Sunday dinner means a lot of things to a lot of people. It can be the time you gather with friends and family, or the time you are relaxing for just a little longer before starting another work week. In either case, an easy and delicious dinner is the perfect way to enjoy Sunday evening—or any evening! This recipe is simple, affordable and delightfully delicious.Â
The Sunday Pork Roast is a quintessential family meal, perfect for those leisurely weekends. It combines the rich, deep flavors of a perfectly seasoned pork shoulder with the earthy goodness of roasted vegetables. The combination of garlic, onion, and paprika creates a savory crust on the pork, while the vegetables, cooked in the same pan, absorb the meat’s juices, becoming tender and flavorful. The apple juice adds a subtle sweetness, complementing the savory notes of the roast. This recipe is not just about creating a meal; it’s about crafting an experience that brings the family together. Whether you’re a novice in the kitchen or a seasoned home cook, this roast is straightforward to prepare, requiring simple ingredients and no complex techniques.
Sunday Pork Roast is an easy to make comfort food that is hearty, filling, and can easily feed the whole family for Sunday dinner. This recipe includes instructions for a classic oven braise as well as cooking in a slow cooker or Instant Pot.
Ingredient Breakdown
- Pork Shoulder or Butt Roast: These cuts are ideal for roasting. For a leaner option, try pork loin.
- Vegetable Oil: Can be substituted with olive oil for a slightly different flavor.
- Seasonings: Adjust the salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and paprika to taste. Fresh garlic and onion can be used for a more intense flavor.
- White Onions: Red onions or shallots are good substitutes.
- Baby Carrots and Red Potatoes: Feel free to replace these with other vegetables like turnips or sweet potatoes.
- Apple Juice: Chicken broth or white wine can be used for a different flavor profile.
- Rosemary: Fresh is best, but dried rosemary is also suitable.
Frequently Asked Questions
The pork roast has so much fat to render, that we want to roast it uncovered, otherwise it will steam and it won’t get that great roasted flavor.
This recipe calls for a cut of pork that requires a longer time in the oven. That is good because it allows enough time for the vegetables to cook through. A loin roast cooks significantly faster, and will not give you enough time to cook your veggies thoroughly enough. If using a pork loin, you’ll need to make adjustments to the cooking time to account for these differences.
Yes. Red and Yukon Gold potatoes go best with this recipe. Russet potatoes are a little too starchy and don’t work as well. We like the baby red potatoes, which are fun too, because they can remain whole. If you can’t find ones that are about the size of a golf ball or smaller, you can cut up larger ones.
The initial high temperature sears the outside of the roast and keeps the inside juicy.
This recipe doesn’t make a specific gravy, but you can find a guide to making gravy here, which will show you how to make gravy to go with any meal, whether from scratch or from your roast’s drippings.
Slow Cooker & Instant Pot Instructions
SLOW COOKER INSTRUCTIONS:Â Season the roast as directed in step 2 of the recipe. Place the meat directly into a slow cooker. Add in all remaining ingredients and cook on low 8 hours.
INSTANT POT ELECTRIC PRESSURE COOKER INSTRUCTIONS:Â Follow this recipe as directed, but instead of searing and roasting the roast in a large pot, you’ll do all of this in your pressure cooker. Sear the roast using the sear setting on your electric pressure cooker. Deglaze the pan with liquids, and add in vegetables. Cook on high pressure for 60 minutes, followed by a 15-minute natural release. Then, switch the release valve to the venting position. Remove the lid once steam has stopped coming out.
Storage and Reheating Instructions
Leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or frozen for up to 3 months. Reheat in the oven or microwave until heated through. For freezing, slice the pork and store it in freezer-safe containers with some of the cooking juices to retain moisture.
More Delicious Pork Recipes
Watch the video below where Rachel will walk you through every step of this recipe. Sometimes it helps to have a visual, and we’ve always got you covered with our cooking show. You can find the complete collection of recipes on YouTube, Facebook Watch, or our Facebook Page, or right here on our website with their corresponding recipes.
Absolutely one of my favorite recipes !!
The only thing I changed was I left out the paprika and added some dark brown sugar 😋mmm good 😊
We used a 5.6 lb bone in pork shoulder, medium russet potatoes cut up and whole carrots cut up along with 2 onions. I was surprised to see that you cooked it uncovered. I did cover it for the last 40 minutes but that may not have been necessary. It was absolutely delicious and so very tender, easily shredded.
Made this tonight to celebrate my birthday. It was SO good! The roast was juicy, the vegetables were perfectly cooked and I thickened the au jus to a perfect gravy. Wish I could upload a picture it looks so good!
This was so easy and delicious! we
loved it! Thank you!
Best pork roast ever
Excellent recipe, thanks for sharing! Question – we love the rub seasoning – do you think this would this be good to use on a turkey breast? TYIA!
Made a version of this tonight. It was a huge hit. Very tasty seasoning and roast was tender. I used chicken stock instead of apple juice as I wanted savory. My roast was smaller so I cut cook time in half. Loved the broth from the stock and spices melding. Yummy!
This is my husband’s absolute favorite meal! He came home last night from the store, and said, “I have a surprise for you!”
I opened the bag…another pork roast for me to cook with this recipe, and it’s not even Sunday!
Every time I make pork roast I follow this recipe and I do it in a deep cast iron skillet it comes out just as juicy as it would in a roasting pan
A good base recipe. I didn’t add the apple juice and removed the roast to put the veggies in (limited to toaster oven at the moment-so had to use the Dutch Oven that would fit)! So I ended up with a slicing roast rather than a pulled pork roast. Ate about half as roast with the veggies and then cubed the remainder to make a Mexican Pork Casserole (hatch chilies, black beans, bechamel with cojita, corn tortillas and then shredded cheese for the top) I love it when I can cook once and then repurpose the leftovers!