Classic Pot Roast

This Pot Roast recipe is super simple to make and requires less than 20 minutes of hands on prep. You can cook the pot roast in the oven, in a slow cooker or instant pot until its fall apart tender and served with a rich and flavorful sauce. 

 

Why You Will Love This Pot Roast 

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• Melt in your mouth meat that falls apart with the touch of a fork. If you are a fan of incredibly tender meat than this is the perfect pot roast recipe for you.
• It will quickly become a family favorite dish that everyone from kids (including my toddler) to adults, and even fancy guests you might want to impress will love. 
• This is one of those recipes that makes it seem like you have been slaving over the stove all day, when really it requires less than 20 minutes of hands on prep, then sit back and let the oven do all of the work. If you are looking for an easy pot roast recipe then look no further. 
• There are three different methods for cooking this pot roast. I prefer the oven method for cooking this pot rot, but if you are in a rush this can easily be made in an instant pot in just over an hour. Have all the time in the world? Pop this in the slow cooker in the morning (or night before) and forget about it. 8 hours later dinner is ready to go! 
• The flavorful gravy is so good you will want to drink it with a spoon (no judgement here if you do!)
• These are leftovers you will be excited about eating.
• The majority of the ingredients you likely already have in your kitchen (other than the beef). All you need is a handful of vegetables, plus red wine, stock, tomato paste and herbs. You will be shocked at how these simple ingredients create a dish with so much rich flavor
• This melt in your mouth pot roast is fancy enough to serve to guests, yet its also the perfect comfort food to make for Sunday dinner.  
• This delicious Pot Roast is also Grain Free, Gluten Free, Dairy Free, Specific Carbohydrate Diet Legal and can easily be modified to become Whole30 and Keto! 

 

What Is The Best Cut of Meat To Use For Pot Roast? 

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When choosing the right cut of meat for pot roast you want to choose one with a good amount of fat and tough connective tissues which break down during cooking results in melt in your mouth tender meat. I personally prefer Chuck Roast (or round roast which is a similar cut of beef), but Brisket or Rump Roast are also cuts of meat that work well. 

 

Can I Add Other Veggies To This Pot Roast?

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I kept things simple with onions, celery and carrots in this pot roast recipe, but a lot of people add in potatoes (yellow or golden) as well. I recommend sticking to root vegetables such as parsnips, turnips or rutabaga which can all withstand the long cooking time and won’t turn into complete mush. If you would like to add other vegetables, I would suggest adding them further into the cooking process. Mushrooms can be added in with 1 hour of cook time remaining while green beans should be stirred in when there is only 30 minutes left. 

 

 

Is It Possible To Make This Pot Roast Recipe Whole30? 

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I highly recommend making this pot roast recipe with the wine as it adds a wonderful depth of flavour. If you are doing a Whole30 or prefer to skip the wine, there are a few modifications that can be made. Increase the amount of beef stock used to 2 1/2 cups and substitute the wine for 1 cup of grape juice or apple juice and 1 tbsp of balsamic vinegar. 

 

Is This Pot Roast Keto?

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With one simple modification this Pot Roast is Keto too! Simply skip adding carrots as a veggies and replace them with a less starchy vegetable such as radishes. That’s the only adjustment required to make this recipe keto and low carb. 

 

 

Can I Make This Pot Roast In The Slow Cooker? 

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I prefer to make this beef Pot Roast in the oven but it also turns out well in the slow cooker. If you have a slow cooker with a sear function that’s ideal, otherwise I would recommend searing the beef in olive oil in a pot on the stove on medium-high heat before transferring the browned meat plus any of the brown bits from the bottom of the pan to the slow cooker. I know that having to wash an extra pot is a pain in the butt, but I really find that searing the meat adds a lot of flavor and a caramelized texture to the outside of the beef roast which greatly benefits the final dish. After adding all of the veggies, seared beef chuck roast, dried or fresh herbs, beef broth and wine to the slow cooker, turn it on low heat and cook for 8 hours or high heat for 4-5 hours until the beef is fork tender.

 

Can I Make This Pot Roast In An Instant Pot? 

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Rather than cooking this pot roast in the oven, you can cook it in a pressure cooker such as an instant pot and save almost 2 hours! Thanks to the speeding cooking abilities of the instant pot it cuts the cooking time down to just 1 hour making this possible to make after work during the week. Turn the instant pot to sear and sear the meat until brown on all sides. Next add in the veggies and continue to cook for a few more minutes before pouring in the liquids listed below. Once they are gently simmering, return the beef to the instant pot, turn it to high pressure and cook for 60 minutes followed by natural release. 

 

What To Serve With This Pot Roast 

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My go-to side dish for this paleo Pot Roast is cauliflower mash (or potato mash) as I love letting it absorb any of the delicious rich sauce. I personally find that because there are already vegetables included in this recipe there isn’t a need to make more as a side dish, but if you feel so inclined this Pot Roast can be served with Roasted Radishes, Broccoli, Green Beans or a simple arugula salad. 

 

Can I Make This Pot Roast In Advance? 

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This Paleo Pot Roast is a great recipe to make in advance and as with a lot of meat dishes that use a slow cooking method, the flavors only seem to get better after a day. This recipe can be made up to 3 days in advance. Once the beef is done cooking, transfer the entire large pot directly to the fridge (once it has cooled) and refrigerate until an hour before serving. An added benefit of making this in advance is that you can scoop out any excess fat from the braising liquid which has hardened on the top of the pot before reheating. To reheat simply pop the pot back into the oven for 20 minutes at 400° Fahrenheit until the meat is warmed through.

What About Leftover Pot Roast?    

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When it comes to leftovers it’s hard to beat leftover pot roast. Leftovers are best stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days and can be reheated in the microwave or in the oven at 350° Fahrenheit until just warmed through. Leftovers can also be stored in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 4 months. Pour all of the sauce over the shredded beef and toss to ensure the shredded pieces are well coated before freezing, this will ensure that the meat is very moist and flavourful once thawed.

 

Here are a few more comforting meals that you might enjoy:

• Slow Cooker Brisket with Balsamic Onion Gravy
• Braised Lamb Shanks
• The Best Grain Free Lasagna 
• Whole30 Braised Short Ribs
• Beef & “Barley” Soup
• Italian Meatballs

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If you make this recipe let me know in the comment section below, I would love to hear what you think or take a photo and tag me (@everylastbite_) on Instagram, I love seeing your photos!