Air Fryer Pork Roast

Air Fryer Pork Roast. How to cook pork roast in air fryer. Let chef Dom walk through the process of cooking the best pork roast you have ever had.

Cooking pork roast in the air fryer is less hassle, easy to prep, lower in calories, requires a lot less washing up and is more flavoursome. Are you ready to be wowed with air fryer pork roast?

This air fryer pork roast recipe is an updated post and was originally published in 2019.

Heads up! This pork recipe is so so popular with our air fryer readers that they asked us to feature it in our air fryer beginner’s cookbook called Air Fryer Easy Everyday. You can get a copy here.

Pork Roast In Air Fryer

What many people don’t know about my husband Dominic, is that he used to work as a chef and his speciality was roast dinners.

Roast pork, roast lamb, roast chicken, roast duck, roast ham. You name the roast and he would serve it to customers every day and OMG his roast dinners will blow your mind.

As the double act behind Recipe This, we are the perfect partnership in the kitchen. I will cook the delicious sides and he will oversee the meat.

That applies when we are recipe testing new recipes for you, as well as when we are cooking for ourselves too.

I love it at Christmas when we join forces in the kitchen, have our workstations and have lots of fun as we work on our different foods.

I will get great enjoyment out of making our slow cooker stuffing for turkey, air fryer roast potatoes, instant pot cauliflower gratin, while Dominic will cook the roast turkey.

There will of course be other foods but those are my favourites that I always think of at Christmas. We will also do a lot of make ahead cooking and most of our Christmas food would be cooked on Christmas Eve.

I thought it would be fun to share with you all our favourite roast dinners in the run up to Christmas and share a different one with you each day.

Plus, even though I always think of Thanksgiving and Christmas for family roast dinners, it could just be a nice Sunday dinner in your household!

You can check out the rest of Chef Dom’s amazing roasting meats in the air fryer. Including air fryer roast ham, air fryer rotisserie chicken, air fryer leg of lamb and air fryer roast duck.

Plus, as well as our free newsletter, we also have a free air fryer mini course. It is ideal for air fryer beginners or those that want to get more confident with their air fryer. The free course runs for 5 days with a new lesson delivered each day to your inbox.

Can You Air Fry A Pork Roast?

Yes, you sure can! The air fryer is amazing for air frying a pork roast and you have an endless supply of options.

You can cook an air fryer pork shoulder, an air fryer boston butt, an air fryer pork loin or even go frozen.

Plus, it doesn’t stop there, as you can also cook pork ribs, pork tenderloin and even pork belly in the air fryer.

Cooking Roast Pork In Air Fryer

One of the wonderful things that an air fryer can cook is a pork roast. I always thought it would taste terrible, after all when you think of a pork shoulder you are more likely to associate it with pulled pork.

Plus, when you think of pulled pork you cook it slow just so that it is tender.

But cooked in the air fryer, pork roast can be incredibly tender, with a crispy crust and OMG taste like one of the best pork roasts that you have ever eaten.

When we sliced into our air fryer pork roast, we couldn’t believe just how good it tasted and we couldn’t wait to have another air fryer pork roast.

Air Fryer Boston Butt

You are also probably wondering what the difference is between an air fryer Boston butt and an air fryer pork shoulder roast.

Well, they are very similar. Boston Butt is a tasty part of the pork shoulder.

And in the US when a recipe calls for pork shoulder they are more likely to buy a boston butt rather than just any part of the pork shoulder.

But what is amazing for you, is that you could use boston butt in air fryer, pork loin in air fryer, or any other pork roasting meat, that works well for you and your budget.

Though because I like to save money, I will wait until pork shoulder is on a special deal and then freeze it for cooking in the air fryer at a later time.  

Air Fryer Pork Roast And Potatoes

If I am having an air fryer pork roast, then I want to turn it into air fryer pork roast and potatoes. That is because I want the real deal.

I want to enjoy my meat and potatoes together and feel like I am getting a meal rather than a slice of pork.

To make roasted sweet potatoes to go with my air fryer pork roast is simple.

• Peel your sweet potatoes and cut into roast potato shapes.
• In a bowl add your sweet potatoes, a tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil and a tablespoon of dried thyme. Season with salt and pepper.
• Mix well and place in your air fryer basket.
• Cook for 15 minutes at 160c/360f, followed by a further 5 minutes at 200c/400f to get the roast potatoes nice and crispy.

Your air fryer sweet roast potatoes can be done while your pork roast cooks in your air fryer oven and that is what I like about having 2 air fryers.

Air Fryer Rotisserie Pork Roast

You’ve probably guessed by now, but we are cooking our pork roast in the air fryer oven. It produces the BEST air fryer pork roast results and OMG the taste is truly stunning.

Then I used my air fryer basket from my Philips Air Fryer XL for cooking the roasted sweet potatoes.

Though you could pick and choose how you cook yours. I am just saying for the best results rotate your pork roast in the air fryer oven via the rotisserie.

If you don’t have a rotisserie, I recommend instead you follow our air fryer pork loin recipe. This is ideal for making in the air fryer basket and you can use a pork shoulder or a boston butt instead.

Roast Pork Air Fryer Ingredients

Pork – For the best air fryer roast pork, its all about the meat. You can use a pork loin, pork shoulder, boston butt, or even a boneless pork leg. Though remember, it must be able to fit in the air fryer basket or on the rotisserie.

Oil – I recommend spraying your pork shoulder with extra virgin olive oil. It is the best solution for getting your seasonings onto your pork and for creating a crispy pork shoulder. You don’t need a lot and it’s a much lower calorie alternative compared to the oven.

Seasoning – You might have your own preferred seasoning for air fryer roast pork. Though we prefer ours with salt, pepper, garlic, parsley, and thyme.

Then for the kitchen gadgets that we have used in this pork roast air fryer recipe, it has just been our new Air Fryer oven. We have this one and its wonderful for rotisserie meat.

How To Cook Pork Roast In Air Fryer?

• Score. Start by scoring your pork with typical scoring squares. This will allow the flavours to go into the middle of the pork and not just create a crispy coating.

• Season. Next you want to add a coating of extra virgin olive oil over the pork, followed by coating it in your seasoning. This makes sure you get a flavoursome roast pork.

• Prepare. Once you have seasoned your pork, you need to add the rotisserie attachments. You will have a large rod that you need to push through your air fryer pork and then a couple of clamps on each side.

• Position. Next you want to position your roast pork in air fryer. Making sure each side is level and that the air fryer can take the weight of your pork. I.e. this is why you don’t want to go too big. For example, check out our air fryer roast duck video where we have to cut the wings off because it simply wont fit otherwise.

• Cook. Next, set the time and temperature for your air fryer pork. Note the larger it is, the longer it will take. We have found that it can differ between 50 minutes and 90 minutes depending on the size.

• Potatoes. While your air fryer pork roast is rotating in your air fryer oven, make your roasted sweet potatoes. They are easy to prep, and you can time it so that your sweet potatoes are ready at the same time as your pork.

Air Fryer Frozen Pork Roast

I thought it would be interesting to experiment and cook air fryer frozen pork roast too.

What if we bought one of those pork tenderloins that has been rolled up with garlic butter and see how it did in the air fryer basket.

Well, it didn’t taste as bad as I thought it would!

A bit crispy around some of the edges but not dry and perfect for serving with air fryer roast potatoes or a side of air fryer frozen broccoli.

This is how we cooked air fryer frozen pork roast:

1. Load frozen pork into the air fryer basket.
2. Cook for 30 minutes at 80c/180f.
3. Follow up with a further 30 minutes at 160c/320f.

You can see that we have gone with low cooking temperatures. The first helps defrost the pork at the same time as starting to cook it.

The second round makes sure the pork doesn’t burn and is cooked through.

How Long To Cook Pork Roast In Air Fryer?

Like I mentioned above, the pork shoulder air fryer time can vary greatly depending on the size of pork shoulder you are cooking.

We originally shared with you how to cook a 1 kilo pork shoulder in the air fryer this took just short of 50 minutes, then when we did our air fryer pork shoulder video which was closer to 1.5 kilos and took just over an hour and the updated pork roast air fryer recipe uses a 2.1kg pork joint and took us 90 minutes.

In summary, I find it easier to compare pork shoulders or boston butts as small, medium, and large.

• Small pork roast in air fryer = 45 to 50 minutes
• Medium pork roast in air fryer = 60 to 70 minutes
• Large pork roast in air fryer = 90 minutes

What Temperature To Cook Pork Shoulder In Air Fryer?

When cooking any type of pork roast in the air fryer oven or the air fryer basket, the recommended temperature is 180c/360f.

This ensures that your pork in the air fryer has a juicy and moist centre, whilst still crisping up the pork for you at the same time.

Listen To Air Fryer Pork Roast

Want to learn more about our Podcast? Then click here and you can browse through past episodes and subscribe to the Magic With Gadgets Podcast.

What To Do With Leftover Pork Roast?

So, you made this amazing air fryer pork roast, or as you might call it air fryer boston butt. But of course, you didn’t manage to eat it all, so you have leftovers.

My favourite choice would be air fryer pork roast sandwiches the next day, they are amazing and taste so so good!

Or of course you can use the air fryer to reheat your pork and have another roast dinner or mix them into a casserole.

What To Serve With Pork Roast?

I love my pork roast with air fryer potatoes. You can make air fryer roast potatoes with rosemary, air fryer baby potatoes because they are the easiest ever air fryer potato recipe, or why not try air fryer frozen roast potatoes.

Then to add some vegetables to your dinner plate, I recommend you serve your pork with some instant pot frozen broccoli or make our instant pot cauliflower gratin.

More Air Fryer Pork Recipes

• Air Fryer Pork Tenderloin
• Air Fryer Pork Ribs
• Air Fryer Pork Steak
• Air Fryer Breaded Pork Chops

Can’t make it now? Then pin it for later!