My Ultimate Slow Cooker Pot Roast is the best recipe for mouthwatering, flavorful tender chuck roast with potatoes and carrots. Try it today!
A pot roast is classic American comfort food. This slow cooker version of tender chuck roast is slow-cooked with carrots and potatoes in a rich beef broth. Check out my entire Pot Roast Catalog for more mouthwatering versions like French Onion and Indian Butter.
Table of contents
Ultimate Pot Roast
Sabrina’s Slow Cooker Pot Roast Recipe
This pot roast is near to my heart and one I’ve been sharing even before I started this website. It’s actually a pared-down version of a recipe I adapted for clients whose children were going off on their own. Just like my classic Pot Roast with Vegetables, I wanted to share some meals they could make that would remind them of the meals I had made for them. This dish delivers on that promise offering a warm, hearty, delicious meal with little cooking knowledge needed. Even without searing the meat, the roast will come out mouthwateringly tender.
The great thing about this Slow Cooker Pot Roast is that it is a whole meal made at once, with veggies, potatoes, and meat. It only takes a little effort in the morning and you come home to the most amazing dinner. You could even prep it the night before to save time in the morning.
Ingredients
- Chuck Roast: This juicy cut is perfect for slow cooking due to its marbling, which breaks down into tender meat.
- Vegetable Oil: This is used to sear and ultimately caramelize the outside of the meat which adds incredible flavor.
- Seasonings: You don’t need much to season this dish, just some dried thyme, minced garlic, salt and pepper. You can use 1-2 teaspoons of garlic powder or twice as much fresh thyme.
- Root Vegetables: The potatoes and carrots add delicious earthy flavor plus they turn a roast into a full meal. Feel free to add more root veggies – check out my Variations for ideas.
- Beef Broth: You want to use a good quality broth. My secret ingredient is Better than Bouillon concentrate (with water) and I always add an extra scoop for super beefy flavor.
- Cornstarch: Used to thicken the rich gravy. Mix cornstarch with 2 tablespoons of cold water to make a cornstarch slurry before adding it to the pot to avoid clumping.
Step by Step Instructions
Time needed: 8 hours and 15 minutes
- Season
Pat the roast dry with a paper towel. Sprinkle it with thyme and season with salt, and pepper.
- Brown
Heat a pan over medium-high heat with the oil. (If you have a slow cooker with the ability to brown, you can use it.) Once it’s hot and shimmering, place the roast in the pan. Sear it for 4-5 minutes on each side until it’s deeply browned.
- Cook
Place the peeled and chopped carrots and potatoes in the bottom of your slow cooker. Add the minced garlic. Lay the browned beef on top of the vegetables. Pour the beef broth over the meat and vegetables. Cover the slow cooker and set cook time for 8-10 hours on low, or on high for 5 hours.
- Thicken
An hour before it’s done, mix cornstarch with cold water and stir it into the slow cooker to thicken the sauce. Alternatively, remove the meat and vegetables when done, transfer the liquid to a small saucepan, add the slurry, and cook on high for 2-3 minutes until the gravy thickens. Serve and enjoy!
Recipe Card
Ingredients
- 4-5 pound chuck roast
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 pound carrots , peeled and cut into 2 inch chunks
- 2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes , peeled and cut into 2 inch chunks
- 2 cloves garlic , minced
- 2 cups beef broth
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons cold water
- parsley , chopped, optional garnish
Instructions
- Season the chuck roast with the kosher salt, pepper and thyme (if you are sensitive to sodium, adjust to your taste or you can even leave the salt out altogether since you're adding broth).
- Heat your pan (or if you can brown in your slow cooker, do it in that insert to medium high.
- Add the vegetable oil and when it ripples and is hot add in the roast and brown, deeply, for 4-5 minutes on each side.
- In your slow cooker add the carrots, potatoes and garlic.
- Lay the beef on top, then add the beef broth and cover, cooking on low for 8 hours or on high for 5 hours.
- In the last hour, mix your cornstarch and water and add it to the slow cooker to thicken the sauce. As an alternative you can take the food out when done cooking, then add the leftover liquid to a small saucepan with the cornstarch/water slurry mixture, and cook on high for just 2-3 minutes until the liquid is thickened into a gravy.
- Pour the gravy over the meat and garnish with parsley if desired.
Nutrition
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Chef’s Note: Switch up the Veggies!
This roast is easy to adapt for the season and what veggies your family likes. I love swapping in root vegetables like turnips, parsnips, and sweet potatoes. If I have onions or shallots on hand, I’ll pop them in for some more flavor. In the fall, I love different squash like butternut squash, acorn squash or pumpkin.
Can This Be Made Ahead?
You can season the meat and prep veggies ahead of time and store them separately overnight. However, I want to point out that FDA Food Safety Guidelines recommend against searing meat and cooking it later. Once it starts cooking, meat must reach a food safe temperature before it can be stored or consumed.
Nutritional Facts
Recipe Tips and Tricks
- Searing: Browning the beef in a pan before adding it to the slow cooker is a step I would not skip if possible. That brown crust adds a delicious depth of flavor and you don’t want to miss it.
- Seasoning: Yes it looks like a lot of salt, but you also have to remember you have 3 pounds of vegetables under the meat you are seasoning too.
- Cornstarch: To thicken the liquid you’ll need some cornstarch. I usually add this in the last hour of cooking. You could also thicken the juices on the stove top with the cornstarch but for me, that’s just one more dish to wash.
- Yukon Potatoes: I love the buttery texture of Yukon gold, you can alternately use russet potatoes here without any problems too.
- Look at the Thyme: If you have fresh thyme, by all means, use it, I just like how easy this recipe is and pantry friendly so I normally use dried thyme unless I already have fresh on hand.
How to Store
- Storing: Keep covered when not serving. You can keep it on Warm for 4 hours or up to 2 hours at room temp. Place any leftover pot roast in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days.
- Reheating: Reheat in a slow cooker, covered on low, until hot. You can also heat it on the stove top, in the microwave or oven. Stir occasionally to make sure it heats up evenly.
- Freezing: Store leftovers in a freezer-safe container for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight before reheating.
Frequent Questions
Yes, you can substitute the chuck roast with top round, bottom round, or rump roast. You don’t want to use a premium cut, tougher cuts do better with the long cooking time.
Mash together 2 tablespoons of flour with 2 tablespoons of butter in a small bowl until it makes a paste. Slowly add the cooking liquid while whisking to keep the gravy smooth, until it’s about ½ cup total. Stir that mixture into the crockpot to thicken the gravy.
Overcooking can cause them to get too mushy. Cut them into large chunks. You can even place the veggies on top of the meat if you prefer firmer vegetables. They’ll cook in the broth steam instead of being submerged.
Variations
- Italian Style Roast: Replace thyme with 1 teaspoon of dried oregano and 1 teaspoon of dried basil. Add a can of diced tomatoes (drained) into the broth. No additional cooking time is needed.
- Garlic and Rosemary Roast: Increase garlic to 4 cloves and add 2 sprigs fresh rosemary directly to the broth. Use red potatoes for a slightly different texture. Cook according to the recipe and remove the rosemary sprigs before serving.
- Mexican-Inspired Roast: Add 1 teaspoon of cumin, 1 teaspoon of chili powder, and ½ teaspoon of smoked paprika. Add an optional can of diced green chilies for spice and a cup of salsa. Slow cook per instructions.
Related Recipes
More Slow Cooker Pot Roast Recipes
Photos used in previous versions of this post.
Best pot roast I ever turned out! Made it last night, guess what I had for breakfast! Wow! I’m 65 and have done my share of cooking, but the little effort and astonishing results are outstanding! Thanks!
Awww, that’s so sweet! You totally made my day! I’m so glad you made it and then came back to tell me about it!
This is literally THE BEST pot roast recipe I’ve ever tasted. I’ve made quite a few versions of pot roast in our slow cooker but this one was above and beyond in flavor. My husband and I were tempted to drink the gravy it was so delicious! We are definitely saving this one and keeping in heavy rotation. Thanks!
I added a couple cups of red wine with the beef broth. It was nice.
Can you prepare this the night before and also sear it??
You wouldn’t want to sear it the night before but everything else can be prepped.
This was amazing! I added onions and celery and probably used about 3c broth but didn’t really measure. I couldn’t fit another thing in the crockpot and was afraid it wasn’t going to finish in time – but it did without any extra time. My family loved it! I will definitely make this again! Yum!
I followed your recipe for the recipe for the Ultimate slow cooker Pot Roast my family really loved it it was the best Pot Roast I ever had very tender and flavorful I will definitely make it again
Made this tonight and it was awesome! I didnt quite get a thick gravy from adding corn starch an hour before finishing but it was all so moist and yummy that it didnt matter. Very good.
Can u add celery
YES! Absolutely! Also, celery will be even more awesome if you brown it a bit after you brown the beef. Just add the celery to the drippings the beef left and cook a couple minutes then dump the whole pan, drippings and all into the slow cooker.
I made this last night only changed a few things I added 1/2 a cup red wine and I sautéed onions and garlic in the same pan I used to sear the meat added that to the crockpot and I added fresh mushroom and boy did my family lick their plates clean. Thanks for this delicious recipe
Going to try it sounds good
Thank you so much for this recipe!! I doubled this (big family!) and cooked on high for 6 hours. Turned out perfectly!!!
So glad you loved it! This is a staple in our dinner rotation too!
Can I use frozen stew veggies in this? Just add them toward the last couple of hours?
Yes! Absolutely. I’ve done it before too, just put them around the roast instead of dumping them directly on top or the temperature of the roast will plummet and the cook time will be completely thrown off.
Hi Sabrina,
Just finished putting everything in and CAN’T wait. However, I do have two questions that I didn’t see answered in previous comments. First, what is the best way to store the leftovers? I’m assuming gravy separate from the roast and veggies? With other similar recipes in the past, I’ve had issues with fat congealing and getting kind of gross looking quickly. Let me know what you recommend. Second, is it better to take the roast and veggies out to make the gravy or just add the cornstarch/water mixture straight to the slow cooker?
I prefer storing the gravy separate but you can store it all together if you’d like. When adding the cornstarch/water mixture, I add it directly to the slow cooker (no need to dirty anything else, haha). I really hope you enjoyed it!
Recipe sounds wonderful but I have a question: Am I supposed to cut up the meat into chunks & sear or keep the roast as 1 piece & sear it? This would be the first time using this cut of meat. Thank you
You’ll want to keep the roast all as one piece. 🙂
2nd time making this recipe. Simple enough and tastes great. I did add half an onion this time for added flavor and a bit more salt. I will be using this for years. Thanks!
Cooking as I type! I can’t wait for the results. Super easy recipe ?
I added a few more cloves of garlic and i also added an entire onion chopped in quarters.
I am new to using a slow cooker I have followed this recipe exactly. My question is this the roast is on top and not covered in liquid is that how it is suppose to be? Thank you for your help
Yes, that’s exactly how you want it. I know it seems different but it will release liquid as it cooks. I hope you enjoy it!
My family and I absolutely LOVED this THANK you so much for sharing the recipe!!
It left my email again Im so sorry could you please fix and tell me how to just use my name? THANKS again the roast was truly delicious 🙂 Dianna
Don’t worry I took care of it. 🙂
Thank you so much for the great review!!
Brown the meat first. YUM!
I made this yesterday for supper. So tender! I used fresh thyme, baby carrots and fingerling potatoes as that’s what I had. I added sliced mushrooms and sauteed a small chopped onion after searing the roast as we like mushroom and onion. The house smelled fabulous! My spouse rarely says anything about food but said “tastes like more” and got a second serving.
We have a 4.5 Quart slow cooker. Cooked 4 hours on high then one hour on low as the veggies were smelling done, and finished gravy on the stove.
This recipe came out amazing! I would highly recommend it! The meat had so much rich flavor! My husband said this was the best pot roast he had ever had, and I agree. I left the potatoes out of the crock pot and instead made mashed potatoes on the side.
I am using a smaller roast, about 2.5 lbs. should I cut down any of the other ingredients/cooking times??
You can adjust the recipe ingredients by using the sliding tool in the recipe card. Just hover over the serving size and change it until you see the roast size you are using. Hope this helps!
I prepared this exactly as the recipe states. Wow! The seasoning was perfect and the meat was so tender. Vegetables were cooked perfect with the called for amount of liquid. I added the cornstarch an hour before as stated and it made the perfect “gravy”. I have never actually been compelled to leave a comment before today. Delicious. Thank you for this recipe, I will definitely make it again.
This makes me so happy! Thank you for taking the time to come back and let me know how much you enjoyed it!
So easy yet so delicious! First time making chuck roast and I’ll be making more of this in the future!
You mentioned Better than Boullion in the text above, where does that come into play in this recipe? I didn’t see it in the cooking instructions. Thanks I can’t wait to make this!
I use it to make my beef broth. I just love the flavor it adds to the dish. Hope you enjoy it!
i’m super embarrassed (bc i’m sure i did something wrong), but mine turned out tasting like dirt :/ too much thyme, maybe? i’ll admit i’m not a huge thyme fan, so maybe it was just my opinion? my husband thought so too tho. also, what do you serve with pot roast? rolls, cornbread?
Oh no! Dirt definitely isn’t the flavor we were going for! You can omit the Thyme if you don’t like it for next time. I love mashed potatoes with pot roast and cornbread sounds yummy too!!
Made this for tonight’s dinner. Did not skip searing, as I have a crockpot with the new inner I can use for searing. Unlike most of your concerned reviewers, I actually added less beef broth, but I had added onions and celery, both of which make liquid (as well, all we had was close to 9oz in a cardboard box). Haven’t tried it yet, but it looks like it’s going to be a winner! 🙂 Thanks for the easy recipe and a quick dinner.
I hope you enjoyed it, Amanda!
It’s 730 am now what time should I start this ?
You’ll want to cook it on low for 8-10 hours so depending on when you want to have dinner, I would start it fairly soon. Enjoy!
I made this recipe over the weekend. This was a stray from my standard roast which includes onion, celery, & onion soup mix in addition to the potato and carrot in this recipe.
As I am preparing the few ingredients in this recipe I thought, “How is this going to be super yummy without onions? Will there be enough flavors in the meat with just thyme, salt, pepper and garlic?”
I opted for the slow and low cook method as I did not want to rush a new recipe and risk us needing to whip out a hacksaw to cut through an overcooked roast.
While the roast was cooking we were not noticing the typical, “are we at grandma’s house smell” where you can tell something delicious must be cooking. Even my hubby was sniffing around the cooker and peering through the condensation on the lid just to make sure I was really making a roast. Was my roast going to be a dud and super bland because I couldn’t smell it cooking? Perhaps I should have just stuck to what I knew and made my same old roast.
Finally after 9 long hours the time came to harvest the liquid to make the gravy. I popped the lid on the cooker and peered inside. “I made this”, I thought to myself. This roast looked photo-worthy. I decided to skip the picture as I needed to stay on task and make the gravy.
With the gravy set it was time to dish-up. The meat was so tender, the vegetables had great consistency and the gravy was the perfect finishing touch.
We started eating and we couldn’t believe how incredible this meal was! I was sad when I realized I had eaten my serving and now had an empty bowl. I had to have a second serving. Even our 2.5yr old daughter really enjoyed this and she couldn’t get enough of the carrots. She went so far as to steal all of mine out of my second serving. We are so pleased with this amazing recipe! I will be using this going forward and most likely will never use my old recipe again!
Oh my gosh!! You just made my day!! Thank you so much for taking the time to come back and let me know how much you all enjoyed it!
Do you season before or after browning in the pan?
Before 🙂
Hi I’m making this now and has been in crock pot for a few hrs so do I need to make sure the meat is completely covered by the liquids or is ok for it to be above on top of everything?
No, the meat will not be completely covered in liquid. I hope you enjoyed it!
I have this in the crock pot now and like others, I am being paranoid that there is not enough liquid but already put an extra cup or so. My question is how much space would you say there needs to be between the lid of the Crock-Pot and the meat? I have no idea how many quarts my crockpot is. I thought it was bigger but when I put the five pound roast in with all the vegetables seems like a lot. Hoping I didn’t overcrowd it.
Oh no, I’m just now seeing this. How did it turn out?
I like this recipe. It’s really simple. I tweaked it by adding celery and I seasoned my beef with a prime rib rub and browned it in a garlic chili infused olive oil. Oh I also added an onion and some whole garlic cloves.
I just made this tonight and it was THE best pot roast of my life!!! Tasty, delicious, moist, falling apart goodness! Hitting the print button and saving this one!
How amazing!! So glad you enjoyed it, Jenn!
Sabrina, I made you’re ultimate pot roast tonight and it is fabulous! My husband iS VERY particular about flavor, moistness, etc. I made the recipe as is except I used 6 cloves of garlic and I seasoned my church roast with No Salt ( salt substitute), ground pepper, granulated garlic and Rufus Teague steak rub. I seared about 10 minutes per side. I cut my carrots in about 3 inch lengths and my potatoes were in large chunks like the recipe says. Beef broth is Orrington Farms dry boullion that I put 5 tsp. To 2 cups hot water. Put the potatoes onions and carrots on bottom and 3 pound seared roast on top. Poured in broth and set crock pot on high for 5 hours. IT WAS PERFECT!!! Roast is fall apart but still firm, we like our meat M rare, and the veggies were still firm, not mushy. My husband could not quit raving about how good it is. He said this recipe is definately a keeper. I can’t wait to try some of your other recipes ?.
Thank you for taking the time to come back and let me know how much you all loved it!
Do you defat the gravy or do anything to it before serving other than the cornstarch?
Yes, you can strain it to separate the fat.
Would.like to make this this week. I love better than bullion. I have used it in another recipe and have it on hand. Would.i substitute it for the beef broth and how much?
You can use it to make the beef broth and I sometimes add a bit more by itself to boost the flavor even more.
Best pot roast I’ve ever made,love it.
I made this according to directions. Very easy to put together. I browned the meat, which I purchased at the butcher shop,
after seasoning it and placed it on top of the veggies. I added fresh whole mushrooms at the end.
I did not think there was enough flavor and the gravy was too thin. It needs more in the spice department.
Made this yesterday…I took out the veggies out early. They were done before the meat was. The best meal I have made in a while! Thanks
I normally cheat and use the pot roast seasoning packet. Didn’t have that seasoning packet available, so I used this recipe. I will not ever use those premade seasoning packets again! Delicious!!!!! This will definitely be my go to recipe for roast.
How awesome, Julie!! Thanks for the 5 stars!
First time making this; it’s so easy & delicious!
Yes I am making this pot roast right now. I have a 5ld roast in the crock pot now. My question is should it be totally submerged by the broth, because mine is not.
Sorry for the delay. Glad to know it wasn’t totally submerged in broth because it shouldn’t be. I hope you enjoyed it!
I have two roast how can I cook them both in the rockpot will I need to double the recipe
I usually don’t recommend it because it’s harder for the center to cook through each one but you might be able to tie them close together to make one and try it that way. Just make sure not to overcrowd your slow cooker because that will affect the timing. You could always use 2 slow cookers if you have them. Good luck!
I have a 2 lb roast instead of the 4-5 lb one. Do I need to make any adjustments to the ingredients?
Yes 🙂 If you hover over the serving size in the recipe card, a slider tool will pop up and you can adjust the size to match up with the size roast that you’re using. Hope this helps!
Putting this in the slow cooker as I type, but concerned with only two cups broth. It just doesn’t seem like enough. It’s not even covering the vegetables, let alone the meat. Should I add more? I don’t see any reviews saying so, but I’m still worried…
I know it seems different at first, but the meat will cook down and release liquids that’ll add to the broth during the cooking process. No need to worry. 🙂
Hello! This looks awesome and I am planning to make it for my sister. I know it is not ideal, but is it ok to start the cooking time at home and then then finish it when I get to her house? Only because I will not have a super long time at her house before dinner time, and I wanted it to be fresh and ready for dinner. I figured this is better than making the whole thing at my house and then just reheating at her house. Just wondering, thanks. 🙂
It’s not really ideal but as long as it’s only unplugged during transport, you should be fine. The longer it sits unplugged, the better the chance of bacteria forming. Just make sure it’s not unplugged for too long.
Just made this tonight! it is the best!!!
So glad you enjoyed it, Rachael!
Hi! I have a 2.5 lb roast im going to use. Do I need to halve all the ingredients, in particular the beef broth?
If you hover over the serving size in the recipe card, you’ll see a slider tool that allows you to adust the recipe to a 2.5 roast. This is a new feature on the site and I hope this helps. 🙂
Thank you SO much!
Thank you I just made the post roast, it was the best ever , If you ever publish a cookbook please let me know Thank You again Peggy Awald
You’re so sweet! I will!!
I thank U for great recipe DeLISH!!!
I only have a 2.2 lb roast. Should I halve everything else, too? And should I reduce the cooking time?
The recipe card now offers a slider tool to adjust the ingredients. Hover over the serving size and it’ll pop up to either lower or raise the adjustments needed.