Slow Cooker Pot Roast (Printable Version)

Slow-cooked beef roast with carrots, onions, and herbs for a hearty, tender main dish.

# What You'll Need:

→ Beef

01 - 3 lbs beef chuck roast, trimmed
02 - 1 tsp kosher salt
03 - ½ tsp black pepper

→ Vegetables

04 - 5 large carrots, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces
05 - 1 large yellow onion, sliced
06 - 3 cloves garlic, minced
07 - 2 celery stalks, cut into 2-inch pieces
08 - 1 lb baby potatoes, halved (optional)

→ Liquids

09 - 2 cups beef broth (gluten-free if needed)
10 - ½ cup dry red wine (optional)

→ Seasonings & Aromatics

11 - 2 tbsp tomato paste
12 - 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce (gluten-free if needed)
13 - 1 tsp dried thyme
14 - 1 tsp dried rosemary
15 - 2 bay leaves

→ For Thickening (optional)

16 - 2 tbsp cornstarch
17 - 2 tbsp cold water

# Directions:

01 - Pat the beef dry and season all sides evenly with kosher salt and black pepper.
02 - Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and sear the roast for 3 to 4 minutes on each side until browned. Transfer the roast to the slow cooker.
03 - Arrange the carrots, onions, garlic, celery, and optional baby potatoes around the beef in the slow cooker.
04 - Whisk together beef broth, dry red wine (if using), tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, dried thyme, dried rosemary, and bay leaves in a bowl. Pour the mixture over the beef and vegetables.
05 - Cover and cook on LOW for 8 hours or on HIGH for 5 hours until the beef is very tender and the vegetables are cooked through.
06 - Transfer the beef and vegetables to a serving platter and discard the bay leaves.
07 - Mix cornstarch and cold water in a small bowl, then stir into the liquid remaining in the slow cooker. Cook on HIGH for 5 to 10 minutes until the sauce thickens.
08 - Slice or shred the beef and serve alongside the vegetables, spooning the thickened sauce over the top.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • The beef becomes impossibly tender without any effort on your part, just the slow cooker doing the heavy lifting.
  • Everything cooks together, so the vegetables soak up all those savory, rich flavors and become almost sweet.
  • It's genuinely foolproof—I've made it exhausted, distracted, and barely paying attention, and it still turned out perfect.
02 -
  • Searing the meat is not optional—it creates flavors that can't happen any other way, so don't skip it no matter how rushed you are.
  • If your slow cooker runs hot, check the beef around the 6-hour mark because every appliance is different and you want it tender, not shredded into nothing.
  • The braising liquid will reduce and concentrate, so don't worry if it looks like a lot at the start.
03 -
  • If your slow cooker runs hot or you're on a tight timeline, start checking the beef at the 6-hour mark—there's a fine line between tender and overcooked.
  • Don't thicken the sauce unless you really want to—sometimes that silky, light broth is perfect just as it is.

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