*Amazing* Pot Roast Crockpot Recipe
This post may contain affiliate sales links. Please read my disclosure policy.
This Pot Roast Crockpot Recipe is comfort food at its best! Vegetables, beef roast and savory gravy all cook together low and slow in a crockpot until it’s fall apart tender. Serve by itself or with some buttery mashed potatoes for maximum deliciousness.
With the winter months upon us, its time to bring out my trusty Pot Roast Crockpot recipe! I am convinced this recipe could bring world peace based on how delicious it is. First brown your meat, then add it into the crockpot with some onions, garlic, carrots and thyme. Finish it off with a little beef consomme and broth and let her rip. After 4-6 hours on high, you’ll have a pull apart, super tender roast with tasty veggies to serve along side. Thicken the gravy and serve! It’s the perfect Sunday Supper or stick to your ribs weeknight meal.
Basic Pot Roast Recipe
Every person should have an amazing Pot Roast recipe in their arsenal. This is mine and I’m happy to be sharing it with you today! A few notes before we begin: be sure to brown your meat first. This adds great flavor and really only adds an extra 10 minutes total. Also, be sure to find a canned beef consomme. This adds a stronger beef flavor you can’t get from broth or stock. I use Campbell’s.
What cut of meat do I use for Pot Roast?
The most common cut of meat you’ll need for a classic pot roast is a boneless beef chuck roast. It’s from the shoulder of the cow and generally more tough, but has great marbling that makes for a buttery, tender and moist finished product. I used about 3 pounds, but this recipe can be easily adapted with a smaller or larger roast. Just make sure your crockpot is large enough for a larger piece of meat.
If you can’t find chuck roast, look for a boneless beef brisket or bottom round roast.
Basic Ingredients for this Pot Roast Recipe
Most pot roast recipes call for a lot of the same ingredients. While some will call for tomatoes and/or red wine, mine does not mainly because I don’t like it like that. You are welcome to add in 1 tablespoon tomato paste and substitute half of the beef broth for red wine. All increments are in the recipe card below.
- Chuck Roast-3-4 pound roast is the perfect amount for a family of 6-8 people
- Onions & Garlic– adds ‘invisible’ flavor as these two ingredients seem to disappear the longer this cooks
- Carrots– cut these into large chunks so they don’t over cook
- Fresh Thyme– if you can’t find fresh, use dried. See my notes in the recipe card for increments.
- Bay leaves– use two large dried.
- Beef Consomme– canned Campbell’s is perfect for this.
- Beef Broth– this makes up the majority of the gravy
- Butter + Flour– this thickens the gravy once everything has cooked.
How to make a Crockpot Pot Roast
The hardest part of making this recipe is waiting for 4-6 hours for it to cook. Besides that, the prep is really quite simple.
- Unwrap chuck roast and pat dry with paper towels. Bring to room temperature for about 45 minutes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper generously.
- Brown roast well on all sides in a hot pan and a little olive oil. Transfer to warm crock pot.
- Add onions, garlic, carrots, thyme, bay leaves, Worcestershire, beef consomme, beef broth and more salt and pepper if desired.
- Cover and cook on high 4 to 6 hours or until very tender.
- Transfer meat to a shallow bowl. Using a slotted spoon, transfer carrots and onions in a serving bowl.
- Pour cooking liquid into a fat separator. Pour off fat and then add 2 cups of cooking liquid back into crockpot.
- Stir soft butter and flour together to form a paste. Melt into the hot cooking liquid and whisk to melt in completely. Cover and cook 20 minutes to thicken slightly.
- Remove fat from meat and shred. Place into serving dish with carrots.
- Spoon over hot gravy and serve. Mashed potatoes optional!
I use this fat separator from OXO and it does a great job at not only separating the fat from the cooking juices, but it also pulls out any large chunks you may have missed that you don’t want in your gravy.
What do I do if my roast is still tough?
Odds are your pot roast is still tough because you haven’t cooked it long enough. As the meat cooks, it gets tougher and tougher until it reaches its breaking point and all that connective tissue and fat starts relaxing and melting away.
So if you think your meat is done but its still tough, let it cook another hour or so. The longer you cook it, the more tender it should become. Keep at it!
What to serve with Pot Roast
Oh, the possibilities are endless! Here are my favorite sides to serve:
- Mashed Potatoes (obviously)
- Crockpot Mashed Potatoes
- Oven Roasted Potatoes
- Roasted Cauliflower
- Easy Roasted Brussels Sprouts
- Homemade Whole Wheat Rolls
- No-Knead Crescent Rolls
Can I make this ahead?
Yes, absolutely! Simple follow the directions in the recipe card and then pack everything up in airtight containers and store in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. To serve, reheat in the microwave or on the stove.
Can I make this on the stove and/or in the oven?
Yes! The crockpot is mainly used for braising and thankfully we can braise in the oven using a dutch oven. Simply brown the meat in the dutch oven on the stove, add in the rest of the ingredients, cover and transfer to a 225 degree oven for 4-6 hours or until meat is very tender.
Like Pot Roast? Try these other recipes:
- Garlic and Herb Encrusted Pork Roast with Pregravied Potatoes
- Slow Cooker Root Beer Pulled Pork Sandwich Recipe
- Crock Pot Pulled Pork Recipe
- Crockpot Rosemary Pork Loin
Pot Roast Crockpot Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 lb. Chuck Roast sometimes referred to as a pot roast on the sticker
- salt & pepper to taste
- 10.5 oz beef consommé 1 can
- 2 cups beef broth
- 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1 small onion diced
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 5 sprigs fresh thyme or 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
- 2 bay leaf
- 2 pounds carrots cut into large chunks
- 2 tablespoons butter softened
- 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
Instructions
- Remove roast from fridge, unwrap and dab with paper towels to remove any moisture. Let sit 45 minutes to an hour to bring to room temperature. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Heat olive oil over medium high heat. Brown roast on all sides and transfer to crockpot.
- Cover with beef consommé, beef broth, Worcestershire sauce, onion, garlic, thyme, bay leaves, and salt and pepper if necessary. Cover with lid and cook 4-6 hours on high. If your roast is on the smaller side, it will take less time for it to cook. If your roast is on the larger side, it will take more time for it to cook. Roast is done when it is very tender.
- Using a slotted spoon, remove the meat to a shallow bowl and set aside. Remove carrots and onions and place into a serving dish. Set aside. Pour cooking liquid through a fat separator. Discard fat and measure out 2 cups of hot cooking liquid.
- In a large bowl, stir butter and flour together until a smooth paste forms. Pour the hot cooking liquid into the butter-flour mixture and stir to thicken. The heat from the liquid should thicken it pretty quickly. Pour this mixture into the slow cooker and stir to create a gravy. Cover and cook another 20 minutes or so.
- While gravy is warming, remove any excess fat from meat and shred the rest. Toss meat and carrots back in with gravy and serve. OR serve separately with gravy on the side of the meat and carrots.
Since I first found this recipe it has become my go to for slow cooker pot roast. Even my picky eater loves this one. Easy and delicious, a perfect recipe! Thanks, Lauren.
Can’t wait to try this! Crockpot season is among us! We might get snow next week! 🥶 I haven’t had a cauliflower mash in YEARS! This is gonna be good! 😋
Best work day recipe! So so good!
This! Total heaven! Can’t wait for the hubs to try it next time.
On my list of dinners to make!! 🤤
[…] Slow Cooker Pot Roast with Buttermilk Parmesan Mashed Cauliflower – The perfect rainy or cold weather crockpot meal. Slow cooked pot roast with carrots and onions, served over mashed cauliflower. Mashed potatoes work just as well too! […]
Looked so good and easy and it was a bit disappointing. I dont think 4 hours is enough at high. Even with the extra hour after the carrots, my roast was still pretty tough and fatty. This recipe would likely be better on low for 7-8 hours. The gravy also didnt thicken up much for me. I think I’d rather make it on the stovetop with the broth to better control the consistency.
This cauliflower mash and roast combo sounds like an amazing meal!
[…] 1 recipe Buttermilk Parmesan Mashed Cauliflower […]
[…] Slow Cooker Pot Roast […]
[…] image credit: laurenslatest / Lauren Get the recipe here for this Slowcooker Pot Roast With Buttermilk Parmesan Mashed Cauliflower […]
This will definitely be on the menu post holiday! Got to get back on the program after so much indulgence. Yum!
[…] image credit: laurenslatest / Lauren Get the recipe here for this Slowcooker Pot Roast With Buttermilk Parmesan Mashed Cauliflower […]
Can you make this cauliflower mash in a kitchen aid mixer?
I made this mashed cauliflower for dinner and it is delicious! I don’t even like cauliflower (but it is my husband’s favorite vege so I make it) and I thought it was great. Thanks for a good and easy recipe!
what kind of slow cooker do you use?
I made this yesterday and it was amazing!!! Both the pot roast and the cauliflower mash are mazing recipes on their own, but together–amazing. This is something you can make for guests on a week night, just add a simple salad.
Oh Lauren, my mouth is watering just looking at those pictures!
I just made pot roast the other day for dinner. It hit the spot. Haven’t tried it with the mashed cauliflower. We love cauliflower so I’ll have to give it a try.
This sounds delicious! I love carrots in roasts….there’s nothing better than when they’ve been cooking next to the meat for hours and soak up the delicious juices. I’ve never tried a mashed cauliflower before, but this sounds amazing!
i would love to recieve your recipes in my email please add me to your list thanks Jequita smith [email protected]
This looks so good. I made a slow cooker pot roast last weekend and it was kind of disappointing, it was still roast beef, but not amazing, you know? This one looks amazing, I’ll have to try it! Roast beef is my nemesis, one of those things that just is never perfect! 🙂
I grew up eating pot roast, but haven’t had it since I moved out! This along with the buttermilk mashed cauliflower sounds like a perfect meal for tonight 😉
Mmmm comfort – comfort – comfort … yes, please!!
Hello!! Is there anything I can use to substitute for the consomme?
I don’t really like to use that much broth and consommé. What else could I use
This is my idea of the perfect weeknight, family meal. So easy too!
I am in love with the pot roast. I need to use my slow cooker more often. I am a bit iffy on the mashed cauliflower. I recently made mashed turnips, and my 6 year old liked them but commented that they seemed a bit watery. I’ve had success with a half turnip/cauliflower and potato mash before, though. The potato starch really helps.
I am totally in LURVE with mashed cauliflower, but I haven’t made it with buttermilk – now that is just oure GENIUS! This looks like my kinda comfort food! Pinning!
Is it necessary to subscribe to your new email list if I’m already on the old one? It sounds like a nice improvement.
No need to subscribe again! All your info got transferred over 🙂