This homemade pot roast recipe is easy comfort food at its best!
With simple steps, a beef chuck roast slow cooks in the oven with onions, carrots, and potatoes until melt in your mouth tender.
Serve it up with a rich, savory gravy for the perfect cozy meal.
This is the Perfect Pot Roast Recipe Because…
- This recipe has rave reviews and results in a tender roast every time!
- It’s easy to make with staple ingredients.
- Pot roast is cooked with veggies to make a full meal in a single pot.
- I’ve included step-by-step instructions for a savory gravy.
What You’ll Need for a Perfect Pot Roast
- Beef: My first choice for pot roast is chuck roast since it becomes so tender. Other tougher cuts of beef with marbling, like round or rump roasts, become tender and create flavorful gravies as they cook low and slow. You can also use a pork shoulder or Boston butt in this recipe.
- Onions: I cook the onions along with the roast, and they melt into the gravy, adding lots of flavor. If you’d like chunks of onion, add extra with the other vegetables.
- Vegetables: Carrots, celery, and potatoes are added to this pot roast recipe, but you can add other veggies like mushrooms, turnips, or sweet potatoes.
- Broth: I use beef broth or stock along with red wine to braise the meat. You can replace the wine with additional broth. Do not use low-sodium broth.
- Gravy: The base of the gravy is the juices from the meat thickened with either cornstarch or flour.
How to Make Pot Roast
This is an overview of the steps to make a pot roast—find full details below!
- Sear beef: Season and sear the beef roast.
- Add onions & broth: Add onions, broth, wine, and seasonings. Bake in the oven.
- Add veggies: Add vegetables and cook until the roast and veggies are tender.
- Make gravy: Separate the fat from the drippings and prepare the gravy according to the recipe directions.
Holly’s Pro Tips for Pot Roast
- Sear for flavor: Searing the beef adds extra flavor. Scrape the brown bits from the bottom of the pot (AKA the fond) before making the gravy.
- Rest the meat: Remove the meat from the pot and allow it to rest while making the gravy.
- Check with a fork: For best results, use a fork to check the roast. It should fall apart easily. If the meat isn’t fork tender, cover it and cook for an additional 20 to 30 minutes—then check it again.
- Cooking times can vary depending on the size and type of roast you purchase. Here are approximate cooking times for pot roast in the oven:
- Cook a 3 lb. roast for a total of 3-3.5 hours
- Cook a 4 lb. roast for a total of 3.5-4 hours
- Cook a 5 lb. roast for a total of 4.5-5 hours
Storing Leftover Pot Roast
- Keep leftover pot roast in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days.
- Freeze portions in zippered bags for up to 3 months and thaw overnight in the refrigerator.
- Reheat on the stovetop, adding more broth if necessary.
Leftovers?
Did you make this classic Pot Roast Recipe? Be sure to leave a comment and a rating below!
Pot Roast Recipe
This Pot Roast is slow-cooked with potatoes and veggies to savory, tender perfection.
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 3 to 4 pounds chuck roast or rump roast
- 1 large onion chopped, or two small onions
- 4 carrots cut into 2-inch pieces
- 2 ribs celery cut into 1 ½-inch pieces
- 1 pound baby potatoes or chopped red potatoes
- 2 cups beef broth or as needed
- 1 cup red wine *see note
- 4 cloves garlic coarsely chopped
- ½ teaspoon dried rosemary
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme leaves
- 1 bay leaf
For the Gravy
- flour or cornstarch, see notes
- butter optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 300°F.
- Season roast with salt and pepper.
- In a large dutch oven, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium-high heat. Sear the roast on each side until browned, about 4 minutes per side adding more oil if needed.
- Arrange onions around the roast. Combine broth, wine, garlic, rosemary, and thyme. Pour over the roast. Add bay leaf.
- Bring just to a simmer on the stovetop over medium-high heat. Once the broth is simmering, cover and place in the oven and cook 2 hours.
- Add potatoes, carrots, and celery, and cook an additional 2 hours (for a 4 lb. roast) or until the roast and potatoes are fork-tender.
- Discard bay leaf. Gently pull beef into large pieces with a fork or slice into thick pieces. Serve with juices or make gravy (below) if desired.
Notes
Red wine can be replaced with additional beef broth. Any dry red wine can be used—it doesn’t have to be expensive to add great flavor. I often use Cabernet Sauvignon as I have it on hand, but you can use Malbec, merlot, or Cabernet franc among others.
To Make Gravy:
- Combine 2 tablespoons cornstarch or flour with 2 tablespoons cold water until smooth.
- Remove beef and vegetables from the pot. Use a gravy separator or a spoon to separate the fat from the drippings.
- Bring the remaining broth/drippings to a boil and whisk in the slurry mixture a little bit at a time until thickened. Add extra broth if needed.
- Season with salt & pepper to taste.
Nutrition Information
Calories: 418 | Carbohydrates: 16g | Protein: 35g | Fat: 21g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 11g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 117mg | Sodium: 282mg | Potassium: 1119mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 5171IU | Vitamin C: 15mg | Calcium: 60mg | Iron: 4mg
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Beef, Dinner, Entree, Main Course
Cuisine American© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
Turned out delicious mixed a small can of tomato paste into the wine which thickened the juice into its own gravy. Uses beef bone broth also.
can I make this in a roaster pan instead? I wanted to do a bigger roast for a big family. and I only have a small Dutch oven.
Absolutely, this will work just fine in a roaster pan. You’ll want to ensure it has a lid to keep in the steam or cover it with foil.