Pressure Cooker Pork Loin with Bourbon Apple Sauce is an easy and delicious recipe for tender pork in your Instant Pot, finished off with a savory Bourbon apple sauce.
Pressure Cooker Pork Loin with Bourbon Apple Sauce
Sometimes I get an idea for a recipe that gets me quite excited. This Pressure Cooker Pork Loin with Bourbon Apple Sauce was one of them. I had been making multiple batches of apple sauce in my Instant Pot with all the apples from our tree. It was so much easier than my Mom’s traditional method.
I just filled the pot with peeled and roughly chopped apples along with 1 cup of liquid and cooked it for 5 minutes on high pressure. When I quick released the pressure, I would stir in sugar until it reached my desired sweetness while it was still pipping hot and the sugar easily dissolved.
All of this apple sauce making led me to the idea of adding a pork loin to make a meal out of it. I had to dig to the very back of our dusty liquor cabinet to scrounge up some Bourbon, but thankfully I had some on hand. I added some savory elements along with the Bourbon like garlic, thyme and rosemary to pair with the juice of the pork and the sweet apples and orange juice. It all melded together into a robust apple sauce that paired perfectly with the pork loin. The finished product was absolutely amazing!
Pressure Cooker Pork Loin
I love when the Electric Pressure Cooker can be used to truly make dinner easier. Some recipes in the Instant Pot don’t really save you any time or make life much more convenient. With this Pressure Cooker Pork Loin with Bourbon Apple Sauce it makes a sauce to compliment the pork without doing any of the work, standing over the stove cooking down apples for a sauce. Simply toss everything in the pot, forget about it and you will have an amazing entree to serve for dinner in an hour.
The last time I got this excited about a recipe turning out so good was my Pressure Cooker Pork Loin with Stuffing & Gravy. That recipe takes a few more steps and a little more time, but it tastes amazing and is a complete meal with classic flavors. This Pork Loin with Bourbon Apple Sauce tastes equally amazing, with flavors that you might not enjoy on an everyday basis.
Apples and pork are a classic combination in their own right, but the savory Bourbon twist really adds something special to the recipe. You can serve the pork directly from the Instant Pot with a chunky apple sauce, or you can give the apples a quick blend with your immersion blender for a smoother, and frankly prettier, sauce to serve on the side.
I like a good chunky apple sauce, but I thought that they guys I was bringing this to in the field, might be turned off by the appearance. I took the extra few seconds to blend it smooth. I served the pork and savory apple sauce with some Crispy Roasted Onion Potatoes that I made in my Airfryer for a complete meal that doesn’t even require a stove!
Pressure Cooker Pork Loin with Bourbon Apple Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1/2 tsp. dried thyme
- 1/2 tsp. dried rosemary
- 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
- 2-3 lb. unseasoned pork loin NOT tenderloin
- 2 Tbsp. butter
- lemon juice
- 2/3 c. orange juice
- 1/4 c. Bourbon
- 4 medium apples peeled and roughly chopped
- 1 tsp. apple cider vinegar
- 1 tsp. Dijon mustard
- 1 Tbsp. brown sugar
Instructions
- In a small bowl, mix the salt, thyme, rosemary and garlic powder. Rub the mixture over the pork loin. Turn your Instant Pot to saute function and add the butter.
- Once the butter is melted, add the seasoned pork loin and saute on each side so there is a nice golden sear.
- Meanwhile, peel and slice your apples into a bowl of cold water with a splash of lemon juice.
- Remove the seared pork from the pot and add the Bourbon and orange juice. Scrape the bottom of the pan with your spatula to remove all the seared on bits.
- Drain the lemon water off the apples and add them to the pot along with the remaining ingredients. Place the pork loin back in the pot on top of the apples.
- Place the lid on the pot and turn the knob to seal. Cook on high pressure for 35 minutes. Allow the pressure to release naturally for 15-20 minutes.
- Remove the pork loin from the pot and allow to rest for 5 minutes before cutting. If you prefer a smooth apple sauce, use an immersion blender to blend until it reaches your desired consistency.
- NOTE: While the apple sauce is still pipping hot, taste test it to see if it is as sweet or savory to your preference. If it is too sweet, add another splash of apple cider vinegar. If it is too savory, stir in some more brown sugar until it dissolves.
Video
Nutrition
More amazing Pressure Cooker recipes!
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Jacki says
You say not tenderloin.. but what’s in your picture is an actual tenderloin, a regular pork loin is bigger and fattier, I had to cut it in half to fit in the largest instapot. I also had to add more time. I’m hoping it won’t ruin the apples..
Danielle Green says
Some pork loins come in a variety of sizes. I avoid the huge ones because it is more meat than my family will eat and they are cumbersome in the Instant Pot. The additional time shouldn’t ruin the apples though. Hope it still turned out for you!
Aaron Pomeroy says
I was excited to try this. Unfortunately it came out very, very dry. Had little flavor and the apple sauce came out tasting like vinegar no matter how much brown sugar I used. I will say maybe I didn’t use the correct apples. But over all it was not worth the money on this recipe.
There are many recipes on here that turn out great this is just not one of them.
Sheila Scott says
I was so excited to try this recipe. And, although, it was edible, it wasn’t what is depicted in the description. i followed the recipe to the letter. Next time, if there is one, I will not cook the meat as long. It was way over done. The apples placed in the bottom did not resemble applesauce at all. It had turned into total mush laying in an abundant amount of liquid and did not have much flavor.
I am not sure what went wrong, but it was a big dissapointment.
Twila says
Do you have any recommendations on what to replace the bourbon with since we do not partake of alcohol?
Danielle Green says
A dash of vanilla would be a good substitute, but be sure to add an additional 1/4 cup of liquid for the 1 cup minimum, in the form of apple or orange juice.
Katie says
I made this for my husband and myself and it was DELICIOUS! I took the apples from my Instant Pot and pureed them in our food processor – it turned out perfectly! My hubs isn’t a huge pork fan, but loves the flavor of bourbon so this was a win! Thanks for sharing.
Danielle Green says
So happy you guys enjoyed the recipe!
Amy says
Unfortunately, this was a miss for me. The meat was pretty tough, and there were chunks of apples sitting in pure liquid. It did not resemble applesauce at all, plus the pork cooking directly in the liquid meant all the fat ended up in the sauce. After putting the leftovers in the fridge, I ended up with huge blobs of white fat all over the top after it cooled.
Amy says
Unfortunately, this was a miss for me. The meat was pretty tough, and there were chunks of apples sitting in pure liquid. It did not resemble applesauce at all, plus the pork cooking directly in the liquid meant all the fat ended up in the sauce. After putting the leftovers in the fridge, I ended up with huge blobs of white fat all over the top after it cooled.
Dem says
The meat came out somewhat tough and the sauce was very bland no matter what I did to it.
Josh says
Neither the dijon mustard or apple cider vinegar is mentioned in the recipe steps. #Confused
Danielle Green says
They are both part of the “remaining ingredients”
Melissa Howell says
I love pork loin so much, and I bet my family would LOVE this recipe! It’s perfect for fall with the addition of the yummy apples! What a great recipe! Pinning!
Kate says
What apples do you recommend with this?
Danielle Green says
A tart baking apple is preferable.
Coleen Koehl says
My husband would LOVE this! So much flavor!
Julie Evink says
Oh my goodness. You are right! This looks AMAZING!!!
Toni | Boulder Locavore says
This looks ahhhmazing! Perfect dinner any night of the week!
Malinda Linnebur says
This sounds amazing!! I can’t wait to try this out for dinner!!
Toni | Boulder Locavore says
This looks ahhhmazing! Perfect dinner any night of the week!
Lindsay Cotter says
This really is the perfect fall dinner! And so easily made in the Instant Pot!
Melissa Howell says
I love pork loin so much, and I bet my family would LOVE this recipe! It’s perfect for fall with the addition of the yummy apples! What a great recipe! Pinning!
Malinda Linnebur says
This sounds amazing!! I can’t wait to try this out for dinner!!
Coleen Koehl says
My husband would LOVE this! So much flavor!
Julie Evink says
Oh my goodness. You are right! This looks AMAZING!!!