This slow cooker teriyaki pork tenderloin + bok choy is really delicious served over white rice and makes for the simplest weeknight meal ever!
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This recipe is…
This teriyaki pork tenderloin is seriously incredible! The flavors are so bold and on point, and the use of the slow cooker makes getting dinner on the table super-efficient (hello, even the bok choy cooks in the slow cooker!). It’s the best of all the worlds, and we are here for it!
While pork tenderloin often gets overlooked, we LOVE this lean pork cut. We love it so much, in fact, that we (Cassy) developed an entire dinner series around it — in THIS article, she shows you how to make 2 very different meals really efficiently using pork tenderloin. Meal 1 is this teriyaki pork tenderloin and meal 2 is a pork chili verde. The concept is BRILLIANT (not to mention time-saving) and is what Cassy’s 3rd book, Cook Once Dinner Fix, is modeled around.
If you’re looking for another delicious, easy pork recipe, be sure to give these pulled pork sliders a try!
Recipe Ingredients
The ingredients list is really pretty simple here, especially considering how absolutely delicious the final product is! Here’s everything you’ll need:
- Pork Tenderloin – to start, you’ll need 1 (1-1.25 pound) pork tenderloin.
- Ghee – you’ll also need 1 tablespoon of ghee.
- Sea Salt – to really bring all of the flavors out, you’ll need a total of 1½ teaspoons of fine sea salt!
- Coconut Aminos – 1 cup of coconut aminos makes up the bulk of the teriyaki-style sauce here.
- Sesame Oil – 1 tablespoon of sesame oil deepens the flavor of the sauce!
- Garlic Cloves – you’ll also want to throw in 2 grated garlic cloves (or 1 teaspoon of granulated garlic).
- Ginger – 1 teaspoon of grated ginger (granulated ginger will work, too!) makes for really delicious flavor too!
- Red Pepper Flakes – 1 teaspoon of red pepper flakes adds just a hint of spice here.
- Baby Bok Choy – 1 pound of halved baby bok choy makes for the most delicious veggie to serve alongside the teriyaki pork tenderloin!
- White Rice – we served our pork + bok choy over white rice, but feel free to use any rice you love. We used 1 cup of uncooked white rice here (or about 3 cups of cooked rice).
Do note that if you’d prefer to buy store-bought teriyaki sauce rather than use the coconut aminos, sesame oil, garlic, and ginger, that’s totally fine. You’ll need about 1 cup of teriyaki sauce if you go that route.
How can you tell if the pork tenderloin is a good cut of meat?
Your best bet here is to talk with the butcher at your local grocery store! If you do have the chance to do that, be sure to ask your butcher to remove the silverskin (a silvery membrane around the outside of the pork tenderloin) for you so that it’s ready to go when you get home!
How To Make Teriyaki Slow Cooker Pork Tenderloin
- Melt the ghee and sear the tenderloin – to start, you’ll need to melt the ghee in a large skillet, cast iron pan, or a stovetop-friendly slow cooker insert if you have one over medium-high heat. Then, sprinkle the pork tenderloin with 1 teaspoon of the sea salt and sear over high heat on one side for about 4-5 minutes, until browned.
- Transfer the tenderloin to the slow cooker, add the coconut aminos, and cook – once seared on one side, transfer the pork tenderloin to the slow cooker, then add the coconut aminos and remaining teaspoon of salt and cook on high for 3 hours or low for 6 hours.
- Add the sesame oil, garlic, ginger, red pepper flakes, and bok choy – 1 hour before serving (after 2 hours on high or 5 hours on low), add the sesame oil, garlic, ginger, and red pepper flakes to the slow cooker, then place the baby bok choy on top of the pork. Cover and let cook for the remainder of the time.
- Cook the rice – 20-30 minutes before dinnertime, go ahead and cook the rice according to package instructions.
- Thicken the sauce (optional) – once the timer is up, you can either use the sauce as-is, or you can transfer it to a small saucepan over medium-high heat and add one tablespoon of cornstarch, then let it boil for about 2 minutes until it thickens.
- Serve and enjoy – serve over the pork sliced over the white rice and bok choy with the sauce spooned over top and garnished with more red pepper flakes if you like.
Frequently Asked Questions
If you’re cooking in the slow cooker, your pork tenderloin should not be tough! If it is, let it slow cook a little bit longer, until tender!
Sure! Your best bet doing it this way would be to put everything into the slow cooker right before bed, and let it cook on low through the night. As soon as you wake up (assuming it’s been at least 5 hours), toss the sesame oil, garlic, ginger, red pepper flakes, and bok choy into the slow cooker, let everything cook for 1 more hour, let everything cool to handling temperature, and then transfer to the refrigerator until ready to enjoy for dinner!
Your finished pork tenderloin may be slightly pink in the middle, and as long as the pork is at an internal temperature of at least 145°F, that is totally normal, cooked, and safe.
If you’ve cooked your pork tenderloin in the slow cooker for either 3 hours on high or 6 hours on low, you can rest assured that your pork will be totally cooked and ready to enjoy!
You definitely can use pork loin instead of tenderloin, but know that pork loins tend to be considerably larger than tenderloins, so in order to have the amount of food that this recipe calls for, you may need to cut the pork loin in half!
More Favorite Pork Tenderloin Recipes
Teriyaki Slow Cooker Pork Tenderloin
Ingredients
- 1 pork tenderloin about 1 pound
- 1 tablespoon ghee
- 1 1/2 teaspoons fine sea salt divided
- 1 cup coconut aminos
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 2 garlic cloves grated (or 1 teaspoon granulated garlic)
- 1 teaspoon grated ginger – an equal amount of granulated ginger will work, too!
- 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 pound baby bok choy halved lengthwise
- 1 cup white rice
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch or arrowroot starch optional
Instructions
- Melt the ghee in a large skillet, cast iron, or a stovetop-friendly slow cooker insert if you have one over medium-high heat. Sprinkle the pork tenderloin with 1 teaspoon of the sea salt and sear over high heat on one side for about 4-5 minutes, until browned.
- Transfer the pork tenderloin to the slow cooker, then add the coconut aminos and remaining teaspoon of salt and cook on high for 3 hours or low for 6 hours.
- 1 hour before serving (after 2 hours on high or 5 hours on low) add the sesame oil, garlic, ginger, and red pepper flakes in the slow cooker, then place the baby bok choy on top of the pork. Cover and let cook for the remainder of the time.
- 30 minutes before serving, cook the white rice according to package instructions.
- Once the pork has finished cooking, you can either use the sauce as-is, or you can whisk together the cornstarch with 2 tablespoons of water, then add it to the sauce and bring it to a boil it in your slow cooker insert or a skillet over medium-high heat for about 2 minutes until it has thickened. Serve over the pork sliced over white rice and bok choy with the sauce spooned over top and garnished with more red pepper flakes if you like.
Nutrition
Love it! First, this recipe was inexpensive to make–gotta love that! It was also EASY to prepare. The less effort the better. And finally, it was really, REALLY good! The meat was tender and flavorful and when combined with the bok choy, it was a total taste explosion. I made the rice but it will be easily interchangeable with brown rice, quinoa, bulger, or another grain. I didn’t have coconut aminos and took the advice of another reviewer: used lite soy cut 50/50 with sodium free chicken broth. I used a third of the red pepper flakes because I’m not into super spicy food. For me, that amount of red pepper was just enough. I can’t wait to try meal #2 from the leftover pork.
Awe yay!!! We are so so happy you loved it, Amanda! Thank you so much for taking the time to share!
Could this be made in the instant pot?
One of my favorites on the site (along with the chicken tikka). I always double the recipe because it goes so quickly in my house! For those who have tough pork, try cooking it longer. Also, not all slow cookers are created equal. You may want to make sure yours is cooking within the optimal temp range.
Great tips, Chelsea! We are so happy you love it!
Oh my gosh!!!
I am trying to use your site for menu planning and the ads have completely changed my plan. I understand the need, but this site has become unusable to me because of the ad assault. Even in reader view there are ads. Trying to leave a comment continually gets interrupted. It makes it so unpleasant. Love the concept and I own all 3 books, but the migraine inducing barrage of blinking and flashing and videos… it’s way too much! Hope this is taken seriously because you really do have a good thing here!
Can I make this with a turkey tenderloin instead of pork?
I don’t see why not! Enjoy!
I’m not sure what went wrong…but this was so dry. I think the meat didn’t have enough liquid to cook in. The flavors were good but the meat was very overcooked. My sweet husband still ate it anyways, haha.
Oh no! We’re so sorry about that, Crystal. It’s hard for us to know what went wrong without being in the kitchen with you. What a sweet husband you have!
Hi! Will this dry out if it’s in the slow cooker for longer than 5 hours? I’m at work all day so it’ll likely be in the crockpot more like 9 hours
9 hours is totally fine, Jocelyn!
could I use pork chops instead?? the same weight?
Hi Stephanie, we have not tried this recipe subbing pork chops, but you could certainly try. The meat may not be as tender since it is a difference cut. You would use the same amount. Enjoy! -Team F&F
This is amazing! Full of flavor and so simple. I did only use 1/2 the amount for coconut aminos, but added chicken broth in the place of the other 1/2 aminos.
Thank you for such flavorful recipes!❤️
So glad you enjoyed, Jennifer! Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback with us. -Team F&F
Can I use regular bok choy if I cannot find baby bok choy?
Hi Erin! You can definitely sub regular bok chop for the baby bok choy. Baby bok choy is slightly sweeter in taste, but the flavor profiles are very similar and fill the same need texturally in the dish. Enjoy! ~Melissa
Looks amazing! Can you double it? If so, what adjustments would you recommend? Thanks!
Hi Meredith! You could absolutely double to recipe! This one is pretty straight forward, I would just double all the ingredients so that you have enough seasoning and sauce in the end for the finished pork. As far as the rice and boy choy, it really just depends on how much you want for the sides. You could keep them the same, or also double the amount. I hope you enjoy! ~Melissa
How could this adapted to stove/oven?
Hi Courtney! This recipe should be pretty easy to adapt to the stove/oven. To make this on the stove (and finished in the oven), preheat the oven to 425F, then sear the pork tenderloin in an oven-safe skillet or dutch oven as directed. Add the coconut aminos and salt, bring to a boil, then transfer to the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the pork reaches an internal temperature of 145F. Let rest for 8-10 minutes. Cook your rice as directed while the tenderloin is in the oven. ~Melissa
Wow! Made this tonight (subbed steamed broccoli for a picky eater) and it was a HUGE hit!
Can’t wait for the cookbook.
Wahoo! So glad to hear that, Ale! Thank you for sharing this with us.
Made this tonight! I followed it exactly, after 3 hours on high in the slow cooker it wasn’t as deep amber as the picture and didn’t have much flavor. I then put the instapot option on for 30 mins and that did the trick! Thanks for the easy recipe!
So sorry about that, Cori! I’m not sure what would’ve gone wrong there. Glad it worked out in the Instant Pot, though!