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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.
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!
Ingredients You’ll Need for Pot Roast
- Beef – I like using a top round roast. It’s cost effective and really benefits from being braised for hours.
- 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.
- Tomato paste – An essential ingredient for adding a nice, deep flavor.
- Carrot – Adds a delicious touch of sweetness.
- Celery – This complements the carrot and onion wonderfully.
- 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!
How to Make Pot Roast
- 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.
- Cook the diced vegetables. Add in the celery, yellow onion, and carrots. Cook until slightly softened, about 4-5 minutes.
- Add the FLAVOR. Mix in the smashed garlic, tomato paste, fresh herbs, worchestire and mix until combined.
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.
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
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.
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.
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.
How to Make this Pot Roast with an Instant Pot and Slow Cooker
Instant Pot Instructions:
- 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.
- 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.
- 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:
- Use the sauté function on your slow cooker to sear the beef and cook all of the vegetables.
- Set it to “low” and cook for 7 hours, until fork tender. At the 7 hour mark, add in the potatoes and carrots.
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Pot Roast
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
- 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.Â
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This pot roast recipe is truly perfect. It’s so simple to follow and the results were amazing. My family ate it all up!
I found this recipe on Instagram, I had to make it! This dishhh will not disappoint, it’s so delicious
Thanks so much for the feedback. So glad you loved it! 🙂
Hi! Any ideas to sub the wine, to make it small kiddo friendly please? Thank you
you can simply leave it out and replace it with more beef/chicken broth! 🙂