Steakhouse-Style Baked Pot Roast — 🥩🎉 An EASY recipe for fork-tender baked pot roast OR you can make it in your slow cooker! This boneless beef chuck roast is slowly braised to perfection along with carrots, onions, and fresh herbs which add so much FLAVOR that it rivals any steakhouse! The pan drippings are great to create a rich gravy that’ll coat every scrumptious bite of tender meat!
Easy Fall-Apart Tender Pot Roast Recipe
Beef pot roast is a family-favorite comfort food dish that’s perfect for serving on cold winter nights. This version is so tasty, juicy, and flavorful that it rivals your favorite steakhouse pot roast!
Here’s why else you’ll love this pot roast recipe:
- It uses simple ingredients. I want to actually enjoy the flavor of the meat and using aromatics like carrots, onion, and herbs flavor the roast without overwhelming it.
- It’s perfect for weeknights and special occasions alike. Whether it’s Sunday dinner or you’re making this for Valentine’s Day, an anniversary, or a dinner party, I go the extra mile and make some blue cheese gravy from the pan drippings as outlined below, but it’s optional.
- There’s minimal cleanup. So long as you use a Dutch oven or braiser that goes from both stovetop to oven, you can prepare the entire recipe in one pot. If you’re doing it in a slow cooker, you’ll want to sear it off first, then transfer it into the slow cooker.
Ingredients for Steakhouse Style Oven Pot Roast Recipe
Steakhouse-style pot roast:
- Beef chuck roast – see the FAQs for substitutions
- Kosher salt
- Ground black pepper
- Garlic powder
- Yellow onion
- Carrots
- Olive oil
- Beef broth – I used reduced sodium
- Worcestershire sauce
- Fresh thyme – fresh rosemary may also be incorporated. If using dried herbs, use about 1 teaspoon, or to taste
Blue Cheese Gravy – optional: (see the FAQs below for alternate gravy options)
- Minced garlic
- Blue cheese
- Heavy whipping cream
- Fresh chopped parsley, optional for garnishing
Note: Scroll down to the recipe card section of the post for the ingredients with amounts included and for more complete directions.
How to Cook Pot Roast in the Oven
Making fall-apart tender beef chuck pot roast is a very simple process. Follow these basic steps:
- Sear meat: Season the chuck roast with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Place it in a 5-quart braising pan with lid (or Dutch oven, or oven-safe large skillet), and sear it over medium-high heat until it’s brown on all sides. Those brown bits you’ll see forming are where the flavor is at!
- Add the remaining ingredients to the pan: This includes the onion, carrots, olive oil, beef broth, Worcestershire sauce, and thyme sprigs. Cover with a lid and bake at 325ºF for 3 hours, or until done. Beef chuck roast is done at about 195-200F as measured by a digital thermometer.
- Make the blue cheese gravy (optional): Keep reading to learn more about how to prepare the gravy.
- Serve: We love eating our tender braised pot roast over a bed of mashed potatoes with the blue cheese gravy spooned over top.
How To Make Pot Roast in a Slow Cooker
- Sear meat: Season the chuck roast with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Place it in a 5-quart braising pan with lid (or Dutch oven, or oven-safe large skillet), and sear it until brown on all sides.
- Transfer to a 6-quart slow cooker and add remaining ingredients: This includes the carrots, onion, beef broth, Worcestershire sauce, and thyme sprigs.
- Cover and slow cook: Cook on HIGH for 4 to 6 hours, or on LOW for 6 to 8 hours. All cook times are approximate. Beef chuck roast is done at about 195-200F as measured by a digital thermometer.
- Make optional Gravy and Serve: Serve with gravy and your favorite sides!
How to Make Blue Cheese Gravy for Pot Roast (Optional)
For an extra decadent pot roast dinner, use the pan drippings to create a creamy blue cheese dressing.
- Once the pot roast has baked for about 3 hours and is cooked through, remove it to a plate.
- Next, transfer the carrots, onion, and thyme to the same plate. Leave the drippings and broth in the bottom of the braiser.
- Place the braiser on your stove over medium heat. Whisk in the garlic, blue cheese crumbles, and heavy cream.
- Cook for 7 to 10 minutes, or until thickened as desired, making sure to whisk frequently.
What to Serve with Pot Roast
Storage
In the Refrigerator: This recipe will keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. Store the pot roast separately from the gravy.
In the Freezer: This recipe will keep airtight in the freezer for up to 3 months.
To Reheat: I use my microwave for quickness and ease and reheat my leftovers for about 30 seconds on high, or as needed. Take care when reheating the blue cheese gravy if you make it not to overheat it.
Recipe FAQs
Yes, sear the beef chuck roast on the stovetop as instructed. Then place it into a slow cooker along with the veggies, broth, Worcestershire sauce, and fresh thyme sprigs. Cover and cook on HIGH for 4 to 6 hours, or on LOW for 6 to 8 hours. Beef chuck roast is done at about 195-200F as measured by a digital thermometer.
If you cook on low for 8 hours, I would wait to add the carrots and onions when there are 4 hours left to prevent them from turning into mush.
You’ll want to buy a boneless beef chuck roast for this recipe (although you can possibly use brisket or bottom round roast, but I haven’t tested them). As the chuck roast slowly cooks in the oven or your slow cooker, the connective tissues in the beef break down and become fork tender. The marbling (i.e. fat) within the beef also breaks down and creates a self-basting effect, which makes for a super flavorful baked pot roast without the need to add lots of extra spices or oil.
Do not skip searing the beef! It adds so much flavor to this simple pot roast recipe, and it only adds another 15 minutes or so. While the beef sears, you can chop the carrots and onions. May as well multi-task!
When you add the beef broth and Worcestershire sauce, you’re essentially deglazing the pan. For an extra special touch, you can replace half the beef broth liquid with red wine – such as a cabernet or zinfandel.
If you prefer a stronger blue cheese flavor, use a variety like Stilton or Roquefort. For a milder gravy, use Danish Blue or Gorgonzola Dolce. You can also use less blue cheese than the recipe calls for if you don’t want your gravy to taste very strongly of blue cheese. I do not recommend low or reduced fat blue cheese crumbles. It’s best to use a block of blue cheese you simply add to the pan by crumbling it in.
Yes, you can also add chopped potatoes. Yukon Gold is my preference, or sweet potatoes to the braiser to cook alongside the pot roast. You want to keep them pretty chunky, about 1 to 2-inch sized pieces, so that they don’t overcook and just disintegrate during the long cooking time.
I used a 5-quart enameled braising pan which is very similar to a Dutch oven, just a bit more shallow. Most any 5-quart or larger Dutch oven or braiser that’s safe to go from stove to oven is fine to use.
I recommend a 6-quart slow cooker, although either a 5-quart or 7-quart are likely fine. If using a 5-quart, you may need to extend the cooking time a bit since the food is more squished into it, and it’ll simply take longer to cook through.
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Pot Roast
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Oven Baking: Preheat oven to 325F.
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Evenly season the chuck roast with kosher salt, pepper, and garlic powder on all sides.
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To a 5-quart braising pan (or similar sized Dutch oven, or high sided pan that’s safe to use from stove to oven), add the roast and sear the roast on all sides over medium-high heat, about 4-5 minutes per side, or as necessary to brown it. Tip – Don’t skip the searing step because this will really help add flavor and lock in the natural juices.
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Turn off the heat, add the onions and carrots around the sides of the roast. Then evenly drizzle everything with olive oil, add the beef broth, Worcestershire sauce, and evenly place the thyme sprigs around the pan. Cover with a lid and bake for 3 hours.
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Slow Cooking: Everything is the same in that you will season the meat, sear it, but then transfer it to the slow cooker insert, scatter the carrots and onions around it, drizzle with olive oil, add the broth and Worcestershire, place the lid on top, and slow cook for about 4 to 6 hours on HIGH. Or about 6 to 8 hours on LOW. Slow Cooking Tip – If you are going to cook on low, I would wait to add the carrots and onions when there is ~4 hours left to prevent them from turning into mush.
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Both Baking and Slow Cooking: Pot roast is done when the internal temp is between 195-200F. I strongly recommend checking with a digital read thermometer and do not guess. Cooking times listed for either baking or slow cooking are approximate. Your roast could be done faster or slower than indicated based on the size, your cooking pot, your oven or slow cooker’s intensity or lack thereof, etc. Always cook until done, whatever that means for you. Remove the roast, carrots, and onions from the pot or slow cooker, and allow the meat to rest on a cutting board for about 10 minutes before slicing and serving. Discard thyme sprigs.
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Blue Cheese Gravy, optional: Remove the roast and vegetables from your Dutch oven (if you’re doing this in a slow cooker same – remove everything and let it rest, then transfer the cooking juices into a saute pan) and place the pot with the cooking liquid on the stove. Whisk in minced garlic, blue cheese, and heavy cream. Cook for 7-10 minutes over medium heat, or until sauce has thickened; whisk very frequently like you would when making any gravy. Season to taste with salt and pepper, if desired. If you want a thicker gravy, a quick cornstarch slurry will do the trick. Simply whisk together 1 tablespoon of cornstarch + 2 tablespoons of water. Then whisk the slurry into the gravy after the blue cheese has melted. It will thicken within a couple of minutes. See Notes below for other gravy recipes.
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Serve the pot roast, with or without gravy, along with the vegetables and your favorite sides (links for various potatoes and veggies sides are in the blog post).
Other Gravy Recipes: You can skip making the blue cheese gravy entirely. Or you can replace it with Mushroom Gravy, Sausage Gravy, or this easy Gravy Using Store Bought Broth. Or simply spoon the pan juices over your pot roast without doctoring them up at all.
Storage: Leftover pot roast and vegetables will keep airtight in the fridge for up to 5 days, or in the freezer for up to 3 months. Reheat gently in the microwave, or as desired. Store any gravy separately. Always take care when reheating gravy, and especially a dairy-based one if you make the blue cheese gravy. I do not recommend freezing gravy.
Serving: 1serving, Calories: 660kcal, Carbohydrates: 8g, Protein: 55g, Fat: 46g, Saturated Fat: 21g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g, Monounsaturated Fat: 22g, Trans Fat: 2g, Cholesterol: 213mg, Sodium: 1026mg, Potassium: 1161mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 4g, Vitamin A: 7273IU, Vitamin C: 7mg, Calcium: 151mg, Iron: 6mg
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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