The quantitative analysis of rutin in pharmaceuticals is crucial for drug quality control. Therefore, designing and synthesizing high-performance electrochemical sensing materials is essential for the accurate and rapid determination of rutin via electrochemical methods. In this study, we propose a facile one-step synthesis reaction strategy to prepare a novel and efficient electrode modification material, composed of a porphyrin-based MOF and biomass-derived carbon. Cinnamon residue from traditional Chinese medicine is identified as a promising candidate for preparing biochar materials. Notably, the incorporating of activating agents significantly enhances the formation of activated cinnamon residue carbon (ARC) with a specific pore structure. Through a one-step solvothermal method, a Zr-based porphyrin MOF (PCN-224) was embedded into the ARC matrix to obtain the composite (PCN-224@ARC). This composite was then used to modify a glassy carbon electrode (GCE) to construct an electrochemical sensor for rutin. The sensor exhibited excellent electrocatalytic performance, with a detection limit as low as 11.7 nM, a wide linear range of 0.05–1 μM and 1–40 μM, and an excellent repeatability and stability. Importantly, the accuracy of the prepared sensor was validated through a t-Test comparison of results obtained using HPLC and the established electrochemical method. The PCN-224@ARC composite inherits the electrocatalytic properties of PCN-224, while maintaining the excellent enrichment capacity and high conductivity of ARC, enabling effective rutin detection. This work not only expands the potential application of PCN-224@ARC composites in the field of flavonoid drug sensing, but also increases the utilization value of cinnamon residue from traditional Chinese medicine.