Description
A stress-free, slow-cooker dinner featuring tender pork loin coated in a sticky-sweet cinnamon brown sugar glaze with apples. Perfect for busy weeknights with minimal prep time.
Ingredients
Scale
- 2–3 pounds pork loin roast (center-cut, boneless preferred)
- 4 medium apples (mix of Granny Smith and Honeycrisp recommended)
- 2 tablespoons butter, melted
- ½ cup packed brown sugar (dark brown sugar preferred)
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ cup apple cider
- Salt and black pepper, to taste
- 1 medium onion, sliced (optional)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)
- 1 clove garlic, minced (optional)
- ½ cup chopped walnuts or pecans (optional)
Instructions
- Pat the pork loin dry with paper towels and season all over with salt and pepper.
- Wash, core, and slice apples into ½-inch thick wedges. Peel if desired.
- In a small bowl, whisk together melted butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, apple cider, and vanilla extract until smooth.
- Place sliced onions at the bottom of a 4-6 quart slow cooker (if using).
- Place the pork loin on top of the onions.
- Pour the glaze evenly over the pork.
- Scatter apple slices around and on top of the pork, pouring any remaining glaze over them.
- Cover and cook on LOW for 4-6 hours (or HIGH for 3-4 hours) until pork is tender.
- Remove pork from the pot and let it rest on a cutting board for 5-10 minutes.
- Optional: Simmer cooking liquid in a saucepan for 5-10 minutes to thicken into a glaze.
- Slice pork against the grain and serve with apples, drizzled with glaze and topped with nuts if desired.
Notes
Pork loin is lean and can dry out if overcooked; check for doneness at 4 hours on LOW. Let the meat rest before slicing to retain juices. The glaze can be thickened by simmering the cooking liquid. Leftovers keep well in the fridge for up to 4 days and freeze well.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 4-6 hours
- Category: Main Course
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice of pork with
- Calories: 320
- Sugar: 18
- Sodium: 250
- Fat: 12
- Saturated Fat: 5
- Carbohydrates: 22
- Fiber: 3
- Protein: 28
Keywords: crockpot pork loin, apple pork dinner, slow cooker recipes, easy weeknight dinner, pork loin with apples, cinnamon brown sugar glaze, family friendly meals