An Air Fryer Pork Loin is marinated and finished with a maple glaze, making it moist and delicious with the sweet and savory flavors of maple and thyme in the glaze. It is one of my favorite ways to make a pork roast that is easy and convenient,
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❤️ Why you'll love it
Holiday season recipe: pork is known as a symbol of good luck, making this an ideal meal to enjoy on New Year's Day, however this is also a great meal to serve on Christmas day as well.
Juicy pork roast: the contained hot heat from air fryer is the best way prevent a dry roast!
Visually appealing: people “eat with their eyes” first and this easy air fryer recipe is a great way to create a visually appealing glazed pork loin!
🥘 Ingredients
Apple juice
Fresh garlic cloves
Fresh rosemary finely chopped
Pure maple syrup: I highly recommend using pure maple syrup for this recipe.
Boneless pork loin roast: this is one of the best cuts of pork to use for this particular pork recipe. Be sure the size of the pork loin is the right size for your air fryer basket. I used a 3 pound pork loin roast for this recipe
🔪 Instructions
Prepare the marinade
- In a large bowl, combine the apple juice, chicken broth, rosemary, garlic, salt, and apple cider vinegar. Set aside.
Prepare the pork loin
- Pat the pork with paper towels to remove any wetness from the exterior. This makes it easier to handle when tenderizing. Using a Jaccard tenderizer or a fork, pierce the pork loin over the entire outside of the pork. This helps the brine to get deep into the roast.
- Place pork loin into the bag and pour brine over top of the pork; allow it to sit in the refrigerator at least 2 hours, turning it several times, “massaging” the brine into the pork.
Make the glaze
- In a small saucepan add the maple syrup, apple juice, rosemary, and salt over low heat. Bring to a boil, then simmer, reducing mixture by half, or until a thick enough consistency to coat the back of a spoon. Remove from heat and set aside. This should take from 5-10 minutes.
Air fry the pork loin
- Remove pork loin from the brine and pat it dry using paper towels.
- Place pork in a parchment paper-lined air fryer and coat with a small amount of olive oil.
- Air fry at 360 for 15 minutes fat side down, flip pork loin over and continue to cook at 360 for another 15 minutes with the fat side up. Using an instant-read thermometer, check the internal temperature to gauge where the pork is at with cooking time. Flip loin one more time and brush with ½ of the glaze.
- Turn air fryer temperature down to 250 degrees and cook for about 10 minutes to allow glaze to caramelize on the loin, adding the additional ½ of the glaze after 5 minutes. If glaze looks like it is getting too dark, turn down the air fryer temperature. If you want more color on the loin turn temperature up to 400 and cook an additional minute or 2.
- Check internal temp of pork, aiming for a finished temperature of 145 degrees F.
- Remove pork loin from air fryer basket and place on a cutting board. Create a tent foil and cover the roast and let meat rest for at least 5 minutes before slicing.
🥄 Equipment
Air Fryer: a 5 quart air fryer is recommended for this recipe.
Jaccard tenderizer: this is a meat tenderizer that will help you to easily poke holes into the roast. You can use a piercing fork in its place instead.
Brining bag: used to marinate the meat
Small saucepan: for making the glaze
Small bowl: to mix the marinade in before pouring over the meat.
Air fryer liners: to make clean up easy.
Instant Read Meat thermometer: to check the internal temperature of the pork.
Cutting board: I like to use a board specifically for cutting meat.
Sharp knife
🥫Storage
Refrigerate: store leftover pork in an airtight container in the fridge up to 4 days.
Freeze: leftovers can be stored in the freezer in an airtight freezer safe container up to 3 months.
Reheat: thawed meat can be reheated in the microwave in until warmed through.
📖 Variations
- Substitute brown sugar or honey for the maple syrup
- Garlic powder can be substituted for the garlic cloves
📚 Related Recipes
Try this Instant Pot Pork Tenderloin recipe for a super easy recipe on the table fast!
If you love air fryer pork recipes, then this recipe for Air Fryer Pork Chops is a must make!
Sheet Pan Pork Loin is a one dish meal the whole family will love.
My whole family loves this Baked Red Snapper Recipe!
💭 Tips
- A Jaccard meat tenderizer will create a lot of “channels” for the brine to enter the pork. If you don't have a Jaccard tenderizer, you can easily use sharp forks to get the same effect.
- For easy cleanup use perforated parchment paper in the bottom of the air fryer basket.
- Always check the internal temperature with a thermometer. It’s too difficult to go by cook times as air fryers have different wattage that can affect the total time.
- Remove any silver skin from the pork with a sharp knife. It does not break down like fat does and is very chewy.
🙋 FAQ's
How do I make this pork loin in the oven instead of the air fryer?
To cook, preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Place pork loin on a rack in a small roaster and cook at for 45 minutes.
Remove pork loin from oven and coat it with the glaze, return to oven and cook another 15 minutes, or until pork has an internal temperature of 145 degrees F.
🍽 Serve with...
Many serve pork roasts with sauerkraut, or serve it on New Year's Day with a side of black-eyed peas and collard greens which are other lucky foods. “Peas for pennies, greens for dollars.”
The Last Word
The pig has been known as a symbol of good luck. Because of this, eating pork on New Year's Day symbolizes this belief and that it will bring luck in the new year.
It’s been a long tradition with many families to have pork on New Year's Day. Pork is said to symbolize progress for the upcoming year because pigs root around with their snouts moving forward. This air fryer recipe for Maple Glazed Pork Loin is one of our favorite recipes to enjoy on New Year's Day.
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When you make this recipe, please comment below and let me know what you think. I'd love it if you tag me on Instagram @grumpyshoneybunch or #grumpyshoneybunch so I can see your photos!
If you love this recipe, please leave a ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating
📖 Recipe
Maple Glazed Pork Loin Air Fryer Recipe
Equipment
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Ingredients
For the Marinade
- 12 ounces apple juice
- ½ cup chicken broth
- 3 cloves garlic , minced
- 1 tablespoon finely minced fresh rosemary
- 1 tablespoon coarse salt
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
Glaze
- ¼ cup pure maple syrup
- ¼ cup apple juice
- ½ teaspoon finely minced fresh rosemary
- ¼ teaspoon seasoned salt
- 3 pounds boneless pork loin
Instructions
Prepare the marinade
- In a large bowl, combine the apple juice, chicken broth, rosemary, garlic, salt, and apple cider vinegar. Set aside.
Prepare the pork loin
- Pat the pork with paper towels to remove any wetness from the exterior. This makes it easier to handle when tenderizing. Using a Jaccard tenderizer or a fork, pierce the pork loin over the entire outside of the pork. This helps the brine to get deep into the roast.
- Place pork loin into the bag and pour brine over top of the pork; allow it to sit in the refrigerator at least 2 hours, turning it several times, “massaging” the brine into the pork.
Make the glaze
- In a small saucepan add the maple syrup, apple juice, rosemary, and salt over low heat. Bring to a boil, then simmer, reducing mixture by half, or until a thick enough consistency to coat the back of a spoon. Remove from heat and set aside. This should take from 5-10 minutes.
Air fry the pork loin
- Remove pork loin from the brine and pat it dry using paper towels.Place pork in a parchment paper-lined air fryer and coat with a small amount of olive oil.
- Air fry at 360 for 15 minutes fat side down, flip pork loin over and continue to cook at 360 for another 15 minutes with the fat side up. Using an instant-read thermometer, check the internal temperature to gauge where the pork is at with cooking time. Flip loin one more time and brush with ½ of the glaze.
- Turn air fryer temperature down to 250 degrees and cook for about 10 minutes to allow glaze to caramelize on the loin, adding the additional ½ of the glaze after 5 minutes. If glaze looks like it is getting too dark, turn down the air fryer temperature. If you want more color on the loin turn temperature up to 400 and cook an additional minute or 2.
- Check internal temp of pork, aiming for a finished temperature of 145 degrees F.
- Remove pork loin from air fryer basket and place on a cutting board. Create a tent foil and cover the roast and let meat rest for at least 5 minutes before slicing.
Tracie
Tried this last night. The roast was tough good flavor. Thanks for sharing.
Alana Laing
So, this was a freaking amazing recipe!! Had to add a couple of 5 minute increments to reach proper temperature! But WOW !! So good!!
Shelby Law Ruttan
Hi Alana, so glad you enjoyed this! Thank you for stopping by!
Shelby