The Best Pot Roast Recipe. Perfect for Sunday Or Every Day.

Indulge, Recipes, The Best Of

I knew I made it into some kind of wonderland when I made the best pot roast recipe.

But first – When I was a child, walking from the bus stop to home, suffering the weight of my back pack, bearing all its knowledge in hardbound books, I would find reprieve. Relax. The school day was over.

School was hard for me in those early years. I am small now, but I was really small then. Being small is like wearing a bullseye on your back and on most days, my classmates had nothing but darts.

But, the day would always end. And I would go home. I would go to a very loving, safe home.

Stepping in the front door, I was almost always met with the smells of my mother’s home cooking. Before she could say it with her words, the smells from the kitchen would say it to me first, “Welcome home. I have missed you so much. I know it’s been a long day. I made you some food. Come rest and replenish.”

My mom, she has always been there for me.

I especially heard her loving words ring when I smelled pot roast.

A home cooked meal is definitely one of my love languages. It communicates love to me and it is how I communicate love to others.

So when I married Beau I got to work on finding my very own perfect pot roast recipe. Sure I could have asked for my mom’s, it is delicious, but it felt like a discovery I needed to make on my own.

I started with the highest rated recipe for a pot roast I could find online, one I had never tried, one I knew I would have to experiment with. It came from none other than Paula Dean.

My first attempt birthed a dry, tough piece of meat. I made notes on the recipe – less salt, more mushrooms, no bouillon cubes.

Then I tried again. More notes. And again more notes. Then Beau and I jumped on the path of a paleo lifestyle and I really had to make some notes. It is the reason why I use homemade cream of mushroom soup instead of the store bought kind that the original recipe calls for.

It’s been over two years and I finally have it.

I think it would be perfect for this upcoming Mother’s Day. It is always perfect on a lazy Sunday evening. And for friends, it never disappoints.

The Best Pot Roast Recipe

Pre-heat the oven to 325 degrees.

Start with a 3 to 4 pound boneless chuck roast. Take it from the refrigerator and let it come to room temperature while you prepare the rub.

In a small dish combine 2 teaspoons salt, 1 teaspoon black pepper and 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder. Mix it all together.

At this time it is also a good idea to prepare the gravy for the pot roast. Combine one 10 3/4 ounce can of cream of mushroom soup (or, for a healthier alternative use homemade cream of mushroom soup – which by the way is much tastier than the store bought stuff OR checkout the mushroom soup from Trade Joe’s – much better than other store bought options!), 1/4 cup red wine and 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce.

Mix to combine. Set aside. (Note: if you use the homemade mushroom soup, I used all of it, the amount the recipe makes, not just the amount of a can of mushroom soup, but that is also because I like lots of gravy on my pot roast).

Heat two tablespoons coconut oil (or vegetable oil) in a large dutch oven*. While that is heating rub the salt mix all over the chuck roast.

(*I cook my pot roast in a dutch oven but you can sear it in a skillet and then transfer it to a crock pot on low for 8 hours or you can prepare it in a dutch oven and then cover it with the lid and cook it in the oven at 350 degrees for 3/12 to 4 hours.)

Once the oil in the dutch oven is heated, add the chuck roast and sear it on all sides. About two minutes on each side. You want a nice brown color to form. Searing it is important because it will give the meat some nice caramelization which adds to the rich flavor of the meat.

Remove the meat and add to the pan 1 small yellow onion thinly sliced, 4-5 carrots that have been peeled and quartered, an 8 ounce package of sliced baby bella mushrooms (optional) and 3 cloves garlic crushed.

Stir them around and let them soak up all the good juices in the pan. About 1-2 minutes.

Make room in the middle of the dutch oven for the meat and add it back to the pan. On top of the meat add two dried bay leaves.

Pour the gravy directly over the roast.

Then, pour 3/4 cups beef broth or water all around the roast.

Cover the dutch oven with a lid and place it into the oven for 3 1/2 hours (if your chuck roast is 4 lbs add an extra hour).

If you want, halfway through the cooking time you should walk out on your front porch, smell the roses, and then fling the door open and smell the house. Oh goodness, it is the best! And yes, I do this multiple times during the cooking time 🙂

When you pull it out of the oven it will look like this:

It truly is the perfect pot roast every time.

If the gravy is not as thick as you like, just remove the roast to a platter and put the dutch oven on the stove. Heat on medium high. In a bowl mix 1/4 cup cold water with 2 teaspoons arrowroot (or 2 tablespoons corn starch), add it to the gravy, mix and allow it to come to a boil.

I like to serve it with steamed broccoli if I have some on hand. And always with creamy, savory sweet mashed potatoes. There is nothing like those sweet potatoes soaking up some of that gravy. Oh yum!

What about you? Was there a dish that your mom would make when you were a child that made you feel especially loved?

Print

The Best Pot Roast Recipe

  • Prep Time: 20 minutes
  • Cook Time: 3 hours
  • Total Time: 3 hours 20 minutes
  • Yield: 6 1x

Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 3-4 lbs chuck roast
  • 3 teaspoons salt (or about 1 teaspoon per pound of meat)
  • 1 teaspoon pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 2 dried bay leaves
  • 2 tablespoons coconut oil (or oil of choice)
  • 1 small yellow onion, quartered
  • 8 oz package sliced baby bella mushrooms (optional)
  • 45 butter potatoes quartered (or halved, depending on how big they are)
  • 3 cloves garlic, crushed
  • 4 carrots peeled and quartered
  • 1 recipe of homemade cream of mushroom soup (or 1 10 3/4 oz canned cream of mushroom soup)
  • 1/4 cup red wine
  • 2 TBS Worcestershire sauce
  • 3/4 cup beef broth (or water)

Instructions

Dutch Oven:

  1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. 
  2. In a small dish combine 2 teaspoons salt, 1 teaspoon black pepper and 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder. Mix it all together.
  3. Rub the dry mix all over the roast.
  4. Heat the oil in a dutch oven and sear the roast on all sides (about 2 min. per side)
  5. While it is searing, prepare the gravy. Combine cream of mushroom soup, 1/4 cup red wine, and 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce. Set aside.
  6. Once meat is seared, remove from dutch oven and add all the veggies. Sprinkle 1 tsp salt and 1 tsp pepper all over the veggies. Mix. Allow them to cook for two minutes while stirring.
  7. Make room for the roast in the middle of the dutch oven and add the meat back in.
  8. Add two dried bay leaves.
  9. Pour the gravy on top of the roast.
  10. Pour the broth (or water) around the roast.
  11. Cover with lid and place in oven for 3 1/2 to 4 hours.The meat should fall apart easily when pierced with a fork.
  12. Serve warm!

Slow Cooker:

  1. In a small dish combine 2 teaspoons salt, 1 teaspoon black pepper and 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder. Mix it all together.
  2. Rub the dry mix all over the roast.
  3. Optional: Sear roast in a skillet over medium high heat (2-3 minutes per side) or, if your slow cooker has a saute function, sear the roast in the Slow Cooker on the saute function. 
  4. While it is searing, prepare the gravy. Combine cream of mushroom soup, 1/4 cup red wine, and 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce. Set aside.
  5. Add all the veggies to the slow cooker. Sprinkle 1 tsp salt and 1 tsp pepper all over the veggies. Mix to combine. Make room for roast in the middle and place roast in the slow cooker.
  6. Add two dried bay leaves.
  7. Pour the gravy on top of the roast.
  8. Pour the broth (or water) around the roast.
  9. Cook on low for 5-6 hours or on high for 2-3 hours. The meat should easily come apart when pierced with a fork. 

Notes

If the gravy is not as thick as you like, just remove the roast to a platter and put the dutch oven on the stove. Heat on medium high. In a bowl mix 1/4 cup cold water with 2 teaspoons arrowroot (or 2 tablespoons corn starch), add it to the gravy, mix and allow it to come to a boil.

If you do not have homemade or canned cream of mushroom soup, mix together 10 oz heavy whipping cream with 2 tsp salt. Add red wine and Worcestershire sauce. This is the gravy!

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 6

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  1. Emily says:

    I made this, and it was delicious! My boys have eaten it now for leftovers and they go crazy for it! I’ll keep making this and hopefully they’ll have comforting memories of their own mom. ;). Thanks for the recipe!

  2. Thanks, I needed a pot roast recipe that didn’t use a crock pot and yours looked the best! I converted this into a paleo recipe by omitting the gravy. It turned out great!

  3. Scott says:

    Bri….. This was fantastic. First time I have made pot roast where I didn’t have to open a jar of Heinz gravy (LOL) meat carved perfectly. I added some parsnips with the carrots (amazing how many people have never tried them) Only problem I had is I like leftovers and there were none.

  4. Jason Zupke says:

    It was very good!! I added potatoes to it, which I boiled separately.
    You might want to add Worcestershire sauce to the ingredients list.

  5. Trish says:

    Thanks so much for sharing this recipe. It has quickly become a favorite request and is so easy, even for a novice cook like me. For once, my dish looks just like the pictures! I have yet to try homemade mushroom soup but I find trader joe’s seasonally available version really good (superior to Campbell’s). I hoard cartons of it during Thanksgiving!

    • Bri McKoy says:

      I am so glad you enjoyed this, Trish!! It is one of our go-tos 🙂 We just moved and now live next to a Trader Joes so I am going to go check out their mushroom soup. Thanks for the tip!

  6. Diane says:

    EmilyYour recipe calls for butter potatoes. What do you mean butter potatoes? 

    • Bri McKoy says:

      “Butter Potatoes” is the name of the potato I use. They are smaller than a russet potato, more round and have a creamier texture. You can find butter potatoes in most grocery stores!

  7. Anna says:

    This was so yummy and easy to make. I made this with a venison roast and it turned out so good. My whole family of 6 loved it! Thank you!!

  8. Adriene says:

    Hi!!! I made this tonight (with your recipe for cream of mushroom soup!) and GOSH IT WAS GREAT! I immediately sent the recipe link to my siblings on our group chat! Thank you!!!!

  9. Heather says:

    I’m going to try this today!  This will make a lot for just me – can it be frozen, or do you have any suggestion for how else to use it for future use?

  10. Ashley says:

    Trying this today! Just noticed that the post says that the roast should cook at 275, and the recipe itself says 325. Thoughts on which works better? Thanks!

  11. Stacey says:

    Yes we are all still looking in 2020.
    Trying this roast tonight, I made the cream of mushroom soup last night and assembled it today. I did learn a valuable lesson, again. If you use sea salt in lieu of table salt, use half the amount called for. This I used less salt to season my meat since the c.o.m soup goes on top. Well let you know how it turns out.
    Question? What if you only have a white wine no red for cooking, will it alter the outcome/flavor?
    Sincerely,
    Stacey

  12. Lacie says:

    This really is the very best pot roast! I’ve made it 5+ times and my family raves about it every single time. So. Good. 

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