Last Updated on December 14, 2024

A breaded pork tenderloin sandwich was always my mom’s favorite when she would take my sister and me to a cafe for lunch. This was in west-central Illinois and I’ve been reading that the breaded pork tenderloin sandwich was either an Indiana thing or an Iowa thing.

Breaded pork tenderloin sandwich on a blue plate.

Breaded tenderloin sandwich

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I’m not sure where Illinois fits in all this, but it seemed to me that all the little cafes would serve some kind of Breaded pork Tenderloin sandwich.

These Breaded pieces of pork were Giant sized and twice the size of the bun they were served with, so you had a Breaded Tenderloin appetizer to bite off before you got to the bun and condiments. The Fried Pork hung off the sides of the soft Bun and was Huge in comparison. This makes a breaded tenderloin sandwich a fun and special treat.

Here is some history about the breaded tenderloin sandwich as told by two websites, one explaining the Indiana pork tenderloin sandwich and the other Iowa breaded tenderloin sandwich. It is a Traditional Midwest menu item.

Making the Tenderloin Sandwich

There are different cuts of pork you can use for these sandwiches.

First, there is pork loin which is like the boneless pork chops that you will find in your grocery store.

For pork tenderloin sandwiches, this is the piece of tenderloin that is butterflied and pounded flat with a meat mallet. This is how to make a large pork cutlet.

The other is the actual tenderloin or pork filet which is a long thin cut from the central spine area of the pig. These are typically packaged in plastic and will require you to give them a wipe with paper towels to dry them. There is also a fatty layer on the pork tenderloin that can be carefully cut off.

Both cuts of pork will work equally well for these crispy pork chops. The actual tenderloin will result in a smaller flattened piece of pork.

How to Flatten the Pork Tenderloin

The tenderloin is small, only 3 to 3 1/2 inches in diameter. You cut off the silver skin if there is any, then cut off fillets that are 1 inch wide, then butterfly the fillets by cutting down the middle with a sharp knife to about 3/4 to 1/2 inches of the other side, then laying them flat.

Then one by one, cover the butterflied pork with plastic wrap and use a meat tenderizer mallet to pound the pork flat to about 1/4″ to 3/8 inches thick.

Just don’t go so far as to start putting holes in the tenderloin. It took me 8 to 12 hits to get them to where they were flat enough.

You should end up with a 5″ to 7″ diameter pork patty.

Being this flat, it will only take about a minute and a half to fry each side in 350° vegetable oil. The pork will be perfectly done and still nice and juicy on the inside.

Frying the pork tenderloin in a cast iron skillet

Breaded tenderloin

When you cook these, use a heavy skillet, preferably a cast-iron one to hold the heat.

I use my infrared thermometer to keep tabs on the oil temperature. When frying these, I actually had to turn off the gas at one point because it got too hot. Try to keep the oil temperature at 350° to 375°F.

Set Up a Dredging Line

Line up the flour, egg and milk mixture, and the seasoned cracker crumbs to make it easy to coat the pork and have it ready to drop into the frying pan.

As you can see, even with these somewhat smaller tenderloins. I Fried one at a time, but the cooking went really fast.

Use a baking sheet with a wire rack to place the finished tenderloins in the warm oven with the toasted hamburger buns. These are best when served nice and warm.

Breaded pork tenderloin recipe

How to Eat a Breaded Tenderloin Sandwich

Now to put this sandwich together. First, I lightly buttered the bun halves and toasted them in the cast iron frying pan before I did anything else.

I put them on a plate and in the oven on super low to keep warm. Then traditionally you need hamburger pickle slices, and a slice of red onion.

The final touch is a good amount of plain old yellow mustard.

Serve this easy dinner Recipe with Cole slaw, baked beans, potato chips, potato salad, or any other favorite sides.

That’s what my mom’s breaded pork tenderloin sandwich recipe would look like. And Mary Jo said, “Where has this been all my life?… You can keep making this on a regular basis.” I think I will.

How To Reheat Leftovers

Reheating the Leftover Pork tenderloins is easy. First, keep leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Make sure that the pork cutlets are at room temperature before refrigerating. Otherwise, they will have moisture condensing on them.

Oven Place the pork on a lightly oiled baking sheet and heat for 15 minutes at 350°F.

Microwave They can be reheated in a microwave but they will not be as crispy as if heated in an oven.

This easy pork chop recipe can even be made on busy weeknights, and everyone will love it. This is hand-breaded tenderloins, comfort food to the max.

The printable recipe card is below.

Breaded Pork Tenderloin Sandwich Recipe

Perfect pork sandwich just like I remember as a kid.

5 from 7 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Sandwich

Cuisine: American

Keyword: breaded pork tenderloin, breaded pork tenderloin sandwich, breaded tenderloin, pork tenderloin sandwich recipes

Prep Time: 20

Cook Time: 20

Total Time: 40

Servings: servings

Calories: 425kcal

Author: Joe Boyle

Ingredients

12 oz . pork tenderloin , sliced into 4, 1" fillets then butterflied and pounded to 1/4" to 3/8" thickness
4 bakery hamburger buns , insides lightly buttered and toasted on the stove top in a heavy skillet, kept warm in a low oven.
1 cup flour
2 eggs
3 tbsp whole milk
1 sleeve of saltine crackers (40 crackers)
1 tbsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp salt
vegetable oil , enough to fill a large skillet 1/2 inch deep, about 1 cup
sliced red onion
hamburger pickle slices
yellow mustard

Instructions

Lightly butter then toast the buns in a heavy skillet on the stovetop and keep warm.
Cut, butterfly, and pound the pork thin, (1/4" to 3/8"), with a tenderizing mallet and place on a plate
Beat eggs and milk together and place in a large, shallow bowl or pie plate.
Put saltines in a food processor and pulse until you have a coarse to medium chop then add onion powder, garlic powder, and salt and give one or two more pulses to combine.
Put saltines in a shallow bowl or pie plate.
Put flour in a shallow bowl and set up a dredging line with flour first, eggs second and saltines last.
Heat vegetable oil to 350°-375°F preferably in a cast iron skillet or other heavy skillet.
Take one of the pork fillets and coat with flour, then place in the egg wash, let the excess drip off then place in the seasoned cracker crumbs and coat well by patting the crumbs on.
Place in the 350° oil for 1 1/2 to 2 mins. until the crumbs are browned.
Use a spatula and fork to gently turn to the other side and fry that side until browned 1 1/2 to 2 mins.
Remove from the oil and place on a cooling rack over a paper towel lined baking sheet and place in a warm oven.
Continue with the remaining pork.
Serve right away on the hamburger bun with pickles, onion and mustard. (A tomato slice is good also).

Notes

This recipe will also work with store bought tenderized pork loin cutlets. Just make sure they are 1/4" to 3/8" thick and trim any fat from the edges.
Canola oil or corn oil is the best for frying.
An instant read thermometer or a laser type thermometer is good to use to make sure the oil doesn't get too cool or too hot.

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