Pork Tenderloin With Curry Butter

Pork tenderloin with curry butter sauce is a Blue Heaven, Key West restaurant copycat dish that you can make at home. The pork is straightforward with a quick sear and a short roast, but the curry butter sauce is where all the attention should go.

This is not butter chicken, not a Thai curry, nor a braise. It's a French-style emulsified butter sauce with curry paste, cream, Worcestershire, and turmeric. Both components come together faster than you'd expect, and the sauce can be made up to 2 hours before serving and held warm.

That's what makes this a real dinner party recipe. You're not finishing a delicate sauce to order while guests are at the table. You're searing the pork, spooning the glossy butter sauce over it, and sitting down with everyone else.

What Makes This Recipe Worth Making

• It's a sauce-forward recipe: A French-style emulsified butter sauce that tastes like it came from a restaurant kitchen and takes about 15 minutes to make.
• It's more stable than it looks: Classic beurre blanc is fragile. This version uses cream as the emulsion base, which means you can make it, hold it warm, and serve it up to two hours later without it breaking.
• This is a dinner party pork tenderloin: Both components can be ready before guests arrive.
• It's a Blue Heaven copycat: If you've eaten at the Key West restaurant and want to bring that dish home, this is it!

What Is Curry Butter Sauce?

• It's a beurre blanc sauce, but more forgiving and not so difficult to make. Cold butter is whisked into a warm reduction of white wine, lemon juice, Worcestershire, curry paste, and a pinch of turmeric. Heavy cream in the base starts the emulsion, so it doesn't break the way a classic beurre blanc can.
• The flavor is mild, not spicy. Warm and aromatic with a subtle curry note, with nothing sharp or heat-forward. It works on pork, chicken, fish, and grilled steak.
• It holds for up to two hours. Keep it covered in a warm spot, back of the stove, a warm oven, a thermos, or set over a pan of hot water. Stir occasionally, and thin with a teaspoon of cream or water if it thickens.
• Two things to avoid: Letting it boil once the butter is in, and walking away without whisking. Keep it off the heat and keep it moving.

Ingredients

Here are the ingredients needed to make pork tenderloin with curry butter:

Curry Butter Sauce

• White Wine: Use a dry white wine or dry vermouth for acidity. Vermouth is handy because it keeps forever in the cabinet, and is ready for making sautéed chicken breasts with mustard sauce. For white wine, use a dry, drinkable white. If it tastes bad, it will taint your sauce. I prefer a California Chardonnay at a reasonable price, like Kendall Jackson, Hess Select, or Clos Du Bois. Avoid Sauvignon Blancs because they are too grapefruity, or Rieslings because they are too sweet.
• Lemon Juice: Adds some acid and brightness. When shopping, choose a lemon that is heavy. Weigh it to help you find the best one with more juice. Skip the stuff in a bottle.
• Worcestershire Sauce: This fermented sauce has tang, sweetness, saltiness, and a slight umami profile from the anchovies. It provides a bit of savory flavor and a touch of sweetness without calling attention to itself. You'd notice if it were missing.
• Curry Paste: Mild curry paste, preferably Patak's brand, sold at some grocery stores and most Asian markets. It is convenient and adds aromatic warmth from ginger, cumin, and coriander without making the sauce taste like a curry dish.
• Turmeric: Turmeric is a powdered spice that contributes to the sauce's golden color. Use just a pinch. Any more, the flavor starts to compete with the curry paste.
• Heavy Whipping Cream: Pasteurized or ultra-pasteurized heavy whipping cream both work. As it reduces, the cream proteins begin forming a stable base. When you whisk in the cold butter off the heat, those proteins help hold the fat in suspension. Do not substitute half and half because it does not have enough fat.
• Unsalted Butter: Use unsalted butter for saucemaking. You can add kosher salt as needed. Cold butter is critical. It enters the warm reduction gradually as it melts, which helps the emulsion build evenly.

For The Pork

• Pork Tenderloin: Pork tenderloin is lean, fast to cook, and takes well to high heat. If you'd rather take this outside, my grilled pork tenderloin works just as well with this curry butter sauce poured over the top. It's a tender cut with a cylindrical shape and tapered towards one end. Make sure you are buying tenderloin, not boneless pork loin. Don't buy enhanced or pre-marinated tenderloins.
• Neutral Oil: Use a high-heat, neutral-tasting oil like canola, grapeseed, vegetable, or avocado for searing the pork.
• Diamond Crystal kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper for seasoning.

See the recipe card below for ingredient measurements.

Equipment

• Instant-read meat thermometer: For the most accurate way to know when your pork is done.
• Small saucepan (1½-2 quarts): I like to make small-batch sauces with an All-Clad saucier pan. The rounded sides at the bottom are helpful when whisking in the butter.
• 12-inch, oven-proof skillet: I prefer cast iron.
• Wire whisk: It's essential to make sure the butter is incorporated while melting.

Step-by-Step Instructions

Before starting, have all of the ingredients measured and ready. Preheat the oven to 400℉.

Make The Curry Butter

Step 1: In a small saucepan over medium-high heat, reduce the white wine, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, curry paste, turmeric, and heavy whipping cream by half volume. About 10 minutes.

Step 2: Remove from the heat, add all of the cold butter while whisking vigorously until melted. Taste the sauce. If it seems flat, add white wine or rice vinegar a few drops at a time. If overly acidic, whisk in more butter.

Move the saucepan towards the back of the stove to stay warm while you prepare the pork.

Cook The Pork

Don't skip the sear. The goal here is a deep brown crust on the outside and a juicy, just-cooked interior.

Step 3: Season pork tenderloins with kosher salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a 12-inch oven-proof skillet over high heat until the oil begins to shimmer, about 5 minutes.

Step 4: You should hear a strong sizzle the moment it makes contact with the pan. If you don't, the pan isn't hot enough. Remove the pork and wait a few minutes.

Sear the pork tenderloins in the skillet on all 3 sides until brown, about 9-12 minutes total.

Step 5: Transfer the skillet to the oven and roast the pork at 400°F until the internal temperature reaches 140℉ in the thickest part of the tenderloin, about 8-10 minutes. If you prefer well-done pork, cook to 150°F. Remove from the oven.

Step 6: Move the pork tenderloins to a cutting board to stop cooking and rest for 5-10 minutes. The internal temperature will continue to rise.

Slice the pork and serve on warm plates and topped with the curry butter sauce.

Make Ahead Instructions

Finish the sauce up to 2 hours before serving. Hold it covered on the back of the stove or over a pan of warm water. Do not let it boil and stir every 30 minutes.

For the pork: I prefer pork tenderloins served within an hour after cooking them because they can overcook so easily when reheated. However, you can sear the pork earlier in the day, refrigerate it, then finish in the oven just before serving.

Storage And Reheating Information

Pork: Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Reheat gently in the microwave in 20-second increments, covered, until warmed. For the oven, wrap in foil or use an oven-safe dish, covered, and reheat in a 350℉ oven for 10-15 minutes.

Curry Butter Sauce: It's best made the day of and held warm as described above. The sauce does not reheat well.

If you have leftover sauce, store it covered in the refrigerator for up to one week. Use it as a finishing compound butter over grilled steaks like these tomahawk steaks, chicken, or roasted vegetables like Brussels sprouts. Just place a tablespoon over your protein or side dish right after it's cooked. The curry butter won't re-emulsify, but the flavor is still excellent.

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