Pork Ribeye Roast with Garlic Ginger Orange Sauce

Perfect for a holiday dinner or any night, this is an easy but impressive Pork Ribeye Roast with a sweet and savory garlic, ginger orange sauce. It's so delicious!

If you are looking for an impressive and festive main dish for your holiday dinner, then look no further! This Pork Ribeye Roast with a silky, sweet, savory, and buttery Orange Sauce is so easy, but so amazing. The pork roast is seasoned simply and then roasted with onions for a tender and moist inside.

Then on top, you have the most delicious garlic and ginger flavored Orange butter sauce with hints of oregano. It turns an ordinary pork roast into something extraordinary and worthy of serving to your guests.

Best of all, it's so incredibly easy, you can make this recipe for any weeknight family dinner too!

Since moving to Brazil, I've learned that there are some differences and similarities when it comes to Christmas dinner. Roasting a whole turkey is common here, which is often also done in the United States. It's also very common to have a pork roast, in the form of Pernil, which is pork shoulder, pork loin, ribeye, or a fresh ham roast. The flavorings, sauces, and side dishes are where the differences mostly lie. For example, you will not usually find the thick, creamy gravies here, but rather wine-based, mustard, or sweeter fruit flavored sauces. And for sides, Farofa and a vegetable or potato mayonnaise salad is very often served. Regardless, of WHAT is put on the table, similar to in the US, the holidays are about WHO is around the table. Sharing the food with friends and family is universal.

Ingredients and Swaps

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Pork Ribeye Roast Ingredients

• Onion - I used yellow onions, but you can substitute with white onion, red onion, shallot, or even scallions.
• Boneless Pork Ribeye or Pork Loin - The ribeye is the smaller rib end of the pork loin and you will usually see it sold as boneless pork chops. It's lean, but juicy, which makes it great for roasting. If you do not see a Ribeye roast, you can ask your butcher or you can substitute with a Pork Loin. You could also use a pork tenderloin, but note, this is a different cut of meat all together. The tenderloin is a long, narrow and smaller roast that comes from the muscle that runs along the backbone. The Loin is a wider cut that slices so perfectly as a roast.
• Salt and Ground Black Pepper - I use coarse salt, such as Kosher salt, and grind black pepper fresh. Any salt and pre-ground black pepper will work.
• Paprika - Sweet or Smoked Paprika brings a peppery and smokey note without the heat. You can also use red pepper flakes for heat or cayenne if you want. You can substitute in your favorite hot sauce or red pepper flakes.

Orange Sauce Ingredients

• Orange juice - You can use freshly squeezed or store-bought. If you use store-bought, try to find a natural, no sugar added option. You are adding brown sugar so just watch the added sugar in the orange juice.
• Butter, salted - You can use salted or unsalted. The butter gives the sauce it's beautiful glossy look and buttery backdrop. You can substitute in margarine or eliminate the butter all together if you prefer.
• Brown sugar - I used dark brown sugar, but light is great too. The brown sugar gives that subtle molasses flavor which is perfect for this recipe. You can substitute in white sugar, honey, or leave the sugar out if you prefer less sweet.
• Fresh Garlic cloves, minced – Fresh is best when it comes to garlic, but you can buy pre-minced garlic to save time or mince it in bulk and freeze it for use when needed!
• Ginger – I love to buy the fresh root and then mince it in bulk in the food processor, so that I can freeze and always have it on. You can also grate the fresh ginger root using a grater or microplane. You can use dry ginger powder as a substitute if you cannot get fresh.
• Dried Oregano – You can also use fresh oregano or substitute dried marjoram, rosemary, or thyme.
• Orange, zested and sliced - The orange zest is for more orange flavor and the slices are for garnish.
• Cornstarch - This is the thickener that's mixed into cold water to dissolve and create a slurry. Then add it’s added to hot liquid to thicken it.
• Chicken broth – You can also chicken stock instead of broth or use beef broth or stock or vegetable broth or stock. You can also use water.

Simple Equipment and Tools

For this recipe, you need a roasting pan or large casserole dish that’s approximately 10×12, 12×12, 10×13 or similar.

You will also need a small-medium pot for the sauce.

Mincing garlic is made super easy with a Garlic Press. You can grate the fresh ginger root using a grater or microplane. You can also use the microplane for the garlic.

Pork Ribeye Roast Recipe Tips

The first tip is make the sauce and rub the pork with the seasonings in advance. You can do both of these things the day before. During the holidays, or anytime, it's so much less stressful when you can get steps done early.

Second, make sure you have a working meat thermometer! Pork ribeye or pork loin is a rather large roast that can vary in size. It's difficult to know if you have under or over cooked the roast without a meat thermometer. You want the meat to be at least 145 F in the center.

Make the Orange Sauce

Peel and mince or grate the garlic. Peel and grate the ginger. Zest the orange and then slice it. Measure out the rest of the sauce ingredients.

Combine the orange juice, fresh orange zest, chicken broth, butter, brown sugar, garlic, ginger, and oregano in a small pot over medium heat. Bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat to the lowest setting and cook for 20 minutes to reduce and thicken.

Prepare and Cook the Pork Ribeye Roast

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Cut onion into quarters and then separate layers. Place in the bottom of the roasting pan.

Season the pork roast on all sides with the salt, pepper, and paprika. Place on top of the onions in the roasting pan.

Place into the oven to cook for 1 hour.

At 20 minutes and 40 minutes, baste the pork with ¼ cup of the orange sauce.

At 50 minutes, using a meat thermometer, check the internal temperature of the pork in the center to see if it has reached 145 F. If it is not yet there, put the roast back in the oven for another 5-10 minutes.

Remove the pork roast from the oven, transfer it to a cutting board and cover with foil. Let rest for 10-15 minutes before slicing.

While the pork is resting, transfer the onions to the serving platter. Then it's time to scrape up the bottom of the roasting pan to get all of the delicious drippings. I add a ¼ cup of hot water and start scraping the bottom with a spatula. Then pour the drippings into the orange sauce.

Next, mix the cornstarch with the cold water to make a slurry and then whisk the slurry into the sauce. Bring the sauce up to a light simmer, making sure to stir the entire time so that it doesn't clump.

Slice the pork and place in the center of the onions on the platter. Pour the Orange sauce over the pork and serve the rest on the side. Garnish with orange slices.

What to Serve with a Pork Ribeye Roast

Traditionally for the holidays, you will see pork and turkey roasts served with a Farofa Stuffing. You can also serve with Brazilian Rice {with Onions and Garlic}

For a vegetable side, I recommend this Sauteed Kale with Bacon and Garlic {Couve a Mineira} along with Brazilian Potato Salad with Carrots and Olives.

And for dessert, let's face it, the holidays are about going a bit overboard with the desserts! I recommend these three desserts:

1. Brigadeiros! Brazilian Chocolate Dessert Truffles - These are super easy no-bake treats that you can make 1-2 days ahead.
2. Brazilian Carrot Cake with Chocolate Sauce Topping - This is a traditional version of carrot cake that is very different from the American version.
3. Brazilian Coconut Cake {Bolo de Coco} - Moist and delicious, this is a perfect cake to round out your dessert table!

Pork Ribeye Roast Recipe FAQs