Pot Roast Recipe

This pot roast recipe is tender and flavorful. It takes only 3 minutes of prep time and then the slow cooker does the rest!

Pot Roast is one of our favorite Sunday dinners. It takes only 3 minutes of prep time and then the slow cooker does the rest. We love to serve it with Parmesan Potatoes and of course Gravy!

Best Sunday Dinner!

Sunday dinners are our favorite! It’s the one night each week that we are guaranteed a nice dinner with the entire family.

Because we have church, we often make crock pot meals, and one of our favorites is this Pot Roast recipe.

It’s simple, loved by the whole family, and great for any night of the week. It’s also packed with so much flavor!

We always end up with leftovers, so we make Green Chile Burros the next night for dinner.

Prepping Tips

The best cut of beef. When cooking a roast in a slow cooker, look for a roast with a lot of marbling like chuck roast, rump roast, and bottom rounds.

As the roast cooks, the marbling will break down and help create a fall-apart tender roast. Since this takes time I suggest cooking on LOW heat for 6-8 hours. 

How much to make. When serving meat as a main dish plan 8 oz per person. If there are big appetites, or you want leftovers, then plan 12 oz of meat per person.

How to Make Pot Roast

I always buy my Chuck Roast at Sam’s Club. It comes in a pack of 2 and the net weight is about 5-6 pounds, so each roast is 2.5 to 3 pounds, usually. 

For a big get-together, you may need to cook both in the crock pot. For my family of 8, we can get by using 1 chuck roast. If I’m not using the other roast, I freeze it to use later that month.

PREP. In a small bowl, mix brown gravy mix, ranch mix, and Italian dressing mix together.

Place chuck roast in the slow cooker and pour water over the roast. Sprinkle dry mix all over the top.

COOK. Cook on the LOW setting for 7–8 hours, or until meat is tender and easy to shred.

Adding Vegetables

Cooking vegetables with your classic pot roast recipe is as simple as adding them to the crock pot! Place your roast in the crock pot along with the veggies. Then, add your seasoning mix and water.

Veggies. Typically the following vegetables are used: cut carrots, sliced yellow onion, whole or halved small red or white potatoes, and diced celery.

• Some people like to add them to the bottom of the pot at the beginning so they become tender while other people like to add them later in the cooking time so they are firmer.
• In either case, cut them all the same size so they cook at the same rate.

For more information, check out our Pot Roast with Potatoes and Carrots recipe.

Pot Roast Gravy from Drippings

To make gravy to pour on top, it’s super simple. All you need is the following ingredients:

• roast drippings
• milk
• flour

Take about ⅓-½ cups of the drippings from the roast in the crock pot and add that to a small pot on the stove. Heat it up a bit, then add 1 tablespoon of flour and 1 tablespoon of milk. Keep adding a little milk and a little flour until it’s the consistency you like.

Top off with a little salt and pepper!

For more gravy tips see this Post Roat Gravy post

Recipe Tips

How to make fork-tender pot roast. The longer the roast has to cook in the crock pot, the more melt-in-your-mouth tender it will become. Here are a few tips to help you get the best cook:

• A 5 lb thin pot roast will take less time to cook than a 5 lb fat pot roast.
• Do not let it overcook otherwise the exterior portions will begin to dry out.
• Do not take the lid off during the cooking time as it can take the slow cooker 20 minutes to return to the correct temp.
• Use the correct size crock pot and don’t overfill. The ingredients should take up between ½ to ⅔ of the crock pot. 

How to thaw a roast faster. A roast can take about 16-24 hours to thaw in the fridge. Speed up the process by placing the roast in a sealed Ziploc bag and submerging it in cold water. Change the water every 30 minutes until the roast has thawed. This method will take about 2-3 hours. Thawing at room temperature is not recommended.

How to sear or brown a roast. It is not necessary to brown the roast before cooking it, but it is worth the extra effort as the caramelized meat will add an extra layer of flavor. 

1. Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat.
2. Generously salt all sides of the roast.
3. Sear each side for about 2-3 minutes.
4. Place the roast into the crock pot.

Seasoning Mixes

The seasoning we make to go over this roast is made with 3 simple ingredients (1 tablespoon of each packet):

• brown gravy dry mix
• Hidden Valley dry mix
• Italian dressing dry mix

NOTE: Since we make this beef pot roast often, I like to make this seasoning in bulk (usually 1 cup of each dry mix), and then I scoop out ¼ cup of the mixture to sprinkle over the top.

Homemade Italian Dressing Mix. In a small bowl, mix together the 1 tbsp garlic salt, 1 tbsp onion powder, 1 tbsp white sugar, 2 tbsp oregano, 1 tbsp black pepper, ¼ tsp dried thyme, 1 tsp dried basil, 1 tbsp dried parsley, ¼ tsp celery salt and 2 tbsp table salt. 

Store the remaining mix in an airtight container.

Homemade Ranch Dressing Mix. Add the following ingredients to the blender and pulse until mixed and smooth. Then mix in the reserved parsley.

½ cup dry buttermilk powder, 1 tbsp dried parsley (divided), 1 tsp dried dill weed, 1 tsp onion powder, 1 tsp dried onion flakes, 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp garlic powder, 2 tsp dried portabella mushrooms pieces,1 tsp garlic salt, ¼ tsp ground pepper, ½ tsp white sugar. 

Store the remaining mix in an airtight container – it makes the best pot roast recipes!

serving Suggestions

Depending on how you originally flavored your pot roast, you can easily use leftovers to create an entirely new dish for dinner. Try out some of these ideas: Shredded Beef Taco, Empanadas, pocket sandwich, patty melt, stir fry, roast beef sandwich, or Shepherd’s Pie.

What to serve with roast.

• Twice Baked Potatoes 
• Asparagus and Tater Toss
• Potatoes Au Gratin
• Puff Pastry Wrapped Asparagus Rolls
• Parmesan Potatoes
• Pot Roast Gravy

Storing Tips

Make ahead of time. Pot roast can be made ahead of time. Once cooked, put the entire pot containing the roast and the juices, in the refrigerator.

STORE. Store any leftover pot roast in a covered dish in the refrigerator. Make sure to include any of the juices from the original cooking pot. These juices will keep the roast from drying out in the fridge.

• Reheat it in the microwave, but I prefer to reheat it in the oven. Cover the pan with the meat and juices and bake at 325°F until the meat reaches the desired temperature.

FREEZE. If you have any leftover pot roast recipe but aren’t planning to eat it within 2-3 days, stick it in the freezer for later. Place the roast and some cooking juices in a freezer-safe, airtight container. Freeze for up to 2 months.

• To cook, thaw it in the refrigerator for 1-2 days. Place the meat and the juices in a baking dish, cover, and bake at 325°F until the meat reaches the desired temperature.

Recipe FAQ

For more beef recipes, check out:

• Beef Stroganoff
• Slow Cooker Beef Stew
• Easy Beef and Broccoli
• Beef Empanadas
• French Dip Sandwich
• Easy Meatloaf