This Crock Pot Roast recipe is easy to make with potatoes, carrots, and thick and flavorful gravy. The meat is moist and full of flavor, your family will love this home cooked meal!
Be sure to serve this with my Buttermilk Biscuits or Copycat Texas Roadhouse Rolls.
If you’re looking for the best Crock Pot Roast recipe, (with a ton of flavorful brown gravy), you’ve come to the right place!
I love that this is a complete meal all in one pot. You can do the prep work a day ahead of time, then set it and forget it.
Don’t be alarmed by the number of ingredients. They’re all super simple and really make the difference in this meal- the flavor is like no other.
Best Cuts of Meat for Pot Roast
Below are the 3 best options for making pot roast. Try to find one that has nice even marbling throughout the meat.
- Chuck Roasts (the best option)
- Rump Roasts (2nd best)
- Bottom Rounds (3rd best)
How to Make Crock Pot Roast
See recipe card below this post for ingredient quantities and full instructions.
- Pat the roast dry and rub with seasoning, then with flour. Sear in a skillet for 2-3 minutes per side.
- Combine gravy ingredients and add them to the Crock Pot along with the roast, potatoes, and carrots.
- Cook on low for 8-10 hours or on high for 5-6.
- Remove roast and vegetables and tent with foil. Bring gravy to a boil and add cornstarch + water mixture to thicken it. Reduce to a simmer and swirl in cold butter. Serve.
How to Make Brown Gravy More Flavorful
The following ingredients add depth of flavor to brown gravy, but they also help achieve a rich dark brown color.
- Beef and Chicken Broth: I like to use a combination of both for a greater depth of flavor.
- Soy Sauce: You can’t taste it, but the soy sauce enhances the other flavors and adds umami.
- Worcestershire Sauce: A great alternative to soy sauce.
- Kitchen Bouquet Browning and Seasoning Sauce: I like to add a few drops of for a hint of a darker brown color. You can find it in the aisle where they sell gravy packets.
- Onion Powder, Garlic Powder, and extra 1 bouillon.
- Optional additions: Thyme, Rosemary, and Sage.
- Cold Butter: Swirl 1-2 Tablespoons cold butter into gravy at the end of cooking. This is a technique called “Monter au Beurre” which adds a smooth, velvety finish to gravies and sauces.
Make-Ahead Method
- Combine gravy ingredients ahead of time.
- Prepare carrots and wash/dry the potatoes, but don’t cut the potatoes until ready to cook.
- Sear the meat just before cooking or skip that step and place unseared meat in the crock pot with the gravy and carrots.
- Refrigerate for up to 1 day, then cooked as outlined, but add 30 minutes to cooking time since you’re starting from a cold state.
Pro Tips
- Celery, sliced yellow onions, smashed garlic, and fresh rosemary/thyme make great additions to this meal as well.
- Searing the Roast isn’t completely necessary but it adds a nice color, texture, and element of flavor. Even when I’m in a rush, I go for the sear. It’s worth it!
- Don’t open the lid of the Crock Pot during cooking, you lose a lot of heat and about 30 minutes of cooking time.
- This recipe is in The Cozy Cookbook on page 89!
Storage
Store in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months.
Tools For This Recipe
(Amazon affiliate links)- Check out all of my kitchen essentials here.
- Stovetop Safe Crock Pot
- Rubbermaid Containers with lids– I always use these to combine my corn starch + cold water.
- Instant Read Meat Thermometer -Internal Temperature of the roast should be 145° prior to serving.
- Fat Separator -with strainer on the top and a bottom release. Any fat in the gravy rises to the top and you can dispense just the gravy into the gravy boat and leave out the fat.
- Gravy Boat– I have/love this one. It has a candle on the bottom to keep it warm!
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Crock Pot Roast
Ingredients
- 3-4 lb. Chuck Roast, see notes for other cut options
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
Meat Seasoning:
- 2 teaspoons brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon EACH: salt, garlic powder, onion powder, chili powder, paprika
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
Gravy:
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 2 cups beef broth
- 1 beef bouillon cube, or 1 tsp better than bouillon
- 1 ½ teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon low sodium soy sauce, can sub Worcestershire
Sides:
- 2 ¼ lbs. baby potatoes, see notes
- 2 lbs. whole carrots, cut into halves or thirds.
For the End:
- 3 tablespoons corn starch + 3 tablespoons cold water
- 2-3 drops Kitchen Bouquet browning and seasoning sauce, optional: gives it a darker color
- 1 Tablespoon cold unsalted butter
Instructions
- Pat roast completely dry. Combine seasoning ingredients and massage it onto all sides of the roast, followed by the flour.
- Heat olive oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Once the oil is shiny and heated, add the roast and sear on each side for 2-3 minutes, until a brown crust has developed. Decrease heat slightly if needed during cooking. Remove from heat and set aside.
- Whisk together the gravy ingredients and add some of it to the skillet that you used to sear the roast. Use a silicone spatula to "clean" the bottom and sides of the skillet, this will give the gravy more flavor. Transfer it to the slow cooker along with the remaining gravy mixture, followed by the pot roast and any juices from the plate.
- Cut the potatoes in half or thirds of equal size. (If 1-2 inch potatoes, you can leave them whole.)
- Peel the carrots and slice them into halves or thirds. Very thick carrots can also be sliced in half lengthwise.
- Arrange the potatoes around the roast and top with carrots. Place the lid securely on top and resist the temptation to open it during cooking as you’ll lose a lot of heat.
- Cook on high for 5-6 hours or on low for 8-10 hours.
- Carefully remove the carrots, potatoes, and the roast and set on a serving platter. Tent with foil.
Prepare the Gravy
- Use oven mitts to lift the crock and transfer the juices to a saucepan, OR, if the crock is stovetop safe, you can place the crock right on the stovetop.
- Bring the juices to a boil. Whisk together the corn starch with cold water until completely combined. Gradually add it to the gravy and whisk continuously to incorporate.
- Decrease heat to low and simmer until ready to serve. It will continue to thicken. Add a few drops of Kitchen Bouquet browning and seasoning sauce if a darker color is preferred. Swirl in 1 tbsp. cold butter prior to serving.
- Season carrots/potatoes with salt and pepper if desired and serve!
Notes
• Rump Roasts (2nd best)
• Bottom Rounds (3rd best)
Potatoes: I used 3-4 inch round white potatoes, cut in half. Red potatoes or sliced Yukon Gold potatoes make great options as well.
This recipe is in The Cozy Cookbook on page 89!
I’m looking forward to cooking this tomorrow. I have 2 1-pound chuck roasts I want to put in the crockpot and your recipe calls for a 3-4 pound roast. How long should I cook my 2 small roasts? Thanks and I can’t wait to try this recipe!
Hi Jan! I would just cook it on the lower end of the ranges provided (High around 5 hours or low around 8) – Enjoy!
First time I tried it. very simple directions. My family enjoy it very much. they said I was a great cook.
Thank you Cozy Cook for posting this recipes.
My pleasure Nilda! I’m so happy you’re enjoying the recipes, thanks so much for taking the time to leave a review!💗
5 stars! easy and delish!
Thanks so much Marie!💖
I received a used crock pot, and decided this was to be my first meal, and was I happy that I did. the only change I made was adding quartered yellow onion about 7 hours in. the meat was so tender and the gravy was amazing! can’t wait to heat it up tomorrow for leftovers!
I’m so happy you received a crock pot and made this recipe Marie! Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a review, enjoy leftovers!💖
This was the first time I made this recipe and it was absolutely delicious!! I followed the recipe 100% right down to the butter in the gravy!! This is definitely a family favorite!!
I’m so happy this is a family favorite Tracy, sounds like you nailed it!🙌 Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a review!💗
This may have been the first time I seared a roast before putting it in the crock pot. We loved how everything came out! I appreciate that the seasoning was all things I had in the cabinet. I followed the recipe exactly except didn’t have Kitchen Bouquet. It all tasted great and love the gravy!
I’m so happy you all love how everything came out Autumn! Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a review and comment!❤️
I “loosely” followed this recipe with a couple of modifications. I didn’t focus on the gravy, left out the boullion, and replaced the carrots with an onion.
Results: “Dad…this roast is BUSSIN’!” I believe my old man translator came back with: “Father figure, this meat dish is delicious. Very delicious.”
I used a London broil for the cut of meat–about 3.5 lbs. Seared using the rub/flour, and used Yukon gold potatoes for the starch. I cut them in half, added in the sliced onion, and ended up crocking the whole thing for 5 hours.
Perfect. Meat shredded easily. Potatoes were cooked just right. The stock and spices created an “au jus” type of sauce that made me think we’d be okay without the gravy. Turned out just right!
From the Lazy Cook to the Cozy Cook, I say “buen provecho.” This was delicious!
Hi Crag! I’m so happy that you enjoyed it and that you made it your own, nicely done!!! 🙂 Thank you so much for taking the time to share this! -Stephanie
I forgot to hit the five stars! 🙂
This pot roast is amazing! Such a great combination of flavors. Absolutely delicious! My family loved it and is excited about leftovers. Adding the butter to the gravy at the end is a game changer!!! Who knew???? Now I know! Thanks for a great recipe!
I’m so happy you found the butter tip helpful Danielle! Thanks so much for the great comments and for taking the time to leave a review!💖
This roast is the best! Such a great combination of flavors. Super easy and delicious! My family loved it and can’t wait for the leftovers. The tip about adding butter to the gravy at the end!!! Who knew??? It’s what my gravy has been missing. Thanks for another great recipe!
I’m so happy your family loved it so much Danielle! I also love that fact that you appreciate the butter at the end, such a great tip right!? Thanks so much for your support!💖
I made this yesterday for the first time, super easy and it came out great. My entire family including my picky eater loved it. The gravy was a nice added touch, great for dipping the rolls in. They all said to make it again!
Thank you for sharing your recipes! It’s greatly appreciated!
I am so happy to hear that Kelly!! You made me hungry thinking about that gravy with the rolls, haha! Thank you so much for taking the time to leave a review, I really appreciate it!! 🙂 -Stephanie