Crock Pot Roast (with Gravy!)
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!
Try These Next
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Tried This Recipe?
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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!
This looks great. I have two 2.5 lb roasts that I want to do. Can I put both roasts in at the same time or will it be too much meat to get thoroughly cooked?
Hey Kat! I’m excited for you to try this recipe!! You’ll be totally find using two 2.5 roasts for this. Enjoy!!
Delicious and easy-to-follow recipe!
YAY!!!!!!! Thanks, Mandy!
Really delicious and straightforward, also versatile enough to make it your own. With a sprig of thyme or rosemary and a caper or two. With a dollop of tomato paste and some red whine you can do something slight.
I’m so happy you enjoyed it! Thank you!!!!
The best pot roast recipe I have ever had….
I’m so happy to hear that!! Thank you!!
I followed this recipe almost to a T bc I’ve never made pot roast before. I didn’t have chicken stock (thought I did) so I just used 3 cups of the beef stock instead of 2. This was out of this world!! 🌎 My family loved the way it came out. The beef shredded nicely, the potatoes and carrots were tender, and the gravy thickened nicely following these instructions. I highly recommend this recipe!
I’m so happy it was such a family success Tiffany, nice work!🙌 Thanks for the great review!💖
Just made this for Easter dinner. Spot in of my grandma’s recipe. Was absolutely delicious. Thanks
You’re very welcome Jennifer! Great choice for Easter dinner, I’m so happy it was such a success. Thanks so much for the great review!😃
Making this for Easter! And as usual I’m running later than I’d like, I want to cook on high for a few hours first then switch to low. What would you recommend to get the most cook time on low, while still cutting the cook time down a few hours? Thanks in advance!
Hi Hannah! It really depends what your timeframe is like, and when you need to have it ready by. You could do high for 4 hours and low for 3, or something around there 🙂
Outstanding family meal!
I’m so happy that you loved it!! Thank you so much!!
Hello! I need to double the recipe and my crock pot is not big enough. Can i use the roasting pan and cook it in the oven instead? If so, what’s the oven temperature and how long I should put it in for?
Thanks!
Rose
Hi Rose! You can cover and bake it in a 225 degree oven for 7-8 hours instead of using a crock pot. For quicker results, you can bake it at 325 for 3-4 hours.
I used beef broth red wine and the other ingredients you mention.
I added a pack of brown gravy mix and poured over and around the roast. I am wondering if the dry mix will work well. Liquids are covering most everything and on 5 hour high
Thank you
Nice work Chris, seems like you’re on your way to success! Enjoy!😃
I love this recipe. Pot roast always sounds good to me, but it often turns out disappointing. This recipe delivers every time. I make it often, and it’s a hit with the whole family.
I’m so happy you’re enjoying it Casey! Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a review!❤️