Fix it & Forget it: Slow Cooker Succulent Beef Pot Roast & Root Vegetables
Deliciously Tender: a simple recipe for Slow Cooker Beef Pot Roast
With a slow cooker, your kitchen becomes a place where little miracles can happen. My recipe for Slow Cooker Pot Roast takes a 4-5 pound rump roast and transforms it into something to warm your insides as well as nourish your body when the weather is frightful. Pop everything in the slow cooker in the morning and by the time the work day is over, dinner is served!
Humble root vegetables like carrots, yellow onions and Yukon gold potatoes become just tender and when the incredible sauce is poured all over- ahhh- that really warms you up.
Busy days and cold nights doesn’t have to mean take out pizza or the same old pasta and sauce from a jar.
When I was a young mother, I threw a packet of instant onion soup in the crock pot with a roast, carrots and potatoes. The result was a big soupy, salty pile of mess.
Now I know better. Take the time to trim the fat and brown the roast. Create a sauce in only a few minutes with beef broth, salt, peppercorns, garlic, tomato pasta, smoked paprika, bay leaves, rosemary, sage and sautéed onions.
Cook this roast on low for 7-8 hours. I cooked it on high recently and it really toughened up the beef.
Wait to add the carrots, onion and potatoes to the slow cooker until 1 1/2 hours before dinner. They will hold their shape but still become tender.
This succulent roast is good enough for company. Add a splash of red wine for an even richer sauce.
Enjoy!
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Ingredients- serves 6
4-5 lb Beef Bottom Round or Rump Roast, trim the fat cap off the bottom
2-3 TBSP olive oil, divided
3 cloves peeled garlic
2 bay leaves
2 springs fresh rosemary
6-7 fresh sage leaves, stems removed
1 TBSP peppercorns
2 tsp table salt
2 TBSP tomato paste
32 oz low sodium beef broth
1 tsp smoked paprika
10-12 baby yukon gold potatoes, halved
1 large yellow onion, chop 1/4 cup of the onion. Chop the rest of the onion into large chuncks.
5 large carrots, peeled & cut into 3-4 inch pieces – do not use baby carrots
1/4 red wine or cognac, optional
Method- Prep time 30 minutes, cooking time 7-8 hours
- Trim the fat cap off the bottom of the roast.
In a shallow sauté pan, heat 2 TBSP olive oil to the smoking point. Place the roast in the pan and brown on all sides . This should take about 5-7 minutes total. Set the roast aside.
In the same pan, add in 1 TBSP of olive oil and sauté 1/4 cup of chopped onion until softened. - To the pan, add in the tomato paste and cook in the sautéed onions for 1 minute on low heat. Add a splash of beef broth (1/4 cup) to loosen any browned bits from the pan. Pour the onion mixture into a slow cooker on low heat.
- To the slow cooker add in the remaining beef broth, peppercorns, salt, smoked paprika, garlic cloves, rosemary, sage, bay leaves to the onion mixture. Whisk to combine all the ingredients.
- Place the browned roast in the slow cooker with the sauce. Cover and cook on low for 6 hours. If possible, turn the roast once during cooking so that all sides are in the sauce.
- After 6 hours, add the remaining chopped onion, carrots and potatoes to the cooker. Cook on low for an additional 1 1/2 hours or until the vegetables are fork tender, but not mushy. If desired, add cognac or red wine.
- Remove and shred the beef with a fork into chunks or slice the beef against the grain to serve. Place the vegetables on a platter. Plate the beef among the vegetables. Pour the au jus into a gravy boat. Remove and discard the peppercorns & rosemary stems. See below for serving ideas.
