Instant Pot Pork Loin
Dec 31, 2019, Updated Sep 07, 2021
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Instant Pot Pork Loin – Juicy and delicious Pork Loin Roast, topped with garlic, butter, and herbs, and cooked to tender, succulent perfection in the Instant Pot! Make dinnertime way less hectic with this easy Instant Pot Pork Loin recipe. A quick, satisfying dinner on the table and clean-up is a snap!
Instant Pot Pork Loin
Looking for big flavors with minimum effort? Mastering a Pork Loin Roast has never been easier. With just a handful of ingredients and 30 minutes, Instant Pot Pork Loin will add another dimension to easy dinners!
Don’t have an Instant Pot? No worries – get my very popular recipe for cooking pork loin roast in the oven.
Pork Loin is possibly my favorite cut of pork meat. From a traditional braised pork shoulder and a pork roast, to a fancy porchetta recipe, it’s easy to cook, has plenty of flavor, and doesn’t need much babysitting, ESPECIALLY when you cook it in the Instant Pot. The Instant Pot lets you sear, cook, and sauce the pork, all in the same pot.
BUT FIRST, there are a couple of things you’ll want to keep in mind when cooking pork loin in the Instant Pot.
- First, make sure you get a boneless pork LOIN, and not pork TENDERLOIN. They sound similar, but are two different cuts.
- Second, you will need some liquid – like, broth, wine, or beer (your choice) – we need this for the pressure cooking phase, but we also WANT this liquid for our sauce.
How to Cook Pork Loin in the Instant Pot
- Season the pork loin. We start by melting some butter, then stirring in garlic, brown sugar, and herbs. Season the pork loin with salt and pepper, then brush the butter mixture onto all sides of the meat.
- Sear. Next, set the Sauté function on the instant pot and heat up a bit of olive oil; sear the pork loin on all sides until browned – should take about 2 to 3 minutes per side. Remove the pork and set aside.
- Deglaze. Add liquid to the Instant Pot and scrape up any browned bits from the bottom.
- Cook. Place a trivet in the IP and set the pork on top of the trivet. Lock the lid and pressure cook at high pressure for 15 minutes.
- Release the pressure. Then, let the pressure come down naturally for 15 minutes, and do a quick release of any remaining pressure.
- Check for doneness. Open the lid and check internal temperature with an instant read meat thermometer – it should read 145˚F. If it’s less than this, you can place the lid back on the pot to let the carryover heat cook the pork to doneness. Shouldn’t take more than 3 minutes.
- Let it rest. Transfer the pork loin to a cutting board and let it rest for 15 minutes.
- Prepare the pan-sauce. Meanwhile, select the Sauté function and bring the liquid to a boil. Continue to cook at a slow boil for 5 minutes, or until reduced by half, stirring occasionally.
- Serve. Slice the pork and serve with the pan juices. For a creamy twist, stir in a splash of cream to create a luscious sauce, or sauté some mushrooms before making the sauce to whip up rich and savory cream of mushroom pork chops.
Once you serve this bad boy, you will be on pork-cooking duty for life! It’s a pork roast recipe that is easy enough for weeknight dinners, but also impressive enough for company. I love that it cooks quickly, but remains succulent and tender, and lends itself well to any variety of flavors.
Tips for Juicy, Tender, Instant Pot Pork Loin
- Work with room temperature meat. Take the pork loin out of the fridge 20 to 30 minutes before cooking it.
- Clean the pork loin. Trim visible silverskin or loose pieces of fat, but leave the fat cap in place.
- Brown the pork loin before pressure cooking. Don’t skip this part – it adds flavor and texture. Also, for a crispier crust, place the cooked roast on a sheet pan and pop it in a 475˚F preheated oven for 8 to 10 minutes.
- Cooked to perfection. A perfectly prepared pork loin should be removed from cooking at 145°F for medium doneness. The key to juicy pork is not overcooking it — a higher temperature results in a dry and stringy pork loin.
- Size matters. Keep in mind that cooking time also depends on the size of the pork loin. For this recipe, I used a 2-1/2 pound roast.
What I love about this recipe is, of course, the quick cooking method, but also the flavor! Garlic, herbs, butter…yum! Turns out perfect results every time. Serve this pork loin over mashed potatoes, mushroom rice, or with scalloped potatoes. You could also slice it really thin and pile it on sandwiches all week long.
How to Store Pork Loin Leftovers
- Refrigerate leftover pork in an airtight container for up to 4 days.
More Pork Recipes
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Instant Pot Pork Loin
Ingredients
- 2 to 2½ pounds boneless pork loin roast
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 3 tablespoons butter, melted
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- ¾ teaspoon lemon zest
- 2 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley
- 1 teaspoon minced fresh thyme leaves
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 cup chicken broth, (you can also use wine, beer, or water)
Instructions
- Prep. Take the pork loin out of the fridge 20 minutes before cooking.
- Combine the ingredients. In a small bowl, whisk together the melted butter, garlic, brown sugar, soy sauce, lemon zest, parsley, and thyme.
- Prepare the pork. Season the pork loin with salt and pepper, then brush the butter mixture all over the meat. Set aside.
- Sear. Press the Sauté function on the Instant Pot and heat up the olive oil. When the oil is hot, sear the pork loin on all sides until browned, about 2 to 3 minutes per side. Remove the pork from the IP and set aside.
- Deglaze the pot. Add broth (or wine, beer, or water) to the Instant Pot and scrape up any browned bits from the bottom.
- Cook. Cancel the Sauté function and place a trivet in the IP and set the pork on top of the trivet. Lock the lid and pressure cook at HIGH PRESSURE for 15 minutes. Then, let the pressure come down naturally for 15 minutes, and quick-release any remaining pressure. Open the lid and check the internal temperature of the pork loin with an instant read meat thermometer; it should read 145˚F. If it’s less than this, you can place the lid back on the pot to let the carryover heat cook the pork to doneness. Shouldn’t take more than 2 to 3 minutes. Do not discard the liquid that's inside the pot.
- Rest the meat. Transfer the pork loin to a cutting board and let it rest for 15 minutes before cutting. This will help seal in the juices.
- In the meantime, prepare the pan-sauce: Select the Sauté function on the IP and bring the liquid to a boil. Continue to cook at a slow boil for 5 minutes, or until reduced by half, stirring occasionally.
- Serve. Slice the pork loin and serve it with the pan juices.
Equipment
Video
Nutrition
Nutritional info is an estimate and provided as courtesy. Values may vary according to the ingredients and tools used. Please use your preferred nutritional calculator for more detailed info.
This is NOT keto friendly. Keto is zero sugar. I was disappointed after this came up when I searched for a keto recipie.
Could you elaborate on that, please? How is it not Keto-friendly? I don’t consider myself an expert, but Keto does not mean no sugar at all. You can still have sugar, but you need to make sure that sugar, combined with all your other sources of carbs, stays below the threshold of about 50 grams a day. Most people will need to go under 50 grams per day to reach ketosis.
This recipe calls for 1 tablespoon of brown sugar. There’s roughly 13 grams of sugar in brown sugar and 0.1 gram sugar in soy sauce. When divided by 6 servings, you’re only looking at a little over 2 grams of sugar per serving. A serving amounts to a little over 5 ounces.
I made this exactly as the recipe said but without the sugar. It browned just fine and came out moist and delicious. I added small chunks of root vegetables plus 1/3 cup extra stock to the liquid right after the meat came out. (I live in a dry climate and our veggies tend to need extra liquid.)They cooked in the sauce as it reduced. Since some of the veggies were from the freezer I served with an extra bit of fresh chopped parsley and the tiniest grating of lemon zest to freshen it up. Will definitely make again. Thank you!
This was delicious! Thanks for posting the nutritional information per serving but what is the serving size?
Wanted to try something different from my traditional pork roast for new years day. My husband is picky so it made me nervous, but when he finished his plate and I asked him if it was a “make again or never again” , he said it was a definite keeper! Very flavorful and tender, thank you for sharing it!
I am very glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂
I have made this several times using a 3-pound loin and it comes out perfectly. I have a loin that is over 4 pounds and am trying to guess how long to cook it. I have cut it in half so it will fit in the 8 qt instant pot. In reading the comments there is one place you say 30 minutes with 15 min natural release and then 15 min platter ret before carving. In another place, you say 20 min cook time with the same release and rest time. Yet another place says 25 min cook time with the same 15 min natural release and 15 min platter rest time. I am trying to figure out which cook time to use. Has anyone had any experience with a loin this size?
This turned out perfect, as expected, given the amount of meat and the suggested cooking/release time. Here is an instant pot tip, folks: If you are not a seasoned instant pot improviser and you bought a larger loin or roast, then you might consider cutting down what you purchased to the size used in the recipe. Wrap the rest and freeze it for another day. That will give you a more consistent result when you are using someone else’s recipe.
Perfect! I’d never cooked a pork loin before but now I can’t wait to try it again, probably adapting conventional recipes to the Instant pot.
Wow! This turned out really delicious! Followed the recipe just as written. Thanks for such a great recipe addition for the instant pot.
I am very glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂
Hello – i have a boneless pork tenderloin ( it doesn’t say roast) and it’s 4.38 pounds. How do i adjust the cooking time for the extra weight? Also do I double the other ingredients?
Hi!
Is this two tenderloins, each weighing 2 pounds? I have a recipe for IP pork tenderloin right here: https://diethood.com/instant-pot-garlic-pork-tenderloin/ Note that I have never tried to make two at the same time in the IP, but the liquid and cook time should remain the same.
No this is one pork loin, not tenderloin or roast.
Hi Jen–I have a 4lb pork loin and wonder how yours came out? I’m cooking tonight so hope you see this! Thanks
Hi!
I would suggest to set the IP to High Pressure and set it for 30 minutes. Then let it release pressure naturally for 15 minutes. Open the lid and check temperature of the pork using an instant read thermometer; it should read about 140˚F. Transfer the roast to a cutting board and let stand about 10 to 15 minutes before cutting. Keep in mind that the pork will continue to cook while it rests.
So delicious, thank you for sharing! I subbed tarragon for thyme and did half chicken broth/half white wine for deglazing. I also added a bit of cornstarch slurry to thicken the gravy. My husband, who insists he doesn’t like pork, devoured it.
That’s great! I am very glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂
First time making any kind of pork roast and it turned out great!
I like my sauces a bit thicker so I added a bit of cornstarch slurry to the pan sauce and it worked perfectly
I am very glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂
that was delicious. cooked just as you said. yum
Ok just to say me and pork never got along! Never could get it just right, but tonight tried this recipe and as usual had the applesauce for hubby cause he knew I was cooking pork again 😉and to my surprise no need for apple sauce because this recipe was the best pork I ever made!! Thank you !!!
I am very glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂