This Slow Cooker Caribbean Pot Roast is a fantastic dish that combines the comforting flavors of a traditional pot roast with vibrant spices!
I love myself a good Slow Cooker recipe. Check out Slow Cooker Beef Bourguignon or Slow Cooker Beef Chili if you’re looking for easy comfort food recipes you can make while you’re at work all day and come home to a wonderful-smelling kitchen!
Sabrina’s Slow Cooker Caribbean Pot Roast Recipe
Caribbean food is known for its spices. They’re bold, spicy and flavorful. Don’t be intimidated by the length of the spice ingredient list for this recipe though. Each one is probably already in your spice rack, we’re just combining them in a different way to really bring out an island flair is this classic comfort food dish.
Recipe Card
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 5 pound chuck roast , boneless
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
- 2 medium sweet potatoes , peeled and cut into 2-inch chunks
- 3 large carrots , peeled and cut into 2-inch chunks
- 1 large onion , chopped
- 3 cloves garlic , minced
Pot Roast Gravy Ingredients
- 15 ounces tomato sauce
- 1 large orange , juiced and zested
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar , packed
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
Instructions
- In a large dutch oven or a metal slow cooker insert add the vegetable oil on high heat.
- Coat the chuck roast in flour, salt, and pepper and brown on both sides in the dutch oven, about 3-4 minutes on each side.
- Add the sweet potatoes, carrots, onions, and garlic to the slow cooker.
- Top with the chuck roast.
- In the same dutch oven add in the tomato sauce, orange juice, brown sugar, oregano, cumin, coriander, chili powder, unsweetened cocoa powder, and cinnamon and whisk well until the spices are well combined.
- Pour the sauce over the chuck roast and cook on low until for 8 hours or on high heat for 5 hours.
- Garnish with the orange peel zest before serving.
Nutrition
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Sabrina Tips
There are a few steps to complete before closing the lid and walking away. I recommend browning the meat on all sides before placing it into the slow cooker. It takes minimal effort but the caramelized surface of the meat lends to a richer flavor to the whole meal and is worth the extra effort.
Table of Contents
About this Recipe
This recipe takes less than 30 minutes to prep, and the time it spends cooking in the sauce results in tender, fall-apart meat. We’re also taking all those amazing drippings from browning the meat and combining them with our sauce ingredients. It deepens the flavor and gives it that something extra. The bonus to this recipe is that we also throw in vegetables, so you don’t even have to worry about making a last-minute side dish. It’s all done!
How to Store
- Serve: I don’t recommend leaving this pot roast out at room temperature for longer than 2 hours. Keep on “warm” setting in the crockpot if necessary to ensure bacteria doesn’t start to sit in.
- Store: Pot roast needs to be fully cooled down to room temperature before being stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator. It will last up to 3 days.
- Freeze: Make sure to seal the pot roast in a freezer-safe storage bag or container to ensure that moisture isn’t able to get to it. It’ll last up to 3 months in the freezer.
Dutch Oven Method
You can easily make this recipe using a Dutch oven or any other oven-safe pot to get the same delicious meal. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees and follow the same recipe. Cook for 3 – 3 ½ hours until the beef is fork-tender.
Frequent Questions
The USDA Offical Website states that beef is considered cooked and safe to eat when it has an internal temperature of 145 degrees F (62.7 degrees C). Since we are cooking this for 8 hours you won’t have to worry about measuring the temperature for food safety.u003cbru003e
I recommend browning the meat on all sides before placing it into the slow cooker. It takes minimal effort but the caramelized surface of the meat lends to a richer flavor to the whole meal and is worth the extra effort. Us a dutch oven or large cast iron skillet to sear the roast.u003cbru003e
Variations
- Spices: You can adjust the spices in this recipe to your liking. If you’re not sure about your picky-eaters, reducing the cumin, ground corriander, and chili powder will lessen the spice in this recipe. You can also try increasing the brown sugar amount to give it a sweeter flavor.
- Veggies: This recipe works with so many vegetable options. When trying a new dish, stick to veggies that your family already knows and loves. Cauliflower, bell peppers, and Yukon or russet potatoes are just a few other options to add to or in place of the sweet potatoes and carrots. Make sure not to overload the slow cooker though otherwise the cooking time will need to be adjusted.
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Hi, I’m curious to know if I can make this in a pressure cooker/instant pot? I would sear the beef as mentioned but then only pressure cook it for about an hour to an hour and a half for a 1kg meat chuck? Do you think that would work?
Thanks for asking! I haven’t tested this recipe in an instant pot so I couldn’t say for sure. If you decide to use your instant pot for this recipe please check back with us to let us know how it turned out!
Fabulous recipe! I used a lean pork roast since a family member has star tick syndrome that left her allergic to beef and didn’t change another thing. If you’re looking for a bargain as well as a great keeper, this is it.
Thanks, Sabrina.
You’re welcome E.J. and thanks for the five star review.
Made this tonight. It was awesome! Exotic and very flavorful-with tastes of spice not overly consistent with most American cuisine. Will definitely make again. Thank you!
This had so much potential! Against my better judgement I put the potatoes in right away. I believe in honoring a recipe without tweaks the first time. But, of course, the potatoes completely disintegrated and made the sauce into sludge. I only got to taste it once before that happened and it was good! It needed salt, but otherwise a really deep flavor. Maybe I’ll try again someday and just roast the potatoes separately.
I’ve made this before and it’s delicious. I’m making it again , this time I want to use my new Dutch oven instead of crockpot. How much time and want oven settings should I use? Thanks
Slow cookers generally operate between 190°F (on the low setting) and 300°F (on the high setting). In comparison, when using a Dutch oven as a slow cooker, you’ll typically set the temperature between 325°F (similar to the low setting) and 375°F (resembling the high setting).
We loved it, certainly different. A great change. Thank you.!
You’re welcome and thanks for trying the recipe!
I just made this and I added a teaspoon of jerk to the sauce. I have one concern about the recipe, is the sauce enough liquid or do we need to add beef stock or water?
Hi Jordan, sorry for the late response. Busy Summer!
How did your roast turn out? Did you decide to add liquid? I create the gravy and combine with the drippings from browning the meat and found it turns out amazing!
I made it today for the first time and it turned out great! I used 2.5lbs of meat but did not change the measurement of the seasoning, slow cooked it for 4.50 hours and voila! It was very tasty, meat and veggie came out perfectly. Thanks for sharing!
If I were to make this in an instant pot I’d assume I’d use the “beef” setting and cook the vegetables for just a few minutes in the sauce after the meat is done? Thanks for any pointers you can offer 🙂
I made this last night for the firs time. I was actually surprised the flavor was not-at-all spicy, nor sweet…from the bright red color of the photos, that was the flavor I had in my head. Relatively tasty, but the next time I would definitely be adding some (lots) of spice, and maybe 2 tablespoons of honey. One thing I wasn’t a huge fan of was how the sweet potatoes were completely soft. Looking back now, it’s like “well, duh…cooking for 8 hours will do that to potatoes”, ha! The carrots were divine, though, but might oven roast the sweet potatoes next time…although then the meat won’t be held up out of the liquid as much…hmm… I was originally looking to use leftovers in tacos/quesadillas/enchilladas, but after eating it, I think it’ll work much better just with polenta.
I’ve just started this in the crockpot and I’m so excited to taste the end result. The sauce was amazing after just wisking! Since I have 8 hours, do you recommend any sides with this dish? (Totally asking knowing that you may not have a chance to respond today…lol!)
Sorry I missed this comment until now. I’d suggest rice pilaf, mashed potatoes or roasted asparagus. Hope you enjoyed it.
I am trying this for the first time and I’m very confused on the way to you say how to cook the vegetables can you please clarify that please thank you
My family loved this. I had never added cocoa or cinnamon to beef before but I am glad I tried it and will go into rotation.
I’m so glad you decided to give it a try, Pamela.
This was absolutely fantastic! After making my pot roast Italian style all of my life I was ready for a change. This is my new wY. I love it! Made in my ditch oven and forgot the orange zest at the end
Thanks for taking the time to come back and let me know, Dorothy. I really appreciate the 5 stars.
So far, I have loved literally everything recipe of yours I’ve tried. This was a miss for us. As with all recipes, that’s just personal preference. I’m sure there will be folks that love this. But we actually scrapped it and heated up some beef stew I had doubled and frozen earlier last month. Thank you for all your recipes though. Again, you are usually a tried and true recipe goddess!
You’re so sweet! Thank you for the kind words.
Can I substitute a pork shoulder roast?
Sure 🙂 Enjoy!
Can I cook this in a pot on the stove?
I dont have a crock pot and the recipe looks amazing!
You could make this in a dutch oven on the stovetop. It’ll need to cook for about 3 hours or until the meat if fork tender. Enjoy!
Hi Sabrina,
I’m new to crockpot cooking (ie I have no idea what I’m doing) so am hoping you can help.
If I cut the recipe in half and used a 1kg (just over 2lb) roasting piece, would I still cook it for 8 hours on low or should I reduce the cooking time?
It’ll be the same cook time. Enjoy!
I know that pot roast gravy is delicious with the cocoa powder and cinnamon. I wish more people knew how good those flavors can be in a savory recipe!
They’re so good! Let’s tell the world.
I can’t wait to dig in to this recipe. You had me at sweet potatoes, but then I saw orange and cocoa powder and just knew I had to try it!
Enjoy!
This pot roast looks so good, and I’m loving all the spices in the ingredients. This will be a nice and easy dish to prepare for winter. 🙂
I hope you enjoy it, Anita.
I’m going to try you’re gravy and try making a veggie version of this. I love that there’s orange in the gravy.
It’s a fun way to change up the flavors.
This sounds absolutely delicious and so easy, can’t wait to try it!
Enjoy!