginger, carrots, and topped with roasted peanuts on a bed of lettuce.

What to eat larb with? ›

Larb should be served warm or at room temperature with a mixture of crunchy fresh vegetables (lettuce leaves, cucumber sticks, raw beans or cabbage) and steamed sticky rice.

Which is healthier, pork loin or tenderloin? ›

Pork tenderloin may be the trimmest of them all, but the loin cuts, including pork chops and roasts, are the next leanest with 147 calories and a smidge over 5 grams of fat per 3-ounce serving.

Can I overcook pork tenderloin? ›

For food safety, pork needs to reach a temperature of 145°F (63°C), but you shouldn't leave it on the heat for even a degree more than that. As for the leanness/flavor problem, just be sure to properly season your pork.

What does Nam Tok mean in Thai? ›

Nam tok (Thai: น้ำตก) is a Thai and Lao word meaning waterfall.

What does moo mean in Thai? ›

*In rural areas, the 4th level of administrative division (“moo”) is also needed. It is usually translated as village, though it doesn't necessarily cover one single settlement.

What does Nam mean Thailand? ›

Nam, which literally means water, is a part of numerous compound words and phrases found in the Thai language. Water holds great importance and meaning for the Thai people – the Chao Phraya river which flows through the heart of Bangkok has been shaping their habitat and livelihoods for centuries.

What does moo dang mean in Thai? ›

“Khao” – means rice, “Moo” – means pork and “Daeng” – means red. The BBQ red pork is obviously the most important part of a great and unforgettable Khao Moo Daeng. Not only does this provide the tasty Moo Daeng or red pork, the marinade used in its preparation forms the base for the sauce topping.

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