Chicken, Turkey & Lean Meats
Protein in Pork Tenderloin: Protein, Calories, and Meal Ideas
Pork tenderloin is one of the leanest pork cuts, with protein density close to poultry and a mild flavor that works well for meal prep.
Protein per serving
40g
150 g cooked pork tenderloin / about 5.3 oz
Calories per serving
215
150 g serving
Protein per 100g
27g
143 calories per 100 g
Protein density
18.9g
protein per 100 calories
Pork Tenderloin Nutrition Snapshot
| Measure | Amount | Protein | Calories |
|---|---|---|---|
| Typical serving | 150 g cooked pork tenderloin / about 5.3 oz | 40g | 215 |
| Per 100 g | 100 g | 27g | 143 |
| Protein density | 100 calories | 18.9g | 100 |
Representative source entry: Pork, fresh, loin, tenderloin, separable lean only, cooked, roasted. Choose tenderloin rather than fattier pork cuts when matching these values. Marinades and pan oil can change calories quickly.
Good for weight loss? Excellent
Pork tenderloin is a lean cut, so it provides a high protein dose without the calorie load of fattier pork options.
Good for muscle gain? Excellent
Pork tenderloin provides complete protein and pairs easily with rice, potatoes, pasta, or beans for muscle-gain meals.
Meal Ideas with Pork Tenderloin
Pork tenderloin with potatoes and green beans
Pork rice bowl with cabbage slaw
Pork tenderloin tacos with salsa
Meal-prep pork slices with quinoa and vegetables
How Pork Tenderloin Compares for Protein Density
Pork Tenderloin works as a meat or poultry protein with about 27 g protein and 143 calories per 100 g. That equals 18.9 g protein per 100 calories, or about 5.3 calories per gram of protein. This density number is useful because two foods can both look high protein while one needs far more calories to deliver the same protein target.
Pork Tenderloin is more protein-dense than the average of the related foods shown below, so it is easier to use when calories are tight. Meat and poultry values change with cut, fat trim, skin, cooking yield, and whether the entry is raw, cooked, deli, ground, or roasted. Use the comparison table as a planning shortcut: choose the higher-density option when calories are limited, and choose the more calorie-dense option when appetite is low or muscle-gain meals need to be easier to finish.
| Food | Serving protein | Protein / 100g | Protein / 100 cal |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pork Tenderloin | 40g | 27g | 18.9g |
| Chicken Breast | 46g | 31g | 18.8g |
| Lean Ground Beef | 39g | 26g | 14.8g |
| Sirloin Steak | 37g | 25g | 12.1g |
Best Uses for Pork Tenderloin
For Weight Loss or Calorie Control
Pork Tenderloin is especially useful in a calorie deficit because the protein serving is strong relative to calories. Build the plate around the protein first, then add vegetables, fruit, potatoes, beans, or grains based on hunger and training needs. For this page's representative serving, 150 g cooked pork tenderloin / about 5.3 oz gives about 40 g protein. If your meal target is 30 g protein, that is roughly 0.8 typical servings, or about 111.1 g by weight. This is why weighing the first few servings is useful: it turns a vague protein food into a repeatable meal component.
For Muscle Gain or Higher-Calorie Meals
Pork tenderloin provides complete protein and pairs easily with rice, potatoes, pasta, or beans for muscle-gain meals. When using pork tenderloin for muscle gain, the question is not only whether it contains protein; it is whether the whole meal has enough total protein, carbohydrates, and calories to support training. If you need leaner protein, compare against chicken breast, turkey breast, pork tenderloin, shrimp, cod, or egg whites. If you need more calories, fattier cuts or larger portions can fit muscle-gain meals. A practical muscle-gain plate is to keep the pork tenderloin portion consistent, then adjust rice, pasta, oats, potatoes, bread, beans, oil, nuts, or dairy up or down depending on your calorie target.
For Meal Prep and Repeatable Tracking
Pork Tenderloin is easiest to track when the serving method stays the same from week to week. Choose one default serving, log it with the matching raw, cooked, dry, drained, or label-based entry, and then build meals around that known number. Good repeatable options include Pork tenderloin with potatoes and green beans, Pork rice bowl with cabbage slaw, Pork tenderloin tacos with salsa, and similar meals where the protein portion is measured before sauces and toppings are added.
Exact Serving Conversions
Serving conversions help when your food scale, recipe, or tracking app uses a different unit than this page. For Pork Tenderloin, 1 oz is about 28.35 g and provides roughly 7.7 g protein and 40.5 calories based on the representative per-100-g values. Half of the typical serving gives about 20 g protein and 107.5 calories, while a double serving gives about 80 g protein and 430 calories.
Use gram targets when precision matters. To get 25 g protein from pork tenderloin, you need about 92.6 g, which is roughly 132.4 calories. To get 30 g protein, use about 111.1 g and 158.9 calories. To get 40 g protein, use about 148.1 g and 211.9 calories. These estimates are based on the USDA or representative source entry listed below, so the label on your exact product should win when there is a difference.
| Target | Approx. amount | Calories | Typical servings |
|---|---|---|---|
| 25g protein | 92.6g | 132.4 | 0.6x |
| 30g protein | 111.1g | 158.9 | 0.8x |
| 40g protein | 148.1g | 211.9 | 1x |
Raw, Cooked, Dry, or Label Weight?
The best tracking rule for Pork Tenderloin is simple: match the database entry to the state of the food when you weighed it. This page uses Pork, fresh, loin, tenderloin, separable lean only, cooked, roasted as the representative source entry, with the serving shown as 150 g cooked pork tenderloin / about 5.3 oz. Choose tenderloin rather than fattier pork cuts when matching these values. Marinades and pan oil can change calories quickly.
For meat and poultry, use a raw entry for raw weight and a cooked entry for cooked weight. Skin, bones, breading, marinades, pan oil, and sauces should be separate entries. If you batch cook, portion after cooking only when your tracker entry is also cooked. If you weigh before cooking, use a raw or dry entry and divide the finished batch into servings after cooking. If you are eating a packaged product, the label is normally the most specific source because brands can change water, sodium, sugar, fat, fortification, and serving size.
The most reliable workflow is to choose one method and repeat it: weigh the food, choose the matching raw, cooked, dry, drained, or packaged entry, then log oils, sauces, toppings, sides, and drinks separately. This avoids the most common protein tracking error, which is accidentally counting a prepared meal as if it were a plain serving of pork tenderloin.
Common Mistakes with Pork Tenderloin
Most mistakes with Pork Tenderloin are not about the protein number itself; they are about matching the wrong food form, ignoring preparation, or forgetting the extra ingredients that travel with the serving. Avoid these issues before comparing your intake against a daily target from the protein calculator.
- Using a generic pork tenderloin entry when the actual food is cooked, raw, flavored, breaded, sweetened, packed in oil, or from a specific brand.
- Counting Pork Tenderloin as the entire meal even when the real calorie load comes from oil, dressing, sauce, bread, rice, tortillas, cheese, nuts, or toppings.
- Estimating by eye instead of weighing the first few times. A small portion change can move the meal by 5-15 g of protein or by a few hundred calories for calorie-dense foods.
- For meat and poultry, use a raw entry for raw weight and a cooked entry for cooked weight. Skin, bones, breading, marinades, pan oil, and sauces should be separate entries.
- Trim visible fat before cooking if you want leaner values.
- Track cooked pork by cooked weight.
- Add sauce, glaze, and oil separately.
Building a High-Protein Meal with Pork Tenderloin
Start with the protein target, not the recipe name. A light snack might only need 10-20 g protein, while a main meal often works better at 30-45 g protein depending on body size, meal frequency, and training. With Pork Tenderloin, a 30 g protein meal is approximately 111.1 g of the representative food before sides and toppings. If that portion feels too large, combine a smaller amount of pork tenderloin with another protein from the related-food list.
A balanced plate usually needs more than protein. Pair pork tenderloin with a fiber source, a carbohydrate source if you train or need energy, and enough fat to make the meal satisfying. For lower-calorie meals, keep sauces light and increase vegetables. For higher-calorie meals, add rice, pasta, potatoes, bread, oats, beans, dairy, nuts, seeds, avocado, or oil depending on the type of food and your goal.
If the meal is meant to be repeated, write down the exact version that worked: the grams of pork tenderloin, the cooking method, the sides, and the sauce. That gives you a reusable meal template instead of a one-time estimate, and it makes future protein targets easier to hit without redoing the math every day.
Tracking Tips
- Trim visible fat before cooking if you want leaner values.
- Track cooked pork by cooked weight.
- Add sauce, glaze, and oil separately.
Compare Similar Protein Foods
Related Calculators and Guides
Common Questions
How much protein is in pork tenderloin?
Pork Tenderloin has about 27 g of protein per 100 g. A typical 150 g cooked pork tenderloin / about 5.3 oz serving has about 40 g of protein.
Is pork tenderloin good for weight loss?
Pork tenderloin is a lean cut, so it provides a high protein dose without the calorie load of fattier pork options.
Is pork tenderloin good for muscle gain?
Pork tenderloin provides complete protein and pairs easily with rice, potatoes, pasta, or beans for muscle-gain meals.
Sources reviewed
- USDA FoodData Central: Pork, fresh, loin, tenderloin, separable lean only, cooked, roasted - U.S. Department of Agriculture
- International Society of Sports Nutrition Position Stand: protein and exercise - Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition