Description
Make this cozy, 6-ingredient dinner when you want a comforting meal on your busy days. This version is a little healthier and cleaner thanks to extra veggies and a clean-er flavor packet.
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil (or sub oil of choice), optional
- 2–3 lbs chuck roast
- 3 medium red potatoes, trimmed and cut into roughly 1 1/2 -2″ chunks
- 2 small onions, peeled and quartered
- 1 1/4 cup baby carrots
- 1 packet French onion soup / dip mix
- 1/2 teaspoon salt, plus more to season the meat and to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper, plus more to season the meat and to taste
- 2 cups beef broth, plus additional as needed
- Dried or chopped fresh parsley, optional for garnish
Instructions
- Pre-heat oil (if using) in a large pan (or your slow cooker pan insert if it has stovetop capabilities) for a couple minutes over medium heat. While the pan pre-heats, season your roast with salt and pepper on all sides. Add your roast to the pan and brown on all sides, about 3-5 minutes per side. Tip: Don’t move the roast while it browns for max yum factor. Basically, it browns best when you don’t move it. Also my slow cooker insert is stovetop friendly and non-stick, so between that and the fatty chuck roast, I don’t typically need cooking oil.
- If using a classic pan, transfer the pot roast to your slow cooker insert, including any liquids – try to scrape the flavorful brown bits into the slow cooker if you can.
- If using the slow cooker pan insert, move this section back into the slow cooker heating base.
- Layer in potatoes, then onions, then baby carrots. Sprinkle soup / dip packet, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper over the roast and vegetables evenly.
- Pour beef broth over the roast and vegetables until the liquid is just under or at the level of the roast. Note: You may need more than 2 cups, but you shouldn’t need more than 4.
- Cover and cook the pot roast over low heat for about 8-10 hours, or until tender to liking. If it’s not tender enough, keep cooking until it is. Serve and enjoy! Tip: Leave the pot roast alone – you don’t need to stir it. For this size, it should be done closer to 8 hours, but cook it to your preference.
Notes
- See recipe blog post for additional tips and substitutions.
- Since you need a good amount of beef broth, I like to get the 1-quart carton. You can use any leftover broth in other recipes, make a soup, cook a savory quinoa / rice side, etc.
- Different brands make different French Onion Soup / Dip mixes, so you may need more or less salt / pepper depending on how theirs is seasoned. Adjust to your personal preferences.
- If you’re short on time, you can cook the roast on high for one hour for every two on low – however I only recommend doing this for one hour on high. When I try to shortcut too much, the roast is not as tender.
- If you use a larger roast, you may need to adjust the other ingredients, possibly add some or all of an additional soup / dip mix packet, and potentially add more salt and pepper. Additionally, your roast may require longer to cook to really get nice and tender. For a 4 lb roast, it should take closer to 8-10 hours on low.
- The number of portions this recipe yields depends on how hungry you and your guests are and how much meat versus other ingredients you eat. I got 4 me-sized portions (smaller meat portions) from 1.5 lbs of chuck roast. You could probably get more than 6 portions if you aim for the larger size roast around 3 lbs and if each person doesn’t eat a huge plate.
- Time-saving tip: cut and prep your vegetables while the meat browns. You’ll probably be done cutting well before or just in time to add it to the browned meat.
