Pot Roast – fall apart beef, tender flavour infused vegetables and potatoes smothered in a rich gravy. It’s mouthwateringly good, yet simple to make, especially if you use a slow cooker. However, this beef pot roast recipe can be made in an instant pot, oven OR crockpot – pick which method works best for you!
Pot Roast
Confession: I wasn’t a fan of pot roast for most of my life. I just didn’t get it – the beef and vegetables were fine, but typically they are braised in just liquids that aren’t thickened in any way so the end result is like a watery broth.
Plenty of flavour in it, but when you pour it over the beef and vegetables, it doesn’t cling to it at all because it’s watery.
So I decided to change it and thicken the sauce using a touch of flour. So it’s more like a gravy. Now THAT’s a pot roast worthy of company, in my humble opinion!!!
If you love meltingly tender, slow cooked roast beef and deeply flavoured gravy, this pot roast recipe is for you!
How to make Pot Roast
Season beef well with salt and pepper
Sear beef aggressively – this is KEY for flavour in the broth and the beef!
Sauté onion and garlic, then deglaze* the skillet or pot with red wine (or water or broth);
Tip everything into a slow cooker, instant pot / pressure cooker or casserole pot for oven along with beef broth, carrots and celery;
Sprinkle with dried rosemary and thyme then slow cook 8 hrs low, 55 min pressure cook on high, or oven 4 hours at 300°F/150°C;
Add the potatoes partway through cooking and by the time the potatoes are cooked, the beef will be meltingly tender!
* Means simmering liquid and scraping bottom of pan to release the flavour stuck on the bottom of the pan from searing. It adds a ton of flavour into the cooking broth!
Best cut of beef for pot roast is chuck roast
The best beef for pot roast is Beef Chuck Roast. It’s an economical cut of beef that’s marbled with fat that needs to be slow cooked to breakdown the tough connective tissues so it becomes ultra tender to eat.
Chuck roast can be purchased in large pieces that are or aren’t rolled. You want to use rolled chuck roast for this recipe, otherwise the beef ends up all warped. Supermarkets and butchers should carry chuck roast that’s already rolled, otherwise, you can roll it yourself and tie with kitchen string or ask the butcher to do it for you.
It’s essentially a slow cooked Roast Beef!
The key point of difference with this pot roast recipe is that the braising liquid is thickened so it comes out like a deeply flavoured gravy rather than a watery broth which is how most pot roasts are made.
So it’s essentially a slow cooked Roast Beef that’s fall apart tender that comes with a gravy and tender flavour infused vegetables. Complete meal in one pot!
Because the beef needs to be mostly submerged in liquid while it slow cooks, you end up with lots and lots of liquid in the finished dish.
Which means, in my Pot Roast, you end up with lots and lots of very tasty gravy.
This is a sensational “problem” to have. Keep leftovers, drown your potatoes with them, toss through pasta (oh yes!!), serve it as a sauce for tomorrow night’s dinner. – Nagi x
PS Bread to mop your bowl clean wouldn’t go astray. Try these No Knead Dinner Rolls, a quick No Yeast Irish Bread or these moreish Cheese Muffins.
Watch how to make it
Note: My slow cooker looks like a pressure cooker because it’s a multi function slow cooker (but no, it’s not an Instant Pot!).
This pot roast recipe was originally published January 2018. Updated for housekeeping matters. No change to recipe – I wouldn’t dare! 🙂
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Pot Roast
Ingredients
- 2 kg / 4 lb beef chuck roast , rolled (Note 1)
- 1 tsp each salt and pepper
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 onion (large), cut into large dice
- 5 garlic cloves , peeled and smashed (Note 2a)
- 5 carrots , peeled and cut into 2.5cm/1″ pieces
- 3 celery stalks , cut into 4 cm / 1.5″ pieces
- 1 cup (250ml) dry red wine (sub with beef broth)
- 3 cups (750ml) beef broth , salt reduced
- 1/3 cup (50g) flour (plain / all purpose) (GF – Note 2b)
- 1 tsp dried rosemary
- 1 1/2 tsp dried thyme
- 750g / 1.5 lb potatoes , peeled and cut into 2.5 cm / 1″ pieces
Instructions
- Pat beef dry with paper towels. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper all over.
- Heat oil in a skillet over high heat. Brown aggressively all over – a deep dark brown crust is essential for flavour base! Should take about 7 minutes.
- Transfer beef to slow cooker.
- In the same skillet, add onion and garlic. Cook for 2 minutes until onion is browned.
- Add wine, reduce by half. Transfer to slow cooker.
- Mix together flour and about 1 cup of the broth. Lumps is fine. Pour into slow cooker.
- Add remaining broth, carrots, celery, rosemary and thyme into slow cooker.
- Cover and slow cook on LOW for 5 hours. (45 min pressure cook on HIGH, Note 3a for Oven and Stove)
- Add potato, slow cook on LOW for 3 hours. (10 min pressure cooker on HIGH, Note 3b)
- Remove beef. Rest for 5 minutes, then slice thickly.
- Adjust salt and pepper of Sauce to taste.
- Serve beef with vegetables and plenty of sauce! Bread also terrific for mopping up sauce – try these No Knead Dinner Rolls, No Yeast Irish Soda Bread or these fabulous Cheese Muffins.
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
More slow cooked beef recipes
Because nothing beats the flavour of beef cooked long and slow until it’s meltingly tender….
Life of Dozer
When the homeless man at the dog park isn’t at his car (usually off tending to the park grounds – best groundskeeper EVER!), I tie food to the boot of his van. Pot Roast, in this case!
And this is Dozer, trying to figure out if he can reach the bag. #SHAMELESS
I’ve been making basically the same recipe for years in my oven in a Dutch oven. As you said, the key is to aggressively sear the roast. There are a couple small differences. I use Herbes de Provence instead of the Dry thyme and rosemary and add a big Tbs of tomato paste after the onions are sautéed. I also add carrot chunks with the potatoes. I like to make this a day ahead so you can slice the cold roast and remove the hardened fat from the gravy and reheat everything together. Delicious.
Perfect Steve, I’m sure everyone has their own little ways to make it – which I love hearing!
Hi Nagi. I’m based in Europe (Swiztzerland). Just wondering if this would work with beef shoulder? I’m not sure what chuck roast would translate as here but shoulder is normally used for things like slow cooker stews or pulled beef/chilli.
Thanks
Brian
Hi Brian, chuck is from the top of the shoulder near the neck, any slow roast cuts will work well here so shoulder will be perfect – N x
Has anyone used a pressure cooker to cook this pot roast? If so, how long does it take to be done?
Thanks.
Hi Gillian – pressure cooker instructions are in the recipe – N x
Made this yesterday and it was delicious. It is definitely a keeper. I followed the recipe to the tea…and yes the gravy is dark and rich. Thanks Nagi.
This recipe is for 8 …I am planning for 10 sevings what will change in the recipe? Thank You
Hi I’m reading your recipe it said you use red wine. Which red wine should I purchase? Your ingredients didnt include red wine but in your earlier paragraphs you did.
Hi Roxanne, red wine is listed in the ingredients under celery – any dry red will do 🙂
I was skeptical because I was using an old freezer burned piece of meat… but this turned out great! Definitely my go to pot roast recipe from now on!
I am making your pot roast recipe and I am cooking it on high for the first two hours in my slow cooker. Will this reduce my cook time by 2 hours? I am not an experienced slow cooker cook?
Hi, Nagi,
I made this last week without rosemary or any other dried herbs. Three in an extra clove of garlic instead. Then I cooked it slowly in the oven. Delicious!
Leftovers the next night we’re well received as well!
Last night, I took the odds and ends of leftover veggies, gravy and meat and heated them together. Added canned mushrooms, a bit of water to thin the gravy. Then I mixed up a recipe of Bisquik biscuits using whipping cream instead of milk, dropped the biscuit mix on top of the hot “stew” and put it in the oven at 400’F until the biscuit dough was cooked and browned. (This is how I have always made pot pie from a Home Economics recipe I got in high school ). Best pot pie ever! We both ate too much at supper last night and leftovers are packed up for lunches today!
Thank you
I forgot, I added a couple of cups of frozen mixed vegetables while I was heating it.
Sounds amazing Esther!!!
Hello! I want to make this but use the beef for rolls, not so much with vegetables. Can i omit the potatoes or do they serve another purpose in the cooking process? Thank you 🙂
Hi Brooke, just leave the potatoes out 🙂
Hi Nagi,
Im in the process of buying a slow cooker.. Which one would you recommend
Hi Shahira, I have a Breville multifunction device which is a fast and slow cooker 🙂
Just love your recipe’s , always awesome .
Thanks so much!
This was a huge hit! So tender and delicious. My family finished the entire roast in one sitting. Thank you Nagi for your awesome recipes!
WOW!! This was SOOOO good!! I put as many veggies as my crock pot would hold and YUMMMM!! I often take dinner to my elderly neighbor and he LOVED it! Crusty bread topped it off!
Perfect Linda!
Can I use a crockpot to make this, and if so how long? Six to eight hours on low, or 4 to 6 on high?
Hi Susan, I do mine in the slow cooker as per the recipe – the same for a crockpot 🙂
I cooked this today and it’s another sensational Nagi recipe! I ordered beef cheeks at my local to do your slow cooked in red wine mash recipe, but they didn’t arrive, so I had to sub in chuck roast. Not disappointed, in fact impressed as always.
I love your recipes so much. My weekly cook up for elderly neighbour is always a hit! Thanks again. Kate
Wahoo! That’s great to hear Kate – N x
How long should i time on high in slow cooker?
Nagi this was so delish!!! I feel like I’m using you as I’ve continued to make so many of of your recipes but haven’t commented on them in months. Lol. But you and I have “been together” for a few years now and I don’t think I have disliked any of your recipes. I hardly ever suggest or stray from your recipes. Your recipes are dummy proof for the most part. I have dabbled recently into some alternative sites and every time I try them I mess something up. That’s why I appreciate the research and testing you put into your recipes. I want to request one recipe (when you have time) to make and test out. It’s called Chicken Vesuvio. I thinks it’s an Italian American (Chicago) recipe. I made it tonight and it’s so delicious ….think potato wedges coated in olive oil, oregano, salt and pepper..rOasted and then topped with golden brown chicken thighs!that were cooked stove top…topped with a ton of garlic and butter….roasted more and then a splash of lemon at the end. The reason I want a Nagi version is I smoked the house out, burned a few thighs on the stove and honestly my only successful recipes are Nagi-approved. My recipe was from the NYT cooking site. Anyway just a request and thanks again for all your recipes.
Would a 3# bottom round work??
I made this using the oven method and it’s amazing. It smelled incredible while cooking. I added mushrooms with the garlic (my husband and I don’t like onions so I left them out), which turned out to be a great idea. It made for a rich umami gravy. I also like the carrots — they’re a little mushy, but they get very sweet with that long slow cook time. This will be my go-to stew recipe from now on.
Wahoo, that’s great to hear Emily!
Hey Nagi, would sirloin tip roast also be a good cut of beef? If so, would I need to do anything to it to make it tender or just follow recipe as is with it?
It would work fine Criselda! Enjoy – N x