This easy pot roast recipe can be made in the oven, slow cooker, or Instant Pot, and is fall-apart-tender with a lush 2-ingredient gravy for the best Sunday night comfort food dinner straight from my mama’s kitchen.
In This Post
This is my mom’s pot roast recipe. It’s the one I grew up with. It’s the recipe that started on the stove and finished in the oven as it perfumed our house and braised away, creating the most melt-in-your-mouth, irresistibly tender, and delicious pot roast. With the gravy, I still can’t stop myself from sopping up with that extra bite of bread I told myself I wasn’t going to have.
You won’t find many recipes that use canned cream-of-anything-soup here on the blog, but this recipe is a fantastic exception. Braised in red wine and condensed cream of mushroom soup, I still can’t wrap my head around how these two singular ingredients transform into the lushest, savory gravy you’ll ever wish to ladle. From tender meat to flavorful veggies to velvety gravy, this easy pot roast is THE BEST lazy cook recipe for any given Sunday.
What’s in THE BEST Pot Roast
If I’m being honest, this isn’t my mom’s pot roast recipe. Well, at least not exactly. Her pot roast is even simpler than this one because she never added vegetables to her pot roast recipe. That was my idea. But after tasting mine, she has wholeheartedly approved. Sidenote: You have permission to skip the vegetables too.
This recipe is extremely forgiving, where ingredient additions or substitutions are certainly acceptable. Adding vegetables and herbs to the pot roast cooking process not only enhances the flavor but adds more nibbles to eat when it’s done. Another request of my husband that I welcome too.
Here’s what you’ll need for this pot roast recipe:
- 3 ½ to 4 ½ lb chuck roast
- Mushrooms
- Celery
- Carrots
- Yellow onion
- Garlic
- Condensed cream of mushroom soup
- Red wine (you could also use beef broth or beef stock)
- Fresh herbs, like rosemary, bay leaves, or fresh thyme
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Canola oil (olive oil would also work)
We like pot roast served over fluffy mashed potatoes, but if you prefer yours with potatoes cooked right in the mix, add 2 cups halved and quartered yellow potatoes or baby red or yellow potatoes with the other vegetables before going into the oven. You could also serve this over egg noodles or creamy polenta.
How Do I Make My Pot Roast Tender
The right cut of meat, patience, and slow cooking are the keys to a tender pot roast.
The Best Beef Meat for Pot Roast
Because fat infuses flavor, the best meat for pot roast is always a well-marbled chuck roast. Choose a marbled chuck roast that’s between 3 ½ to 4 ½ pounds.
Chuck roasts need more cooking time to become fall-apart tender. Patience pays off with pot roast! As the meat slowly cooks at a lower oven temperature, the tough connective tissues soften and melt into the meat. This process creates tender, savory cuts of beef that are easily cut with a fork.
Should I Use Broth or Stock for Pot Roast
Red wine is my preferred braising liquid of choice in this pot roast recipe because I like the flavor it imparts, and the acidity helps tenderize the meat. However, you could easily use beef broth or stock for great results.
Sear the Roast for More Flavor
Break out the dutch oven. Use a heavy-bottomed pot with a tight-fitting lid or a dutch oven to take this recipe from the stove to the oven. The oven’s heat does all the work. You could toss the roast into the dutch oven and call it good, but searing the meat before going in the oven adds a whole lotta flavor to the entire dish.
Generously salt and pepper the chuck roast. Don’t be shy when it comes to seasoning the meat. I prefer the flakiness and flavor of kosher salt over table salt, which can taste more pungent and iodized.
Sear the meat over medium-high heat. Searing the seasoned meat over medium-high heat creates a seasoned crust that adds flavor to the dish. Turn on the stove’s fan and let ‘er rip. Searing also adds bits of fond to the bottom of the pan for another layer of savory. Sear the top, bottom, and sides of the roast for the best results.
The Easiest 2-Ingredient Pot Roast Gravy
This gravy might be the main reason you’ll find yourself making this pot roast again and again. It’s that good.
I try to avoid the processed ingredient shortcuts some old-school recipes suggest. That’s why I try to avoid using condensed soup in the recipes I share. But my mom’s pot roast is one of the exceptions to my whole food cooking rule. I mean, sometimes you just gotta step down from your smug perch and go with what mom says.
One-step gravy making. There’s no butter and flour roux or extra steps to take when making the gravy. The gravy cooks right alongside—literally—the roast as it cooks.
Don’t dilute the condensed cream of mushroom soup with water. Get saucy with red wine instead. The combination adds depth and body to the gravy as it absorbs flavor from the meat and vegetable braise.
Use a drinkable red wine for the gravy. To avoid opening a new bottle just for cooking, I keep a box of drinkable red wine on hand instead. Use any variety you prefer. Merlot, pinot noir, cabernet, etc. are all good choices.
What Temperature Do You Cook Pot Roast
Cook the pot roast at 325°F. After searing the meat on the stove, low and slow in the oven is the yellow brick road to the most tender pot roast. Braising the meat in the gravy sauce on lower heat breaks down the connective tissue in this less expensive cut of beef, making it tender and delicious.
What is the Cooking Time for Pot Roast
Cook the roast for 3 ½ to 4 hours. Once in the oven, this roast is the poster child for hands-free cooking. Tightly fit with a lid, the roast cooks best undisturbed as the pot traps all the heat. Check the progress at the 3-hour mark, ladling some of the gravy over the meat as it cooks if you’re feeling like you need something to do. Otherwise, just let it go to do its thing.
How to Cook Pot Roast In the Crock Pot or Slow Cooker
Sear the meat in a large dutch oven or heavy-bottomed skillet as directed in the recipe card below. Transfer the beef roast, juices, and crispy bits to the insert of a Crock Pot or slow cooker. Add the vegetables, herbs, and gravy ingredients. Cover and set the cooker on HIGH for 4-5 hours or LOW for 8 hours.
How to Cook Pressure Cooker or Instant Pot Pot Roast
Sear the meat in a large dutch oven or heavy-bottomed skillet as directed in the recipe card below or sauté directly in an Instant Pot. Transfer the meat to the insert of the pressure cooker, and add the veggies, herbs, and gravy ingredients. Set the pressure cooker to HIGH pressure for 60 minutes. When done, let the cooker do a natural release for 10 minutes, then finish with a quick release. NOTE: Because the liquid does not evaporate when pressure cooking, the gravy may not be as thick. Also, be careful of how many vegetables you add to the pressure cooker, and don’t go over the suggested fill line.
What to Serve With Pot Roast
- How to Make the Best Mashed Potatoes
- Buttermilk Blue Cheese Mashed Potatoes
- Avocado Grapefruit and Fennel Salad
- Maple Chipotle Sweet Potatoes
- Beet, Carrot and Pomegranate Salad
If you make this recipe, please let me know! Leave a rating on this recipe below and leave a comment, take a photo and tag me on Instagram with #foodiecrusheats.
Mom’s BEST Pot Roast Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 pound chuck roast
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons canola oil
- 6 ounces mushrooms , trimmed and halved or quartered
- 3 stalks celery , cut into 1-inch pieces
- 2 carrots , peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
- ½ yellow onion , quartered
- 4 cloves garlic , peeled and sliced thin
- 3 sprigs fresh rosemary
- 2 10.5 ounce cans condensed cream of mushroom soup , undiluted
- 1 cup red wine , any drinkable variety will do
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325°F.
- Season the chuck roast with the kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper on all sides. Heat the oil in a large dutch oven or heavy bottomed pot over medium high heat and add the chuck roast to the pot. Sear 3-5 minutes on each side or until browned.
- Add the mushrooms, celery, carrots, onion, garlic and rosemary to the pot. In a bowl or large measuring cup, whisk the mushroom soup and red wine until smooth. Pour over the chuck roast and vegetables, cover tight with a lid, and transfer to the oven.
- Cook in the oven for 3 ½ to 4 hours or until the meat is fork tender and pulls apart easily. Transfer the roast to a serving platter with the vegetables and gravy. Serve with mashed potatoes or buttery parsley red potatoes.
Notes
Nutrition
More Sunday Dinner Ideas
- 5 Easy Tips for Juicy Roast Chicken
- Beef Bourguignon
- Braised Pork Roast in Almond Milk
- Curry Turkey Pot Pie With Homemade Butter Pie Crust
- Grandma’s Fall-Off-the-Bone Country Style BBQ Pork Ribs
We send good emails. Subscribe to FoodieCrush and have each post plus exclusive content only for our subscribers delivered straight to your e-mail box.
Follow me on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter for more FoodieCrush inspiration.
As always, thank you for reading and supporting companies I partner with, which allows me to create more unique content and recipes for you. There are affiliate links in this post of which I receive a small commission. All opinions are always my own.
M Gowling
This was a great recipe! I will definitely make it again! So easy and so flavorful!
I didn’t have mushrooms, and omitted the celery. I did add potatoes and rutabagas instead. I don’t think that changed the wonderful flavor of the soup/wine mix added to the roast.
Heidi
Yum, rutabagas! I’vve never cooked with them before so I’ll have to try that!
AnneM
Wow, was this a great recipe! I doubled everything including the roasts(we had a large gathering) plus added quartered potatoes and Brussel sprouts, then an onion soup mix packet to the liquid. This is a great crowd pleaser!
Heidi
Anne, I’m so glad it worked for you! Thanks for the comment and the 5 star rating!
Cathy
Can I use a round roast
Hayley
Hi Cathy! We think that should work fine, although round roast is leaner and you may have to adjust the cooking time.
Susanne Edwards
This was, without a doubt, the BEST pot roast I have ever eaten! The whole family-from finicky teens to even more finicky grandmothers- gave it rave reviews. Thank your Mom and keep these awesome recipes coming.
Heidi
I’m so glad everyone enjoyed!
Susanne
What can I say? Mom’s pot roast recipe is awesome! So easy to make, stock full of fresh ingredients and tastes out of this world. Everyone in my family, from teens to grandmother, loved it! So did our friends who had stopped by for a visit. Will definitely be making this again.
Linda L-N
We had this for dinner tonight…..fabulous & easy!!! Scaled it down to 4 servings. The only change I made was to add a tsp of “Better Than Bouillon-Roast Beef Flavor” (Love that stuff!) mixed with a little hot water to help it dissolve to enhance the beef flavor. A great fall/winter “comfort food” dinner. Make this….you won’t regret it.
Judy Grimpel
Absolutely delicious and so easy! I will make this again and again.
Diann
This was the best EVER pot roast I ever made. Simply beyond delicious, I add 2 types of mushros and red wine someone glad me xmas a few years ago. I will add to my collection. Yes, it was great over mashed potatoes.
Sabrina
craving a great pot roast without even realizing it, probably the change in weather, so thank you!
S Matteucci
Clicked print recipe, it called for a 32 pound chuck roast…
Becky
Is there anything I can substitute for the red wine that would work? I can’t have alcohol but I wouldn’t want to change the yummy gravy?
Heidi
Hi Becky. Instead of red wine, substitute it with 1 cup of beef or chicken broth. If it were me, I’d probably add 1/4 cup of balsamic vinegar to give the gravy a little zing the red wine provides. Let me know how it turns out!
Annette Henderson
Is the canola oil used in searing the meat before putting it in the oven?
Heidi
Yes Annette, drizzle the stock pot with oil before searing the meat.
Sam
What is your opinion on switching out the red wine for beef broth?
Stacia Garner
Could this be done in a pressure cooker
Heidi
Hi Stacia, I’m sure it could be done in the pressure cooker. Brown the meat in the pressure cooker, add the veggies and gravy ingredients and set to HIGH for 60 minutes, then slow release for 15 minutes. Because none of the liquid will evaporate with cooking this way, the gravy may not be as thick. Also,bBe careful of how many vegetables you add to the pressure cooker, and don’t go over the suggested fill line.
Janet Hyatt
Hi,
Could this be done in a slow cooker?
Thanks!
Janet
Heidi
Yes Janet, you could cook it in a slow cooker. Be sure to brown the meat first, then transfer everything to the slow cooker and cook on high for 4-5 hours and low for 8. Enjoy!