Easy Pork Roast

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This pork roast recipe is as easy as can be: Rub the pork with spices and cook it in the oven until the outside is browned and crispy and the inside is tender and juicy.

It's a simple recipe that produces reliably juicy results time after time. It's one of the recipes most often requested by my family! It's easy, delicious, and affordable.

Pork roast is served on a white platter with broccoli.

I love making roasts for dinner. Much like casseroles, they provide lots of food for minimal work - they practically cook themselves!

When it comes to pork, although I enjoy oven-baked pork chops, this pork roast is easier to make. You simply rub the meat with seasonings, then bake it until it reaches an internal temperature of 145°F.

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Ingredients
Variations
Instructions
Expert Tips
Recipe FAQs
Serving Suggestions
Storing Leftovers
More Pork Recipes
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Ingredients

You'll only need a few simple ingredients to make this recipe. The exact measurements are listed in the recipe card below. Here's an overview of what you'll need:

Olive oil spray: I love olive oil and use it frequently. If you prefer an oil with a higher smoke point, you can use avocado oil instead.
Kosher salt and black pepper: I use Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Spices: Garlic powder, paprika, dried sage, and dried thyme. I prefer garlic powder to minced fresh garlic in this recipe. It more evenly coats the meat.
Boneless pork shoulder: I usually pick a 3-pound roast. I prefer a boneless roast because it's easier to slice and serve.

Variations

The best way to vary this recipe is to experiment with different spices. Good options I tried and liked include onion powder, dried oregano, ground cumin, and ground mustard. You can add ½ to 1 teaspoon of any of these spices to the spice mixture.

You can also spray the pork with ghee instead of olive oil. It's delicious!

Instructions

Scroll down to the recipe card for detailed instructions. Here are the basic steps for making this recipe:

Prepare the spice mixture: Mix the kosher salt, black pepper, garlic powder, paprika, sage, and thyme.

Rub the spice mixture over the pork and spray its top liberally with olive oil.

Cook the pork for 15 minutes in a preheated 425°F oven. Lower the oven to 375°F and continue roasting the pork to an internal temperature of 145°F for about 75 more minutes. When done, it will be beautifully browned:

Let the pork rest for 20 minutes before slicing and serving.

Slicing the cooked roast. — Slightly pink is OK, says the USDA (but feel free to cook it for longer if you prefer).

Expert Tips

It's very important to allow the fully cooked roast to rest for at least 20 minutes before slicing it. This allows the juices to redistribute and settle. If you cut into the roast too soon, juices will be lost, and the pork will end up dry and not as flavorful.
You should keep the roast uncovered in the oven. You want it nicely browned. However, if your roast is big and the top is getting too dark while the inside is not yet fully cooked, you should loosely cover the top with foil to protect it from over-browning.

Recipe FAQs

How long should I cook a pork roast?

After the first 15 minutes of browning the roast in a hot oven, a rough estimate is to keep cooking it for approximately 25 minutes per pound. But this is just an estimate.

As with all roasts, including ribeye roast and beef tenderloin roast, it's important to use a meat thermometer that you insert into the roast and alerts you when it's fully cooked. There's no other reliable way to ensure the roast is done.

This is especially important with pork because the lowest internal temperature you want it to reach is 145 degrees (medium).

I usually get a 3-pound pork shoulder. If your roast is bigger, increase the cooking time accordingly. If the top seems to be getting too dark, loosely cover it with foil.

Should pork be cooked well done?

No. In 2011, the USDA lowered its temperature recommendation for cooking whole cuts of pork from 160°F (completely white meat, which can be quite dry) to 145°F (juicy and slightly pink in the center) with a 3-minute rest period.

This means that a cut of pork may still look pink when it reaches 145 degrees. The USDA says that's OK.

After years of being conditioned to expect pork to appear white when fully cooked, this change is not easy for many of us. But this is a good change: meat cooked to medium is juicy, while well-done meat is dry.

Is it better to use a boneless or a bone-in roast?

I prefer a boneless roast because it's easier to slice and serve. The only disadvantage is that once it's done, you don't have bones to use for a tasty soup.

Can I use pork loin in this recipe?

I don't recommend using pork loin. Although tender, it's lean and will dry out during prolonged cooking. You should stick with pork shoulder, a fatty cut that won't dry easily.

Serving Suggestions

This roast is rich and flavorful, so I like to keep the sides simple. Here are a few of the easy side dishes I usually serve with it:

Storing Leftovers

You can keep the leftovers in the fridge, in an airtight container, for 3-4 days. Reheat them gently, covered, in the microwave at 50% power. They won't be as good as the freshly prepared roast, but they will still be delicious.

You can also freeze the leftovers for up to three months.

Pork roast is served on a white platter with veggies.

More Pork Recipes

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Recipe Card

5 from 265 votes

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This pork roast is juicy and flavorful. Rub it with spices and then roast it in the oven until done. It's easy, delicious, and affordable!

Prep Time40

Cook Time1 30

Rest time15

Total Time2 25

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Servings: servings

Calories: 494kcal

Author: Vered DeLeeuw

Ingredients

▢ Olive oil spray
▢ 1 tablespoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt - or ½ tablespoon of any other salt
▢ ½ teaspoon black pepper
▢ 1 tablespoon garlic powder
▢ 1 tablespoon paprika - regular or smoked
▢ 1 teaspoon dried sage
▢ 1 teaspoon dried thyme
▢ 3 pounds pork shoulder roast - boneless

Instructions

Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil and fit it with a wire rack. Spray the wire rack with olive oil.
In a small bowl, mix the kosher salt, black pepper, garlic powder, paprika, sage, and thyme.
Pat the pork dry with paper towels. Place it on the wire rack. Rub the spice mixture all over the roast. Spray its top liberally with olive oil.
Heat the oven to 425°F. Let the roast sit at room temperature while the oven is warming, about 30 minutes.
Insert a meat thermometer probe into the middle of the pork roast and place it in the hot oven. Roast it for 15 minutes, then lower the heat to 375°F and continue roasting until the meat thermometer reads 145°F. In my oven, it takes 75 minutes (about 25 minutes per pound).
Remove the roast from the oven. Loosely tent it with foil and allow it to rest for 20 minutes. Carefully remove the butcher twine from the roast, slice, and serve.

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Notes

If your roast is bigger than 3 pounds, you will need to cook it for longer. A general rule of thumb is 25 minutes per pound. Its internal temperature should reach 145°F. If the top seems to be browning too much after the initial 75 minutes, loosely cover it with foil.
It's important to allow the fully cooked roast to rest for at least 20 minutes before slicing it. This allows the juices to redistribute and settle. If you cut into the roast too soon, yummy juices will be lost, and the meat will end up dry and not as flavorful.
You can keep the leftovers in the fridge, in an airtight container, for 3-4 days. Reheat them gently, covered, in the microwave at 50% power.
The nutrition info is based on the USDA database.

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Nutrition per Serving

Easy Pork Roast

Ingredients

Variations

Instructions

Expert Tips

Recipe FAQs

Serving Suggestions

Storing Leftovers

More Pork Recipes

Recipe Card