Have you ever made pulled pork with a tenderloin???

Things/people never fail to amaze me. :laugh:


The most I'd ever cook one is 145-150 max and finely chop it up if I wanted some type of pull for sammies.

Those things just can't afford to lose any moisture going longer.

We have done pulled pork with the Tenderloin and after doing it once, I'd never got back to the other way. Tasted great and most importantly, it's super healthy. We smoke to 205 and it tastes amazing.

I highly recommend it.

Not sure why anyone would try that. Pork tenderloin is not a braising meat. It doesn't have enough fat to break down or bone to add flavor.

Grill to 140-145 and slice it if you want to make sammiches

If you add moisture to it.....it will fall apart.....





But by way of injection....internally.....which might be past what you're friend can do with it now.....

bbqisfun said:

We have done pulled pork with the Tenderloin and after doing it once, I'd never got back to the other way. Tasted great and most importantly, it's super healthy. We smoke to 205 and it tastes amazing.

I highly recommend it.

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Nice to see someone posting after actually trying this out instead of simply posting inaccurate assumptions.

Sounds like your friend isn't going to know any better either way. My BIL made pulled pork from a loin before... Only I don't think it ever saw a grill. Just got boiled in sauce till it was mushy and stringy.

tortaboy said:

Nice to see someone posting after actually trying this out instead of simply posting inaccurate assumptions.

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Whatever. Why waste a nice piece of meat with a cooking method not suited to it?

Please. Do the same with a beef tenderloin and let us know how great it is.

food4thot said:

Whatever. Why waste a nice piece of meat with a cooking method not suited to it?

Please. Do the same with a beef tenderloin and let us know how great it is.

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I'll gently urge you to shoot one with creole butter or equivalent & test it out......really good....those above were not quite fall-apart, but a little further & they'll let loose.....

I used shot tenderloins for the appetizer for years at get-togethers & never had a piece left over....

food4thot said:

Whatever. Why waste a nice piece of meat with a cooking method not suited to it?

Please. Do the same with a beef tenderloin and let us know how great it is.

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The OP was talking about pork. And he asked a specific question. Try to stay on the subject.

Pork tenderloin will indeed get to the fall apart pulled pork consistency if braised in certain ways. It won't have the internal, lip smacking, luscious fat lube though of course.

My mother in law used to do one where she lightly floured tenderloin "hunks", then browned them in a dutch oven. Then added a bit of chicken broth, onions, mushrooms and salt and pepper (choose your seasonings of course).

After maybe 1 1/2 to 2 hours in the oven braising it rendered a fall apart luscious pork dish in thickened gravy that I would dare anyone to turn their nose up at. Even without the gravy it was moist and luscious somehow.

But....You gotta treat it right I think. I think it needs to be either braised from start to finish or go the grilled quick method. Mixing the two will probably yield a dry piece o' meat.

Just a guess.

Will it be as succulent as shoulder? No. The internal fat isn't there, but damn it's a tasty fork in the road to normal tenderloin fare.

EDIT: Oh, and could this be somehow adapted to a bbq recipe using pork tenderloin as a mock pulled pork? hmm...

Edit 2: I think the stumbling block would be the bark. Probably no way to get it before it dries out. And at that point braising may not help. Perhaps a fat injection of some sort is the answer? I've not the inclination to experiment with this at the moment given my hunk o butt in the fridge but....

1buckie said:

I'll gently urge you to shoot one with creole butter or equivalent & test it out......really good....those above were not quite fall-apart, but a little further & they'll let loose.....

I used shot tenderloins for the appetizer for years at get-togethers & never had a piece left over....

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Hmmm.... My curiosity WILL get the best of me on this one!!! Damn you Buck!! The bee is in my bonnet and it won't stop till I try this out now. The grocery just down the street frequently has "small beef tenderloins"(code for the tail end of the tenderloin) on sale for around $7/lb. I see me giving one of those a whirl.

lantern said:

Hmmm.... My curiosity WILL get the best of me on this one!!! Damn you Buck!! The bee is in my bonnet and it won't stop till I try this out now. The grocery just down the street frequently has "small beef tenderloins"(code for the tail end of the tenderloin) on sale for around $7/lb. I see me giving one of those a whirl.

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I've done it with baby beefs, but the pork T.L.'s are easier to work with & less expensive.....:-D

Sounds like it'll will really fall apart with moisture braising but it'll never have the flavor of real PP that's for sure.

Not sure I'd call TL pulled pork but maybe if you add some tasty juice/marinade it'll taste good just way different. :noidea:


One thing i know well is tenderloin doesn't need much smoke so If I pulled it i'd wrap it tight at 140* .

Buckie's right that a tenderloin will fall apart if cooked with liquid to keep it from drying out. My Grandmother used to do this all the time using red wine, currents, and raisins in a crock pot. The key to make this flavorful is to dust it in flour and then sear the heck out of it in an oiled fry pan before placing it in the crock pot. While this is workable as a pot roast, it is definitely NOT pulled pork (but everyone here already knows that).

It can be done, I have had it and didn't like it much especially the texture. I will stick with high fat portions for pulling and slice the loins at a less than medium temp.