A maple and bacon wrapped pork loin is a great centerpiece for your holiday dinner or Sunday dinner. This easy to prepare dish will become a household staple.
There is something appealing about seeing something wrapped in bacon. Plus bacon makes everything better. The reason I like this recipe is that it takes just a short amount of time to prepare but feeds quite a few. This is one of those recipes where you trick people to think you did a whole bunch of work but it was really easy.
Making the pork loin
There are really only 2 steps for making this dish. That is coating the pork in the spice rub and wrapping it in bacon. Just be ready to get your hands a little dirty.
The reason for adding the bacon around the pork tenderloin is to add fat. Pork loin is a very lean cut of meat which tends to translate into dry once cooked. By adding the bacon the fat from the bacon surrounds the loin and helps keep it moist. Another added benefit for having the bacon is the all of the spices stay on the meat instead of relocating to the bottom of the roasting pan.
Firstly you want to make sure and chop your rosemary pretty finely. This will make spreading it over the pork loin easier. It will also help prevent getting large mouthfuls of rosemary leaves. Secondly to mix up the spice paste you will want to use a fork. By using the fork the spices will mix a lot faster than by using a spoon.
To make wrapping the pork loin easier pull out a sheet of aluminum foil that is a little bit long than the pork loin. The you can line up your bacon on it making sure that there is at least 1/3 of the bacon placed on top of the previous slice to overlap. This will make the bacon do the work and secure itself around the pork.
Wrapping the pork loin
You want to make sure that the bacon is as long or just a little longer than the pork loin. Starting from the end of the bacon with the last piece on top you want to wrap the bacon around and overlap the ends. Keep note of which end is on top. The reason is when you wrap the next slice of bacon you want to have the same side end up on top for each slice. This will make sure that the bacon is secured around the roast.
Maple and Bacon Wrapped Pork Loin
Equipment
- Aluminum foil
- Roasting pan
- Mixing Bowl
- Sauce pan
Ingredients
- 3 lbs pork tenderloin
- 1½ lbs bacon
- ¾ cup pure maple syrup
- 3 tbsp rosemary fresh, chopped finely
- 2 tbsp mustard
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
- 1 tbsp ground black pepper
- 1 tbsp garlic powder
- ½ tbsp paprika
- ½ tbsp salt
- 2 tbsp bourbon optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F or gas mark 7.
- In bowl combine the salt, pepper, garlic powder, paprika, rosemary, and mustard and mix until evenly combined.
- On a sheet of aluminum foil layer the bacon making sure about ⅓ of the next piece of bacon is overlapping the previous piece. See the photo above for reference. Continue until the bacon layers are the same length or a little longer than the pork loin.
- Rub the spice paste over all of the pork loin and then place in the middle of the bacon. Starting from the end of the bacon with the last piece on top you want to wrap the bacon around and overlap the ends. Keep note of which end is on top. You want to have the same side end up on top for each slice. Place the roasting pan on top of the pork loin, slide your hand underneath the foil, press the pork loin into the pan and rotate the pan. This will put the bacon seam down.
- Remove ¼ of the maple syrup and brush over the top and sides of the pork loin. Bake for an hour, about 20 min per pound, and when a meat thermometer reads 145°F or 62.8°C. Allow to rest at least 10 min before slicing.
- While the roast is resting pour ½ cup of the drippings in a sauce pan with the maple syrup and cornstarch. Heat until the sauce boils and thickens. Serve with the tenderloin.
It has bacon so of course it was delish! Directions were so simple to follow and it was easier than it looks!
This Maple and Bacon Wrapped Pork Loin is simply amazing! I love the contrast in flavors is so good. The Pork loin is tender and melt in your mouth good. This is the only way I will be cooking a pork loin
Love the flavours that you have used in this recipe – I sent your recipe to some friends who love bacon and they said it was fantastic!
Oh man this looks sooo good! Hard to beat something wrapped in bacon..delicious flavor profile and the meat is cooked perfectly. Looks so juicy!
I like the rub you added before covering the pork loin with bacon, that is such a good idea and adds so much great flavor. This is really such a simple recipe that makes a great meal.
I have a pork loin waiting to go into the traeger, but I have been holding off to find a new recipe to use. This is it! This looks wonderfully delicious!
I don’t eat meat but this looks like such a delicious way to serve a pork loin, and you’ve demystified the process of making it!
I love the addition of maple syrup here and I know that anything wrapped in bacon is always a hit at our house. Can’t wait to make this later this week, it sounds amazing!
I love pork tenderloin. Wrapping it in bacon will keep it nice and juciy. Perfect to cook on Father’s Day.
Amazing! I’ve been looking for a good pork loin recipe for a while and this looks really easy to do. I have wrapped meat loaf in bacon before so I know this is going to be delicious!