Tasty Pork Roast With Root Vegetables

Welcome! While making this dinner for a Wednesday evening, I decided I wanted to share such an easy and tasty meal that may normally be only for Sunday dinners. At least in my home it would be. The key is to not plan on having too many leftovers especially if your feeding more than three people. This was for three so we did have some extra.

This was prepared with a boneless pork loin that was under 2 1/2 pounds. This also comes in at a very low price point! 

The first thing to do is to get that roast out of the refrigerator and let come to room temperature. If the meat starts from a very cold state the outside will cook long before the inside is cooked through and much of the meat will be dry. I find pork can be a bit tricky.  Now that I know that my oven cooks a bit warm, I’m able to adjust the temperature and cooking times.

Next I whisked together about 1/4 cup of olive oil, 1 Tbsp. fresh chopped rosemary,  2 Tbsp. fresh parsley, 1 Tsp. dried thyme, 1/2 Tsp. garlic powder, 1 1/2 Tsp. salt and 1/2 Tsp. black pepper. Use whatever herbs and spices you have available. Just make sure you have enough for the meat and veggies. This is all about saving steps, time and using as few pots and pans as possible.

Coat the roast with half the herb mixture and get it into a hot skillet on your stove top. I used a skillet I could put right into my oven once the meat was browned on all sides.

Make sure to brown all sides:)

Next, I put the pan and roast into a 350 degree oven for 1/2 hour on the middle rack.

During that time I cut up my veggies. I used 4 yukon gold potatoes with the skin on and 5 large carrots which I peeled. If the carrots were organic, I probably wouldn’t have peeled them.  All the pieces were chopped to approximately the same size. Root veggies cook great in the oven. These could easily be switched out to parsnips, sweet potatoes or even brussel sprouts. It’s all up to you! Then I coated the veggies with the other half of the herb mixture.

My roast was small so after browning and cooking in the oven for a 1/2 hour it was well on its way to being cooked. I added the veggies to the pan with the meat and placed it back into the oven for another 1/2 hour. At that time the temperature of the meat was 155 degrees. You want your pork to read no less the 145 degrees with a meat thermometer in the thickest section before taking it out of the oven and covering it with foil.  The veggies were still firm so they went back into the oven for another 20 minutes to cook before they were tender.

A pan sauce or gravy is up to you. Since there was some residual juice and fat at the bottom of the pan, no more than a couple tablespoons,  I added 1 Tbsp. of flour and whisked it into the fat and juice.  I had some chicken broth in my refrigerator and added 1 cup to the flour in the pan and whisked until slightly thickened. I then poured it through a sieve to get rid of any lumps. I didn’t find the gravy to be a hassle and the meal would definitely have been just as good without it. 

I hope you decide to try this easy week night dinner!

Thank you for stopping by and stay safe out there:)

Roni