I know you probably think that I’m super organized and I’m always prepared for meal times since I work from home, however nothing could be further from the truth! Even when I post pics of delicious looking meals like my Low Carb Pressure Cooker Pork Roast with Mushroom Gravy, I’m just like you and although I spend my work days at home and mostly in our kitchen, many days dinner time sneaks up on me too! Today it’s nearly 2 pm (we typically eat dinner early, around 4 pm) and I realized that I have NO IDEA what I’m making for dinner, no meat is thawed and very limited fresh vegetable options – and No, I’m NOT going to the grocery store. And to make matters even worse, I’m still swamped with work do to in preparation for my first published cookbook’s early release.
Most times when you’re short on time, the most practical thing to do is find something that thaws and cooks quickly, right? But for me, not so much. When I went searching in the freezer, I got my heart set on making a pork roast.
Yes, I’m making a 3 pound, frozen solid, pork roast for dinner tonight with less than 2 hours before we will sit down to eat — when you have a pressure cooker these last minute meals are no big deal. Perhaps the best feature of pressure cooking is that you CAN start with completely frozen meat and it will still turn out juicy & tender.  Of course pressure cooking frozen meat adds to the cooking time, but no more than you would if you had to thaw it out before cooking.
If you haven’t gotten on the pressure cooking bandwagon, trust me you’ll love it. I have several pressure cookers, ranging in styles and sizes, however I recommend the new electric multi-cookers that feature a pressure cooking option in addition to doing a bunch of other things like slow cooking, yogurt maker, etc. I use a GoWise USA 6 Quart, 8 in 1 Multi-Cooker, I tested several similar brands and found it to be the most efficient & least expensive (at roughly $80 including shipping) – yes I recommend it over the popular InstantPot, which in my tests took roughly 10% longer to come up to pressure which makes it easy to over cook food.
For those of you whom are new to pressure cooking and are apprehensive because of the old-timer stories of explosions and such, there is absolutely no reason to have any concern with these. They are basically fool-proof with their safety locks, the only key is to always make sure you use enough water and don’t over fill them but still they have safety shut off features to protect you even if you make a mistake. You can’t even open them until they are safely depressurized, unlike the old fashioned stove top units I’ve been using for the past 17 years.
Not only did I want tender & delicious pork roast for dinner that cooked quickly, but I wanted comfort food.. Pork Roast & Gravy.. but of course it had to be low carb & dairy free. I used the same idea for my healthy gravy as I used in my Perfect Roast Chicken with Roasted Vegetable Gravy; layering cauliflower, celery, onion & garlic in the bottom of my pressure cooker, then adding water and my frozen pork roast, seasoning everything generously with sea salt & pepper.
The vegetable will become completely cooked and when blended with the left over liquid will make the most delicious and healthy gravy which I like to add sautéed portabella mushrooms!
That’s it. Isn’t that easy?!?!
Oh, yes and when you start with a frozen roast, you’ll still have dinner on the table in less than 2 hours, with 90+ minutes of passive cooking time that you can use to help the kids with homework or take some time to relax!
Ingredients
- 2 to 3 pound pork roast preferably a fatty cut
- 1 teaspoon Sea Salt
- 1/2 teaspoon Black Pepper
- 4 cups chopped cauliflower
- 1 medium Onion
- 4 cloves Garlic
- 2 ribs celery
- 8 ounces portabella mushrooms sliced
- 2 tablespoons Coconut Oil (unrefined) or ghee
- 2 cups Water, filtered
Instructions
- In the bottom of your pressure cooker, place cauliflower, onion, garlic, celery and water. Top with pork roast and season with sea salt & pepper.
- Cook under pressure for 90 minutes if your roast is frozen, 60 minutes if completely thawed. Quick depressurize following manufactures directions.
- Carefully remove pork roast from the pressure cooker and place in an oven proof dish. Bake at 400 degrees while preparing the gravy, this helps to render the fat and crisp up the edges of the pork to be more like as if it was slow roasted.
- Transfer cooked vegetables and broth to your blender and blend until smooth, set aside.
- In your (dirty) pressure cooker (on the saute function) cook mushrooms in coconut oil until soft, roughly 3-5 minutes. Add blended vegetables and continue to cook on the saute function until it is thickened as desired.
- Serve mushroom gravy over shredded pork.
Be careful blending the hot ingredients, my Vitamix top blew off even while I was holding it, burning my arm and ingredients went everywhere. I then used my immersion blender in the pot after sautéing the mushrooms and setting them aside.
OMG I’m so sorry to hear that happened to you! I suggest reading through your Vitamix manual for other similar safety warnings. I will link to the instruction manual in my post to make sure others don’t make the same error, I’ve had mine for over 10 years and much of it’s use is deeply routine.
Question – How long do you crisp in the oven after pressure cooked? It doesnt say. Also, those arent portobello mushrooms in the photo. Do you use buttons?
They are just plain Jane white button mushrooms. In the time it takes you to get the gray made your chicken should be golden brown, let’s say 5-10 minutes.
I made a mistake and put the mushrooms in with all the other vegetables, took them out after the roast and put them in a blender then put them back in the pressure cooker on saute for 4 min. The gravy still came out fantastic! Will definitely make this again as even our teenage boys liked it.
I have made this several times and my husband who does not believe in Vegetable gravy is sold on this – we use our immersion blender and we do add some more spices- great Sunday dinner!
Made this last night and it turned out perfect! I added a bit of pork rub to the actual pork before cooking and added some beef bouillon and white cooking wine to the sauce to give it a bit more depth but overall followed recipe as planned and it was delicious.
How many servings and what is the nutrition information?
I was not at all sure about this recipe but it fit the ingredients i had on hand. It was perfect! And easy enough my 15yo learning to cook was able to follow. Winner
Made this tonight for dinner and it was so incredibly easy and delicious. I couldn’t believe the gravy was so smooth and was strictly vegetable and and broth from the meat. Definitely saving this for the recipe books.
This was delicious! I was skeptical but had to try it. The gravy tasted just like regular pork gravy. I was expecting it to just taste like cauliflower, but it didn’t at all. I was actually shocked at how good it was. And it couldn’t be any easier to make. I will be making it many times again.
I made this…and I must tell you…AMAZING!!!!…This will definitely be my go to gravy. Even if you are not low carb/Keto this is a winner! I love to cook and I love the taste of food..very good food, I’ve been disappointed with a lot of Keto recipes but surely, positively not this one. Thank you for sharing.
Help! I see the 2 cups water. Now, while I’ve already done halfway with the timed high pressure. When does the 2 cups water go in? I couldn’t find it in the directions. Hoping it’s after cooking for the gravy?
The water goes in step 1. You always need a minimum of 1 cup of liquid when pressure cooking!
I have made this twice and will be making again tonight. It is so good! We love the cauliflower gravy. The leftover gravy holds up well in the fridge for several days too. It’s good on everything. This recipe is a staple now in our house. Thank you so much for sharing it. The gravy is to die for!
One of the best pork loins we’ve had. Delish!
I made this recipe last night and it was great! I used a tablespoon salt and pepper as well as pork seasoning and doubled the mushrooms. Also be careful not to let the pork roast in the oven too long (10+ minutes) because it dries out quickly. This recipe is definitely a keeper!
Can you give the times/setting for an instant pot and also can you freeze leftovers? Trying to make this for company!
Sure you can freeze the leftovers and use the manual setting on your IG to follow the recipe
I have a 4LB roast, being a bit bigger than what your recipe calls for would I still cook that for 60 minutes? Or should I do it longer to start? It will be thawed when I cook it.
Thank you
Yes you will need to extend the time.
Oh my god; I just made this and I can’t say enough good things. I was skeptical about the gravy sitch, but I’ve honestly never tasted one better. Amazing!
This was absolutely out of this world. Thank you and kudos to you for the awesomeness. I did use a 2-3# sirloin roast from Costco. I used the rack on top of veggies to which I added salt & pepper. I added granulated garlic to roast. OMG my roast shredded perfectly and was so moist. I did cook for 75 minutes and did quick release after 10 minutes. I can’t wait to make again. The gravy is true restaurant quality.
Thank you again.
Do you know what the nutrition facts are by chance?
It’s nearly impossible for me to provide nutritional information when there are so many variables – you can calculate them using the ingredients you use.
Thank you for the recipes!
I made a 3# pork loin roast stuffed with cheddar cheese & bacon., otherwise followed your recipe. My local store makes them up and sells them. I tied it up so the filling wouldn’t fall out and then browned it on all sides prior to adding the veggies and cooking it. I didn’t need to stick it in the oven and just let it rest while I prepared the gravy. It was awesome, thank you for sharing your recipe.
Wonderful recipe! I followed the steps closely using my Instant Pot, except that I added powdered sage and white pepper to finish off the “gravy’ with an added depth of flavor. I put “gravy” here in quotation marks, because this recipe, despite only 2 cups of water, yielded almost 2 quarts of “gravy, “which is not typical for a small 2.5 lb pork roast and far exceeded the roast servings. Instead, I thinned the “gravy” out a bit with unsalted chicken broth to serve it as a flavorful pureed cauliflower-mushroom soup. Still very nice! This recipe is a keeper.
How long do you bake the roast at 400? (Sorry—complete newbie here:))
Just maybe 5 minutes. You don’t have to bake but I like that roasted flavor!
I made this tonight and it was super dry. Totally my fault though, I should have got a fattier pork loin. So just a heads up that a lean loin will not have much flavor and it will be dry and it will not shred. I will try again next week. The gravy was really good though.
Lean meats are always dry. Choose less expensive, fattier cuts!
This is amazing. Thanks so much. I will cook it 65 minutes next time & add double the garlic & mushrooms. Just personal tastes. Great recipe!!!
Hello
I have 2 questions for you….are you putting the roast on the rack? And if it’s not frozen what would you change the time to? Thanks!
I don’t use my rack but you can. Reduce the time by 5 min
This tasted great (I love the gravy), but my pork didn’t shred. I even put it back in for another ten minutes at high pressure when I saw that it wasn’t tender when I first took it out. Did it just need even more time? It was a pork shoulder roast (or pork butt).
what size was your roast? Generally speaking, YES you needed to cook it longer under pressure.
This recipe caught my eye because I love mushroom gravy. I was looking for a recipe to cook a small pork roast in my pressure cooker. I’m not one to try new things, like gravy made from cauliflower, but OMG…this is so good and has no flour or fat (other than what falls off the pork). It is DELICIOUS!! I left out the celery because my husband doesn’t like celery and added more cauliflower and onion to make up for it. I can see myself using this gravy recipe for beef and chicken, too.
Do you think I could sub frozen cauliflower for the fresh? Would I change anything else? Can’t wait to try it! Thank you
Yes, should work great!
Wish you had serving and nutritional information
Wondering if I should use high pressure or low pressure?
By default use the standard pressure setting for your pressure cooker, if there is not a standard/default setting choose high pressure unless otherwise noted in a recipe.
Made this today. It’s delish! 5 Stars!
Why does the picture have regular mushrooms, but the recipe calls for portabella mushrooms? Are these baby bellas?
any mushroom can be used in this recipe.
Made this with chuck roast (beef). Added carrots and potatoes at the end. OMGoodness! This was every bit as good as anything my grandmother used to make… which of course is a high standard. Definitely a keeper. May try with pork too…. but love it as pot roast! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!
I have a 4qt pressure cooker, would I just reduce the recipe by 1/3?
As long as everything fits (under the max fill line) just proceed with the recipe as-is. I make all of my recipes for the same time in my 4/6/8 quart pressure cookers – even when I change the volume of food.
Do you by chance have a caloric breakdown for this meal?
I don’t provide macros for my recipes, I recommend using THIS program.
I know this is an old post, but I made this recipe for dinner Sunday and had the leftovers for lunch today – absolutely delicious! This one’s a keeper.
Wondering if you have an approximate calorie count/serving size for this dish?
No I don’t but I suggest using THIS program if you count calories & macros.
This was SO good! Thank you for sharing the recipe. I think I have found a cauliflower soup recipe out of it too! I am making your shrimp scampi paella later this week!
I have 1 inch pork chops (I cut up a huge pork loin and froze 2 to a bag). Do you think they would work?
sure!
Would I have to decrease the cooking time if I am making a second pork roast and have leftover gravy, so not adding veggies this time?
no the pork determines the cooking time.
I am still figuring out my new pressure cooker. The roast I plan on using is nearly 5 lbs and thawed. Any suggestions on how much extra time for a bigger roast? Can’t wait to try it!
I would cook it for 60 minutes. if it’s not shredding when it’s done, just cook another 10 min
i made a pork roast last night but want to make the gravy for the leftovers tonight. I reheatead meat on sautee function to add a little fat to the gravy but not sure how long to cook veggies without the roast. Any suggestions?
until they are soft.
Would this work in a crockpot?
You will need to extend the cooking time to 6-8 hours on low.
Loved it. Who would of thought veggies would make a gravy. I personally need more seasoning but great starter receipe to add to. Will do again thx
Oh my gosh this was delicious!!! I also used the Instant Pot, and the immersion blender on the veggies. I’m looking forward to eating more of the rest of the gravy on some noodles. Or chicken. That will be perfect! Thank you for the wonderful recipe.
I was very leery about the cauliflower turning into gravy, especially after a failed attempt to make cauliflower crust pizzas that no one in my family liked. But oh my goodness, after using my immersion blender I added about a teaspoon of bacon fat, a little more salt and pepper and because of the wonderful juices of the pork there was no discernible flavor of cauliflower. The texture was lovely the color was light and bright in the flavor was perfect. Thank you so much for this amazing recipe !
I made this last night, and my family loved it! There was a bunch of leftover gravy, so I used it to cover some cooked chicken breast tonight. It was another hit with the family.
I have made this twice now, it’s wonderful! Delicious gravy that my wheat allergic 3 year old could eat and chock full of veggies! Even my 9 month old loved eating it by the spoonful. I added some carrots too and puréed most of the mushrooms with the gravy in the pot using immersion blender (texture issue for toddler). Fair warning steaming/boiling cauliflower smells little funky! My kid was crying about the smell but convinced her it wouldn’t taste that way haha, she gobbled it up.
what kind of pork roast did you use? loin? shoulder? thanks.
A fatty cut is what I recommend. Shoulder would work. We purchase our pork in bulk (whole or half) and aren’t particular about the ‘names’ on our packaging 🙂
I love this! I made it this evening and it turned out wonderfully! Thank you for this. …perhaps mine was smaller than yours but I did it for 45 minutes instead of 60. Everyone loved the gravy!
Made this recipe tonight for my girlfriend and it was a huge hit especially the gravy! The only changes I would make is more salt and pepper and more garlic! This recipe is definitely a keeper!
I used my new inststa pot duo60 7 in 1 pressure cooker. This recipe was so, so good!!!!
I can hardly wait to make this! I bookmarked this recipe when you sent it to me but didn’t have a chance to read it until just now. I am so glad I read it before I bought a new pressure cooker as I had the ‘other one’ bookmarked! I took your advice on ceramic coated grills and waffle makers and love them and will certainly get this appliance. It will eliminate my rice cooker on the counter and be ready to use always. I do love to have things available and not have to drag them out of cupboards. I still have my grandmother’s old pressure cooker with the jiggler and a newer seal and plug but it’s a bear to regulate the pressure on an electric stove. And the pressure cooker you recommend is not only faster but cheaper, which means I can get it sooner. I love the recipes in your new cook book also. I have loaned it to my daughter, LOANED!, and she is loving them also. Hoping it will help with her fibro and lupus. Thank you for all your hard work.
Thanks Barb!! Love ya – Hayley
This pressure cooker is on sale on Amazon for only $59.00 +shipping! Yea!
Yes!! It’s so much cheaper and out performs the instant pot so many people flock to – I’ve tried them head to head and the GoWise USA is a superior product!
Yes I love mine! Have the 8 and 10 quart sizes by GoWise
I have a dual plus 60 instant pot and I’m amazed how fast it comes to pressure. It is much faster than my stove top pressure cooker.
I can understand why you wanted it . . . .. I read this and I want it NOW! Thank you for a great idea:-) I love my pressure cooker. Fresh veges are divine done in the PC and it is so quick and healthy. Mmm mmm.