Garlic Butter Pork Bites
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Garlic Butter Pork Bites are so easy to make and wow – they are delicious! Tender, juicy bites of pork smothered in a garlic butter sauce. Fresh herbs and lemon add freshness to every bite!
What You Will ❤️ About Garlic Butter Pork Bites
- Tender! I love pork because when it’s cooked to 145º – it is literally the juiciest bite of meat you’ll try!
- Easy! Pork bites cook so quickly! Throw some veggies in the air fryer and you’ll have dinner in about 10 minutes! Plus – it’s low-carb!
- Garlic Goodness! You won’t have to worry about vampires with this one! You’re not actually eating the garlic – it’s poaching in the butter and infusing itself into the pork!
Ingredients for Garlic Pork Bites
We’re using very few and simple ingredients – but each of them packs a punch of flavor!!! Here’s what you’ll need:
- Butter – I like to use salted butter for this as it adds a bit more flavor to the pork. Because we’re using a lot of butter – no olive oil needed for this recipe.
- Pork – there are a lot of cuts that would work for this! I used pork tenderloin – but you could use shoulder, pork loin or even boneless pork chops! I would avoid bone-in for this recipe as you’ll have to cut around it.
- DID YOU KNOW? Every 3 ounces of pork is packed full of 22 – 24 grams of protein depending on the cut!
- Salt & Black pepper & Red pepper flakes – This adds just a touch of spice!
- Garlic – we’re gonna use a LOT of garlic – be sure to go for fresh cloves vs jarlic
- Fresh Italian parsley – again – get fresh! Be sure it’s the Italian parsley – that has flavor!
- Lemon – Fresh lemon – it’s got so much more flavor – grab a couple lemons – you might want more for serving!
Recipe Variations
What I love about cooking with pork is that I know I’m helping my friends! More than 3500 family farms in Ohio raise enough pork to feed about 25 million people. So when you buy pork at the grocery store or the farmers market, you are supporting Ohio farm families that produce that pork.
This delicious recipe can also have some tweaks – here are some ideas:
- More Citrus – I love citrus and herbs so I would double down and add lime and orange juice
- Fresh Herbs – this recipe only has fresh parsley but you could easily swap that out with cilantro – or add more fresh herbs like rosemary or thyme
- Swap Protein – you could use chicken or steak in this recipe as well
- Vegetables – pop some onions and mushrooms in the pan with the pork
- Spicy – I used a little red pepper flakes but you could also sprinkle in cajun seasoning if you like more heat!
How to make Garlic Butter Pork Chop Bites
This recipe has a LOT of butter – but – after searing – it’s almost for poaching so you’re not actually eating all the butter! And – pork tenderloin is as lean as boneless, skinless chicken breast – so it all evens out!
Here’s how we make it – it’s so easy!!!
- Dice pork into 1-1.5″ cubes
- Melt 1 stick butter in large deep skillet on high
- Sprinkle salt, pepper, red pepper on diced pork and toss until coated
- Add in diced pork and sear for 2 minutes until golden brown.
- Add in remaining butter, garlic cloves, parsley and lemon juice and scrape up browned bits so they all mix together.
- Lower to medium-high heat and sauté in butter for 2-3 additional minutes until pork is 145º. BE SURE TO CHECK PORK WITH A MEAT THERMOMETER SOONER THAN YOU THINK! Pork bites like these cook VERY quickly! Pork cuts like tenderloin and chops should always be cooked to an internal temperature of 145°F no matter what cooking technique you use! Cooked pork is safe to eat with a blush of pink.
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Tips, Tricks & FAQs
Store leftovers in an airtight container (I like these glass ones) in the refrigerator for up to a week. You can freeze up to three months. Reheat in the microwave for 1-2 minutes.
You could add that to what you coat the pork bites with but I wouldn’t replace it all together!
Get Heather’s NEW cookbook – Air Fryer Cooking for One today!
More Pork Recipes
- Air Fryer Pork Chop Bites
- Blackstone Pork Chops
- Smoked Pork Tenderloin
- Find out more about pork at https://ohpork.org/
Side Dishes to serve with Garlic Butter Pork Bites
Garlic Butter Pork Bites
Equipment
Ingredients
Instructions
- Dice pork into 1-1.5″ cubes1.5-2 lb Pork tenderloin
- Melt 1/2 stick butter in large deep skillet (or cast iron pan) on high2 sticks butter
- Sprinkle cubed pork with salt, pepper, red pepper and toss until coated1/2 tsp black pepper, 1/4 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
- Add diced pork to skillet and sear for 2 minutes until golden brown.
- Lower heat to medium and add in remaining butter, garlic cloves, parsley and lemon juice and scrape up browned bits so they all mix together.15 cloves garlic, 2 tbsp fresh parsley, 1 lemon
- Lower to medium-high heat and sauté in butter for 2-3 additional minutes until pork is 145º. BE SURE TO CHECK PORK WITH A MEAT THERMOMETER SOONER THAN YOU THINK! Pork bites like these cook VERY quickly! Pork cuts like tenderloin and chops should always be cooked to an internal temperature of 145°F no matter what cooking technique you use! Cooked pork is safe to eat with a blush of pink.
