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
How will it affect the recipe (instant pot version ) if I use baby potatoes instead of peeled and chopped? If at all?
If you substitute baby potatoes just make sure they are a similar size to the one called for in the recipe. N x
Your recipes are fabulous! Making this tonight. Can you recommend/prefer a certain brand of wine?
Nagi, I have fixed beef pot roast for many years. Unlike many of those who post recipes for beef pot roast I prefer to fix this dish on top of the stove. It just seems to come out better that way for me. I am fixing this dish tonight. Unfortunately I was a little short of funds today so I had to leave out the red wine, but when I can come up with enough $ to include red wine this dish is truly awesome. At the risk of being perceived as woefully ignorant can you tell me exactly what is an ‘instant pot’? I use a heavy dutch oven on top of my stove.
Hi Charlie, I read your comment and wanted to let ya know an instapot is a pressure cooker device. It cooks food quickly, great example is this dish. In a slow cooker, it takes about 5 hours. In an instapot, it takes about 45 mins but still yields a slow cooked taste, I hope that makes sense! You can find them online or Amazon or any store where you may find other kitchen cooking devices, totally worth the investment!
Happy cooking! Cheers!
Nagli, I have fixed beef pot roast for many years. Unlike many of those who post recipes for beef pot roast I prefer to fix this dish on top of the stove. It just seems to come out better that way for me. I am fixing this dish tonight. Unfortunately I was a little short of funds today so I had to leave out the red wine, but when I can come up with enough $ to include red wine this dish is truly awesome.
Cooked this recipe in a slow cooker without the celery. It was just great. My wife loved it.
Happy wife … Happy life !
I’ve made this a couple times now and it’s fantastic!! So easy, so tasty and wholesome. It ticks all the right boxes. Your recipes are just a success everytime! Thanks for sharing your talent.
This was good! Now I’m patiently waiting for a Yorkshire pudding recipe.
Hello Nagi, I’m calling from PNG and I always enjoy looking at and trying your recipes. One problem with PNG beef, like chuck, it’s often very tough, even after 8 hours in a slow cooker. Tried a few suggestions, like leaving overnight in brine and leaving in the fridge, without covering, for 5 days. Tried using Chuck. Tried using Rump, but I’m not winning! Any suggestions greatly appreciated! Many thanks, Murray
I wonder if using balsamic vinegar and/or red wine vinegar could work nice if you don’t have dry red wine? I’m about to make this tonight but will use a smaller amount just in case. And in the instant pot! Wish me luck. 🙂 I’ll try to say how it goes on here after.
Hi Nicole, it will be too acidic and sour, sub with beef broth as per the recipe 🙂 N x
just got a 3lb roast chuck marbled well pressure cooking later. I always cook my plating vegies separately still use others in the cooker best of both worlds. ” Good Appetite “
Hi nagi.
Can I use a beef yearling roast for this recipe?
Hi Nagi
could I use blade in this recipe I have a piece and not sure if it suitable for a pot roast
Hi Wendy, yes you can, I mention this in the recipe notes. N x
Thank You Nagi
Hi,
I think I added to much flour – how do I fix it?
Hi Christy, just ad a little more broth to thin it out if it’s too thick. N x
I cooked this pot roast for Mother’s Day dinner it was absolutely delicious 😋 yum yum so easy to cook everyone enjoyed it.
Thank you
Nagi
What beef broth do you use? Could I sub beef stock for beef broth?
Did this one for family but instead of adding the recipe potatoes at 3 hours included your Ultra Crispy Smashed Potatoes. Awesome X
Roast has been slow cooking in my instant pot for 5 hours and just lifted the top to add the potatoes and noticed that the celery and carrots have not softened at all. Looking at my manual they indicate that “less” is low for slow cooking compared to other slow cookers. After investigation online on various blogs it seems like “normal” is more in line with low on typical slow cookers in spite of what instant pot indicates. I have now adjusted the last 3 hours to normal, hopefully it works out, I may leave it in longer. Thought I would mention this tid bit for other instant pot users. Nothing to do with Nagi’s recipe or instructions of course. Also have your no kneed roll dough rising Nagi but looks like this will be for tomorrow’s dinner. Can’t wait to try the pot roast, hopefully the instant pot mishap does ruin the end result. Recipe looks delicious.
Just an update on my previous post, it appears that either my instant pot slow cook function is not working or instant pot does not slow cook properly?! After 8 hours hard veg and no sign of a cooked roast. I have had to switch to a pressure cook in an attempt to salvage my roast. Time for a glass of wine! I’ll have to try this one again in the oven next time. Any other instant pot nightmares out there? Lol
Hi Holly, I too have had issues with my slow cooker. After 8 hours the meat and potatoes did not cook (was not Nagi’s recipe). First and last time I use it.
Hi Vera! Thanks for reply. After speaking with friends and colleagues it seems that Instant Pot isn’t quite the multicooker it claims to be as they had the same issues with the slow cook function. (Of course I find this out after giving away my slow cooker). I plan to contact the company but will stick to using it as a pressure cooker going forward. I plan to try Nagi’s pot roast in my Dutch oven next time!
Hey Holly,
You probably know by now but a slow cooker heats around the sides as well as the bottom where the IP only heats from the bottom so not good for slow cooking.
Hi. Recipe looks terrific. I’m planning to cook in my slow cooker – how long should it be cooked on high?
I found this needed 7 – 8 hours on slow cook high in my Tefal multi cooker. It was delicious although one change I made was adding 3 tablespoons Worcester sauce. Slow cook high is 100 degrees on mine. Over the years on various machines Ive found the difference between low and high is how long the slow cooker takes to heat up rather than actual temp
This is by far the best pot roast I have ever made! I made this via the stove version and it was perfect! Meat was so tender, the gravy was perfect! Just an excellent recipe!
My husband and I both loved this recipe..thank you for sharing this with us. It’s our one to go meal on the weekend🥰
That’s so lovely to read – thanks so much Claire! N x