Pot Roast (2024)

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By Adrianna Adarme

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Mar 26, 2024

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This tender Pot Roast recipe is melt-in-your-mouth delicious. This pot roast is braised with a rich, delicious gravy, carrots and potatoes. This is infused with vegetables and braised with carrots and onions. Cook this in a slow cooker, instant pot or in a Dutch oven. Serve this with my creamy mashed potatoes and carrot sheet cake for the most ideal dinner.

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Table of Contents

  • Ingredients You’ll Need for Pot Roast
  • How to Make Pot Roast
  • Recipe Tip
  • More Dinner Recipes
  • Pot Roast Recipe

There’s something so satisfying about food that’s cooked low and slow. I grew up with dishes like Seco de Carne on Sundays. And I love my Cozy Beef Stew and Garlic Braised Short Ribs the minute the temperatures start to be a bit more chilly.

Hands down my favorite thing about this pot roast is how hands off it is. After the initial sear and cooking of vegetables, pop it in the oven and forget about it. It’s that simple!

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Ingredients You’ll Need for Pot Roast

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  1. Beef – I like using a top round roast. It’s cost effective and really benefits from being braised for hours.
  2. Beef broth – I love using beef broth because, hello, we’re using beef. BUT, if I don’t have it, I’ll use my homemade chicken broth too. I usually have it in the fridge and it tastes amazing.
  3. Tomato paste – An essential ingredient for adding a nice, deep flavor.
  4. Carrot – Adds a delicious touch of sweetness.
  5. Celery – This complements the carrot and onion wonderfully.
  6. Red wine – I love braising this beef in red wine. It adds the perfect amount of acidity.

For the rest of the ingredients, please refer to the recipe index card below!

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How to Make Pot Roast

  1. Sear the beef. The first step is to give the beef a good sear on all sides. I like to do this in a pre-heated Dutch oven. You really want color on all sides. This will give the entire pot roast SO much flavor. Remove it from the pot.
  2. Cook the diced vegetables. Add in the celery, yellow onion, and carrots. Cook until slightly softened, about 4-5 minutes.
  3. Add the FLAVOR. Mix in the smashed garlic, tomato paste, fresh herbs, worchestire and mix until combined.
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4. Pour in the red wine. And be sure to scrape any bits that are on the bottom of the pot. This is flavor! And beef stock and give it a mix.

5. Add the meat back. And then top it with a lid.

6. Transfer to the oven to cook for 3 1/2 hours. It should be fork tender at this point.

7. Remove the meat from the pot. Strain the broth through a strainer into a bowl and discard the solids.

8. Pour the liquid back to the pot. Add the meat back to the pot, along with the red potatoes and carrots. Cover with a lid and simmer on the stove for 20 minutes on medium-low, until the potatoes and carrots are tender.

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Recipe Tip

Thicken the sauce – If you want a super thick gravy sauce, here’s what to do: after you strain the solids out of the sauce, add a tablespoon or two of the strained sauce to a small bowl. Whisk in a tablespoon of flour or teaspoon of corn starch until very smooth. Pour it back to the large bowl and add that back to the pot. Proceed with adding the meat back with the potatoes and carrots. It will thicken to a nice gravy consistency.

Deglazing the pan – When you pour in the red wine, be sure to scrape the bottom of the pot to get all the “fond” aka beef bits up from the pot. This will give the entire dish SO much flavor.

Recipe FAQs

What is the best cuts of beef for pot roast?

The best meat for pot roast is a cut with abundant connective tissue; this braises really nicely. I like using top round roast (pictured), chuck roast or beef brisket. In a pinch, you could use a flank steak, like how the recipe for ropa vieja uses.

What can I use in place of red wine?

If you don’t want to use red wine, simply replace it with more beef broth. You can also add a splash of soy sauce for more flavor.

What should I serve with this pot roast?

I love serving a rich pot roast with a bright salad like my Endive Salad with Walnuts and Orange or Fall Harvest Salad. I also think it would go amazing well with my Miso Chocolate Chip Cookies or Lemon Cake as dessert.

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How to Make this Pot Roast with an Instant Pot and Slow Cooker

Instant Pot Instructions:

  1. Use the sauté function on your Instant Pot. Sear the beef and remove it from the IP. Add in your vegetables and proceed with cooking them until softened.
  2. Add everything back to the IP and cook on “high” pressure for 80 minutes. Use the natural release until most of the initial pressure has been released. Carefully open the IP.
  3. Strain the vegetables and then add the sauce and beef back. Set the IP to soup setting. Add in the carrots and potatoes and cook for an additional 10 minutes until both are tender.

Slow Cooker:

  1. Use the sauté function on your slow cooker to sear the beef and cook all of the vegetables.
  2. Set it to “low” and cook for 7 hours, until fork tender. At the 7 hour mark, add in the potatoes and carrots.

More Dinner Recipes

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5 from 4 votes

Pot Roast

Prep: 15 minutes mins

Cook: 4 hours hrs

Total: 4 hours hrs 15 minutes mins

Servings: 6

Equipment

  • 1 (5 quart) Dutch oven

Ingredients

  • 3 pounds beef top round roast or whole chuck round roast
  • 2 teaspoons kosher salt
  • 1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
  • 2 teaspoons olive oil
  • 2 ribs of celery, diced
  • 3 carrots, peeled and divided
  • 1 yellow onion, peeled and roughly chopped
  • 5 cloves smashed garlic
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
  • 4 pieces thyme, leaves removed
  • 4 rosemary sprigs, leaves removed
  • 1 1/2 cups red wine
  • 3 1/2 cups beef stock, (you could also use chicken stock in a pinch)
  • 2 teaspoons corn starch
  • 2 red potatoes, halved
  • 3 carrots, peeled and chopped

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 325F. Season meat with salt and pepper. In a large pot, set over medium heat, add the olive oil. When hot, add the meat and sear on both sides for 4 to 5 minutes until browned.

  • Remove the meat from the pot, turn the heat down to medium-low and add in the celery, yellow onion, and carrots. Cook until slightly softened, about 4-5 minutes. Add in the smashed garlic, tomato paste, fresh herbs, worchestire and mix until combined.

  • Pour in the red wine and scrape the bottom of the pot, being sure to lift up any bits. This will flavor the pot roast even more! Pour in the beef stock and give it a mix. Add the meat back to the pot and put the lid on top. Transfer to the oven and cook for 3 to 3 1/2 hours, until very tender.

  • Remove the meat from the pot. Strain the broth through a strainer into a bowl and discard the solids. To thicken the sauce, add a few tablespoons of the strained liquid to a bowl. Whisk in two teaspoons of corn starch until smooth. Pour the stock slurry and the rest of the stock to the pot.

  • Add the meat back to the pot, along with the red potatoes and carrots. Cover with a lid and simmer on the stove for 20 to 30 minutes on medium-low, until the potatoes and carrots are tender.

Notes

Tips and Tricks:

  • Thicken the sauce – If you want a thick gravy sauce, here’s what to do: after you strain the solids out of the sauce, add a few tbls of the strained sauce to a small bowl. Whisk in a tablespoon of flour or two teaspoons of corn starch until very smooth. Pour it back to the pot. Proceed with adding the meat back with the potatoes and carrots. It will thicken to a nice gravy consistency.
  • Deglazing the pan – When you pour in the red wine, be sure to scrape the bottom of the pot to get all the “fond” aka beef bits up from the pot. This will give the entire dish SO much flavor.
  • Skip the potatoes – If I know I’m serving this with mashed potatoes, I’ll typically skip adding the red potatoes. If I’m serving this with rice or polenta, I love to add in the potatoes.

Nutrition

Calories: 154kcal | Carbohydrates: 24g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 2g | Saturated Fat: 0.3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 1187mg | Potassium: 929mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 10322IU | Vitamin C: 14mg | Calcium: 57mg | Iron: 2mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Additional Info

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: American

Like this Recipe? Please below!

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Cozy Latin-Inspired Comfort Food Recipes

Hi! I'm Adrianna and this is my cozy space on the internet that is super-charged by butter, flour and copious amounts of pasta. Stay awhile, will you!

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Pot Roast (2024)

FAQs

Why is my beef still tough after slow cooking? ›

If you consistently notice tough beef, Carli says your slow cooker may not be working hard enough. “Try cooking for longer, or at a higher temp,” she advises.

Why is my roast still tough after 6 hours? ›

There are several reasons why this could have happened even after so much cooking. First, your choice of a rump roast could be a factor since cuts from the hind quarter are very muscular and, since muscles are the most resistant to breaking, this cut is quite stubborn when it comes to becoming tender.

Does roast get more tender the longer you cook it? ›

Yes, pot roast absolutely becomes more tender the longer it cooks. Roasts are generally made from tougher cuts of meat, such as chuck or brisket, which contain a lot of collagen, connective tissue, and fat. These tougher tissues require a long cooking time to break down and for the collagen to converts into gelatin.

How do I make my pot roast less tough? ›

A surefire way to make a tender, juicy pot roast is through braising; that is, cooking the meat in a small amount of liquid in a tightly covered pot at low temperature. Stove top roast recipes can be customized with your choice of herbs, vegetables, potatoes, and liquid braising mixtures.

Why isn't my roast falling apart? ›

The key to cooking pot roast is cooking it low and slow. The meat should just fall apart, hence the name, and if it doesn't, you probably have not cooked it long enough. Also, I like to cook the potatoes separately, as they tend to be a little to mushy for my liking when you cook them with the roast.

Does beef get more tender the longer it simmers? ›

What happens during slow-cooking, with juice or sauce, is that the collagen that's in the meat's muscular tissues is gradually transformed into some kind of gelatin and thus allows the piece to be more tender, the more it simmers.

How do you rescue a tough roast? ›

You can add a little bit of water or broth to a pan and simmer the meat for a few minutes. The goal is to allow the liquid to penetrate the meat without allowing it to overcook even more. This should take a couple of minutes. If you add a couple tablespoons of vinegar or lemon juice, this also helps revive the meat.

Can you soften a tough roast? ›

Slow cook it. Tough cuts of meat with lots of connective tissue, like brisket, chuck roast, and bottom round, are some of the best choices for the slow cooker. Cooked low and slow for many hours, the collagen in these tough cuts eventually breaks, leaving you with shreds of tender, juicy meat.

How to fix undercooked roast beef? ›

Obviously, all you have to do is cook it some more. The trick is in how to do so on the double, and without drying out your cut of meat. Don't just put the cut back into the oven or pot as-is; cut down on cooking time by slicing it into smaller pieces.

How do you fix tough meat after cooking? ›

You may need some sweetness and acidity to bring up the tough meat. Simmer in liquid. Just like for burnt meat, if your meat gets tough and dry then you can simmer it in a little bit of broth for a couple minutes. Don't allow it to overcook again but just allow the liquid to penetrate the meat.

Does beef get softer the longer you slow cook it? ›

Your meat will be juicier and more tender

The longer cooking time and the low heat complement each other perfectly. As a result, even though the meat is cooked for far longer, it doesn't dry out because the temperature is low. As a result, this is the best way to retain all the natural juices of the meat.

Why is my beef not softening? ›

Two options really, either it is really a poor cut of beef, or more likely it hasn't been cooked for long enough. Usually 3 hours in the oven in a casserole dish at 180C/350F should make any cut of beef tender.

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