Sous Vide Pork Tenderloin Salad – Juicy, Elegant & Full of Fresh Flavour
This sous vide pork tenderloin recipe is cooked to absolute perfection. Toss it through with sweet feijoas and a sweet ginger vinaigrette for an impressive autumn salad recipe.
Why This Sous Vide Pork Salad Works Every Time
If you love a good piece of tenderloin, this sous vide pork tenderloin recipe is perfect for you. It is also great for you sous vide home cooks who really enjoy exploring new recipes and different ways of preparing protein through this method.
The pork tenderloin only requires 1 hour in the water bath, which by sous vide standards is a quick process. The time is well spent getting the rest of your meal prep finished.
Pork paired with feijoas is quite a wonderful match. The floral notes of the fruit help to complement the tender pieces of the pork while the Asian inspired ginger vinaigrette triumphantly binds it altogether.
It’s delicious, stunning and definitely an autumn salad recipe that will impress your diners!
What is Sous Vide?
According to Anova, sous vide means “under vacuum” in French and refers to the process of vacuum-sealing food in a bag and then cooking it to a very precise temperature in a water bath.
This technique produces results that are impossible to achieve through any other cooking method.
A tender pork sous vide salad with spinach, feijoa, cashews, and zesty ginger dressing. Juicy, balanced, and beautiful — an elegant salad with pork that’s both refined and refreshing.
Recipe Overview
Flavour/Texture: Quite a few flavours going on in this salad. It is savoury yet sweet and aromatic from the feijoas and tied together well with this Asian ginger vinaigrette. The shallots have a little bite, while the baby spinach offers green finishes.
The juicy pork tenderloin that has been perfectly sous vide is so tender. The feijoas are soft, and the cashews give a crunch. Every mouthful will have a myriad of textures!
Ease: The only part that requires cooking is the sous vide pork tenderloin. Even then, it’s just avocado oil and salt and pepper. Place in the water bath and let the Precision Cooker do the work.
Everything else is just cutting and slicing. Bit of fancy footwork for the feijoas but I promise it’ll be fun. For the ginger vinaigrette, just grate ginger and whisk everything together.
Time: This pork tenderloin salad takes 1 hour and 15 minutes. The 1 hour, however, is the sous vide process, so you’re just putting the pork tenderloin into the water bath and then walking away as you prep everything else.
Note that the sous vide pork tenderloin temperature is important, so see below for the correct data.
Prepare this salad and the ginger vinaigrette while the pork tenderloin is in the water bath. Also get your pan ready for searing when the pork tenderloin is done.
Ingredients You’ll Need to Make This Sous Vide Pork Salad
Pork tenderloin: You need about 350g, and best to sous vide fresh pork tenderloin rather than one that’s been frozen and thawed. This ensures even cooking.
Baby spinach leaves: About 40g of baby spinach leaves or a couple of handfuls if you get them in loose form.
Shallot: Slice the shallot very thinly and then be sure to loosen them up before tossing them through the salad.
Coriander: Citrusy, aromatic herb mainly used as a garnish, will also add to the overall flavours.
Feijoa: The most wonderful autumn fruit that tastes like a cross between pineapple, guava and strawberries! It is incredibly floral to the nose and such a unique fruit.
Great to pair with proteins like pork which we also did in our roasted feijoa salad with streaky bacon.
Cashews: Can be either roasted or unroasted. Roasted is always preferable for taste but understanding unroasted is healthier. Don’t get salted ones as you won’t be able to control the flavours of the salad.
Ginger: Old ginger is better than young ginger for flavour. Just scrape the skin off with a teaspoon, so you don’t take off too much with a peeler. Then use a grater or micro plane to grate the ginger.
Love the wonderful aromas, and that pork goes so well with ginger.
Rice wine vinegar: Rice wine vinegar is slightly sweeter than regular vinegar and works really well with ginger. A quintessential pantry item in Chinese households.
Brown sugar: Adding some brown sugar gives the salad dressing caramel undertones and of course sweetens the recipe. Works incredibly well with the rest of the ingredients.
Garlic powder: Not wanting to take over the fresh flavours of the grated ginger, the garlic powder gives the added garlicky taste needed for the vinaigrette.
Cumin powder: Gives the ginger dressing some warm and earthy aromas, but we only need a little as it can also be overpowering.
Pork tenderloin, baby spinach, shallot, feijoa, cilantro, cashews, and a tangy ginger salad dressing made with rice wine vinegar, olive oil, brown sugar, and cumin — the perfect blend of savoury, sweet, and spicy.
Variations and Substitutions
How long does it take to sous vide pork tenderloin?: Here is the different sous vide pork tenderloin temperature setting for the Precision Cooker:
- Medium-rare – 130°F or 54°C for 1 to 4 hours
- Medium – 140°F or 60°C for 1 to 4 hours
- Medium-well – 150°F or 66°C for 1 to 4 hours
- Well-done – 160°F or 71°C for 1 to 4 hours
Feijoa not in season: As feijoas are an autumn fruit, you can use kiwi fruit of any colour, be it green, gold or red or a mixture for this recipe for any other time of the year. While the flavours are not quite the same, it is the best substitute for this recipe.
Baby spinach leaves alternative: Any green mixed leaves would work well for this salad. If you love the peppery flavours of arugula, you can use that as they are or mix it with other greens.
Shallot substitute: You can use salad onion instead of shallots.
Don’t like coriander: You can replace coriander with flat leaf parsley or chervil.
Cashew alternative: You can use roasted or unroasted cashews for this recipe. You can also replace cashews with pistachios, macadamias or almonds if you have them handy in your pantry.
How to Make This Sous Vide Pork Tenderloin Salad
How to Make This Salad
Coat pork tenderloin in ½ tbsp avocado oil and salt and pepper to taste and place in the sous vide bag and seal.
For a medium rare cook, the sous vide pork tenderloin temperature should be at 55.4°C or 130° for 1 hour.
Preheat the water bath using the Precision Cooker to this setting.
Wash baby spinach and set aside to dry.
Slice the shallot very thinly.
Roughly tear the coriander leaves to yield ½ cup.
Peel 4 feijoas and slice crossways.
Make feijoa flowers with the other 4 feijoas. Place the fruit on the chopping board. Using a small knife, pierce the feijoa at a diagonal angle until it hits the chopping board.
Remove the knife and continue to make diagonal cuts around the fruit about 0.5 cm apart.
Once you have done one round, make diagonal incisions on the other angle.
What you’re after are zig-zag cuts all the way around the fruit.
You’ll then be able to pull the fruit apart, which will resemble a flower.
When the pork is cooked, heat up 2 tbsp of avocado oil in a pan. Sear each side for 1 minute and let it rest for 5 minutes. Then slice.
How to Make the Ginger Vinaigrette
Peel and grate the ginger to yield 2 tsp.
In a small mixing bowl, add the ginger, olive oil, rice wine vinegar, brown sugar, garlic powder and cumin powder.
Mix until well combined.
How to Assemble the Salad
In a medium sized mixing bowl, add the baby spinach and sliced shallots. Add half the ginger vinaigrette and toss gently. Place on a serving platter.
Add the sliced sous vide pork tenderloin.
Followed by the the feijoas. You can tuck some under the spinach leaves.
Sprinkle it with cashew nuts.
Garnish with coriander leaves.
Pour the rest of the ginger vinaigrette on top. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve.
Season and seal the pork tenderloin, cook in sous vide until tender, sear briefly for caramelisation, then toss spinach, feijoa, and shallots in ginger vinaigrette. Slice pork, layer over the salad, and finish with cashews and herbs.
How to Make This Salad Perfectly [Expert Tips]
Best pork for this salad: Always best to get female pork so that the boar taint is not so prevalent. Try to get a pork tenderloin that is even in thickness in one piece so it is cooked as evenly as possible.
Sealing the bag: Make sure the vacuum sealer is well heated to ensure no leakages in the water bath. The bag should be big enough to house the pork tenderloin; otherwise, it won’t seal properly.
Take your time: Don’t rush the sous vide process and you’ll be rewarded with a juicy and tender piece of protein.
Thankfully it is a set and forget process, so you’re not constantly run off your feet. As you can’t really overcook it either, it’s one less thing to stress about.
Rest the meat: Let the pork rest for 5 minutes post-sear to retain juices before slicing.
Feijoa handling: Choose ripe but firm fruit for clean slices — overripe feijoa becomes too soft for presentation.
Balance the dressing: The ginger salad dressing should be bright and slightly sweet to cut through the richness of pork — taste and adjust acidity with a dash of lemon or vinegar.
Serve warm: Slightly warm pork enhances aroma and contrasts beautifully with cool spinach and feijoa.
The secret to the perfect pork salad recipe is temperature harmony — warm, seared pork over chilled greens with a zingy ginger dressing creates contrast that feels refined yet comforting.
Frequently Asked Questions
You can keep vacuum packed, cooked sous vide meat in the fridge for up to 48 hours so you can prepare the pork tenderloin the day before if you’re short on time. But you will have to sear it just before you eat for optimum taste and freshness.
The rest of the components can be ready a couple of hours ahead of time, but don’t toss the salad dressing through until it is time to eat.
It’s incredibly tender, moist, and evenly cooked throughout — unlike pan-fried or roasted versions.
There are many ways to use up pork tenderloin. Making a salad such as this is a good place to start!
Otherwise, heat them up and eat them as it is with simple steamed vegetables, cut them up into small pieces and add them to fried rice or noodles or you can even use them like mince in soups and spring rolls.
Mango, nectarine, or green apple all work beautifully in this salad for the same sweet-acidic balance.
Have you ever eaten pork and sometimes turned your nose up to it because it has a “porky” or “piggy smell”? Well, the correct terminology for that is boar taint.
Boar taint is a taste and odour that is highly unpleasant when you eat and cook pork. Boar taint is not harmful, nor is it a food safety issue.
It is found only in male pigs and only about 20% of them will have this issue. However, studies have shown that 75% of pork consumers are sensitive to this smell.
So, what exactly is it? When male pigs reach puberty, they produce a male sex hormone called androsterone and also a digestive compound in the intestines called skatole. They are accumulated in the fat and give off this nasty taste and odour.
At The Sidesmith, we celebrate texture, balance, and fresh innovation in every salad. This Sous Vide Pork Tenderloin Salad was tested for precision and flavour harmony — perfectly cooked pork, bright greens, and a lively ginger salad dressing that ties it all together. An elegant example of how pork and salad can coexist beautifully on one plate.
More Salads with Meat
Sous Vide Pork Tenderloin Salad
Ingredients
Salad
- 350 g pork tenderloin
- 2½ tbsp avocado oil
- 40 g baby spinach
- 1 shallot, thinly sliced
- ½ cup cilantro, leaves (cilantro)
- 8 feijoa
- ¼ cup cashews
- salt, to taste
- pepper, to taste
Salad Dressing
- 2 tsp ginger, grated
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tbsp rice wine vinegar
- 2 tsp brown sugar
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- ¼ tsp cumin powder
Click on the toggle below for conversion to US Cooking Units.
Instructions
Salad
- Coat pork tenderloin in ½ tbsp avocado oil and salt and pepper to taste and place in the sous vide bag and seal. For a medium rare cook, the sous vide pork tenderloin temperature should be at 55.4°C or 130°F for 1 hour. Preheat the water bath using the Precision Cooker to this setting.
- Wash baby spinach and set aside to dry.
- Slice the shallot very thinly.
- Roughly tear the coriander leaves to yield ½ cup.
- Peel 4 feijoas and slice crossways.
- Make feijoa flowers with the other 4 feijoas. Place the fruit on the chopping board. Using a small knife, pierce the feijoa at a diagonal angle until it hits the chopping board. Remove the knife and continue to make diagonal cuts around the fruit about 0.5cm apart. Once you have done one round, make diagonal incisions on the other angle. What you’re after are zig-zag cuts all the way around the fruit. You’ll then be able to pull the fruit apart, which will resemble a flower.
- When the pork is cooked, heat up 2 tbsp of avocado oil in a pan. Sear each side for 1 minute and let it rest for 5 minutes. Then slice.
Salad Dressing
- Peel and grate the ginger to yield 2 tsp.
- In a small mixing bowl, add the ginger, olive oil, rice wine vinegar, brown sugar, garlic powder and cumin powder.
- Mix until well combined.
Assembly
- In a medium sized mixing bowl, add the baby spinach and sliced shallots. Add half the ginger vinaigrette and toss gently. Place on a serving platter.
- Add the sliced pork and then the feijoas. You can tuck some under the spinach leaves.
- Sprinkle it with cashew nuts.
- Garnish with coriander leaves.
- Pour the rest of the ginger vinaigrette on top. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve.
Notes
- Here are the different sous vide pork tenderloin temperature setting for the Precision Cooker:
Medium-rare – 130°F/54°C for 1 to 4 hours
Medium – 140°F/60°C for 1 to 4 hours
Medium-well – 150°F/66°C for 1 to 4 hours
Well-done – 160°F/71°C for 1 to 4 hours - As feijoas are an autumn fruit, you can use kiwi fruit of any colour, be it green, gold or red or a mixture for this recipe for any other time of the year. While the flavours are not quite the same, it is the best substitute for this recipe.
- Any green mixed leaves would work well for this salad. If you love the peppery flavours of arugula, you can use that as they are or perhaps mix it with other greens.
- You can use salad onions instead of shallots.
- You can replace coriander with flat leaf parsley or chervil.
- You can use roasted or unroasted cashews for this recipe. You can also replace cashews with pistachios, macadamias or almonds if you have them handy in your pantry.
Nutrition
*Disclaimer: Nutritional information provided is an estimate only and generated by an online calculator.
Hey there! We’re The Sidesmith!
Phenie
I tell the stories behind our recipes and capture the bits that make us human.
Sammy
I create delicious sides, often Asian-inspired. Easy for everyday meals or great for entertaining.
Amy
Love turning everyday salads and sides into fancy recipes jammed packed with flavour!
this salad is incredible! such a delicious recipe.
Thanks so much! Great to hear it worked out and you enjoyed it.
This salad is so flavorful! Love the pork tenderloin.
Thank you! Glad you liked it. Who does love a good piece of tenderloin!
This sous vide pork salad is fresh, flavorful, and beautifully balanced. The feijoa and ginger dressing make it feel effortlessly elegant.
Thank you so much!
What a wonderful recipe. Sous vide is probably my favourite way to cook lean pork! We made this salad with mizuna, as that’s what we have growing in the garden right now, and it worked beautifully with other flavours.
Oh amazing! I love mizuna but not always easy to find. Very envious you have it growing.
Such a refined salad! The feijoa and ginger vinaigrette bring gorgeous balance to the tender pork. I imagine how this can be definite a showstopper. Excited to make this soon!
Hope you do! If you can find feijoa or not in season, you can try it with roasted or fresh apples and any stone fruit would go well too.