Baked Turkey Tenderloin Recipe
Learn how to cook turkey tenderloin by brining, seasoning, and baking this lean cut of turkey for Thanksgiving or any weeknight meal.
Servings: 6
Ingredients
- 2 lbs. turkey tenderloin it should come in a pack of 2
- 2 cups water
- ¼ cup kosher salt
- 2 teaspoons black peppercorns
- 2 teaspoons whole cloves
- 2 sprigs fresh rosemary or 1 tablespoon dried rosemary
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme or 1 tablespoon dried thyme
- 1/2 tablespoon olive oil
Turkey Seasoning
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
Instructions
- Remove the two turkey tenderloins from the packaging and pat them dry with a paper towel. Set aside.
- First, make the brine. Add water and kosher salt to a small saucepan, whisk, and heat over medium heat until the salt dissolves. Do not bring it to a boil. Remove from heat.
- Next, add the black peppercorns, whole cloves, rosemary, and thyme to the sauce pan and mix. Set aside and let it sit for 10 minutes or until cooled.
- Place the turkey tenderloins in a deep bowl or 9x13 casserole dish. When the brine is cool, pour the brine over the turkey tenderloins. Be sure that the brine is covering the tenderloin. Cover the casserole dish with plastic wrap and place the turkey in the fridge. Let the turkey tenderloin sit for 1 hour.*
- When ready to bake the turkey tenderloin, preheat the oven to 400ºF and lay a piece of parchment paper on the baking sheet.
- Remove the turkey from the refrigerator and discard the brine. Rinse the turkey under cold running water and pat dry with a paper towel and place the turkey tenderloin on the parchment paper.
- Sprinkle the turkey tenderloins with the dry rub. Massage the dry rub into the turkey tenderloin, being sure that the whole tenderloin is covered in dry rub.
- Drizzle the top of the turkey tenderloin with olive oil and place the baking sheet in the oven.
- Bake the turkey tenderloin for 20 minutes, flip the tenderloin, and bake for another 15-20 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 165ºF.
- Remove from the oven and let the turkey rest for 5 minutes.
- Slice the turkey tenderloin and serve.
Video
[adthrive-in-post-video-player video-id="RKKswW8E" upload-date="2021-10-28T19:00:00.000Z" name="Turkey Tenderlion" description="This easy baked turkey tenderloin is made super flavorful with a turkey brine and then our amazing turkey seasoning. Enjoy!"]
Notes
- We used our homemade turkey seasoning for this recipe, so if you already have it on hand, feel free to sub 2 tablespoons.
- Addressing the saltiness of this recipe: make sure that your turkey tenderloin does not come pre-brined. If it does, skip that step! We also reduced the brine time from 6 hours to 1 hour to make sure that it's less salty.
Nutrition
Calories: 222kcal | Carbohydrates: 6g | Protein: 43g | Fat: 6g | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 4g