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Nothing is better than a pot roast cooking in the oven! In a world that loves one-dish meals, this recipe is truly the original one-pan meal. And it has such a rustic, no-frills presentation: the Dutch oven has a roast as the centerpiece and is filled with carrots and potatoes. Super simple but oh so delicious!
Growing up, my mom prepared this as a family favorite for Sunday dinners right after church. It was a perfect recipe to prepare before church and let cook while away. The roast is slowly cooked at a lower temperature until fork-tender. The carrots and potatoes are added towards the end of the roasting process, so they are not overcooked. The best part is the rich sauce that is created from all of the items cooking together.
The ingredients that make this such a classic
- Chuck roast is the best roast for a long cook time. The chuck is cut from the shoulder and is marbled with just enough fat to keep it moist and full of flavor.
- Onion, carrot, and celery are finely diced and start as the base of flavor for the sauce. During the roasting time, all of the drippings from the roast and vegetables create a rich sauce at the end.
- Tomato paste is the ingreident you’ll never know was added. A little bit of the paste cooks and caramilizes, adding a deep rich flavor to the sauce.
- Red wine cuts through the richness of the beef and provides some acidity to balance out the sauce. If you don’t want the wine, you can leave it out.
- Beef stock is the base liquid for the sauce that cooks during the roasting. Do not worry about having homemade stock as the concentrate works just as well.
- Worcestershire sauce is always that ingredients that seems miniscule but adds a huge flavor punch. A little bit goes a long ways.
- Carrots are cut large so they’re a good size for serving as the side. Cutting them too small would result in overcooked, mushy carrots. But a larger cut results in a perfect texture.
- Potatoes are for many the best part of any pot roast. Using smaller, bite-size potatoes naturally results in pre-portioned bites, but large potatoes can be cut into pieces and added as well. To avoid too much breakdown, use a denser potato like a Yukon gold.
Altogether, this pot roast is a one-pot staple that will make anyone feel like they’re part of the family. The meal is simple to put together and fills the entire house with a welcoming aroma. I think you’ll soon find that this recipe needs to be on permanent repeat during the winter!
More one pan recipes
Watch how to make this classic pot roast recipe
Classic Pot Roast
Ingredients
- 3-4 lb chuck roast
- 1 tbsp kosher salt
- 1 tsp pepper
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1 cup diced onion
- 1 cup diced celery
- 1 cup diced carrot
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 cup red wine
- 3 cup beef stock
- 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 2 lb carrots cut into large sticks
- 1 ½ lb small baking potatoes
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325°F. Sprinkle salt and pepper over the entire chuck roast and set aside.1 tbsp kosher salt, 1 tsp pepper, 3-4 lb chuck roast
- In an 8-quart Dutch oven, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the diced onion, celery, and carrot. Sauté until soft and beginning to brown on the bottom of the Dutch oven, 6-8 minutes. Add the tomato paste and cook until the paste forms a caramelized layer on the dutch oven, 3 minutes. Add the red wine, beef stock, and Worcestershire sauce.2 tbsp butter, 1 cup diced onion, 1 cup diced celery, 1 cup diced carrot, 2 tbsp tomato paste, 1 cup red wine, 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce, 3 cup beef stock
- Place the prepared chuck roast in the middle of the liquid in the Dutch oven. Cover with the lid and roast in the preheated oven. The roast will take approximately 1 hour per pound of meat.
- Once the roast is nearing the fall-apart tender stage with about 1 hour remaining in roasting time, remove ¼ cup of the drippings and add the prepared carrots and potatoes. Then continue to roast until the carrots and potatoes are tender, about 1 hour.1 ½ lb small baking potatoes, 2 lb carrots
- Remove the pan from the oven and remove the roast, carrots, and potatoes, leaving the sauce and drippings in the pan. Set the pan over medium heat. Whisk the cornstarch into the reserved cooled drippings. Stir this cornstarch slurry into the hot drippings and stir until slightly thickened like gravy. Serve with the roast and vegetables.1 tbsp cornstarch
I made your pot roast tonight and boy was it a hit!!! OMG so flavorful and it just shredded so nicely. The carrots and potatoes were divine with it, thank you for giving me such a delicious recipe I so ❤️U!!
Never liked pot roast, until I tried this recipe. The flavor is amazing!
Definitely a keeper! I enjoy following you on FB and YouTube. I’ve tried your beef bourguignon last winter and then prepared it with lamb for some friends who don’t eat beef. Fantastic! I, too grew up in Iowa, and share a lot of the same memories of cooking and preserving food with my mom, my aunt and my sister. Dad was the gardener and kept me and my four siblings busy.
Really enjoyed the pot roast. So easy to prepare and delicious. Easy clean up, too. Thanks!
My husband is the pot roast cook. I gave him your recipe to try – he loved it & so did I. Excellent flavor. I believe it is a keeper.
Thank you
My new go to pot roast recipe! This was incredibly easy and came out fantastic! I love how you don’t have to brown the meat which always takes quite a bit of time and is so messy. Leaving the lid off in the final half hour gave the meat a better crust than if you brown it. The Worcestershire is a great enhancement too!!
I so enjoy watching your videos…you’re so talented in so many areas.
Thank you so much
Sandra
Now a grandmother, I have made many great pot roasts in my cooking life but this is our new favorite. I had questioned why the tiny chopped vegetables at the start (in addition to the traditional larger vegs) but I learned it made the au jus very flavorful, thick, as well as healthy. I only use half the wine as our cabernet is strong. I have made this 4 or 5 times and its always fabulous. I enjoy all Wyse videos and all his recipes I tried are excellent. He is not a food snob and his simple ingredients make sense.
I love this recipe in fall and winter. When they’re aren’t many leftovers I make more gravy from beef stock and water used to cook more carrots, celery in 1″ chunks, 1/2 a diced onion and add in some peas or green beans. I serve it over a mound of buttery mashed potatoes or egg noodles.
The leftovers are also a great base for a tasty soup, basically using up the little bits saved in the fridge and a handful or two of pasta, adjust the seasonings and enjoy with a grilled cheese sandwich on a busy night.
I really enjoy your presentations, they instill so much self-confidence to try almost anything without a worry. Thank you, you’re great at what you do.
Exactly what my Missouri mother would make every Sunday — it would be ready when we returned from Church services. Mother’s was almost exactly like yours. The only differences – With a paring knife she would make slits in the roast and stuff those cuts with slices of garlic, then she would sear all sides of the roast in a little bacon grease. 😉 Thank you for sharing this recipe!
BTW …. I made your delicious apple crisp yesterday. It is a winner here and it’ going into my “favorites” recipe file.
I truly enjoy watching your videos, seeing you and your family and trying your recipes.
Thank you!
Wow! I’ve been make pot roast all my life and followed this recipe to the letter. It puts mine to shame! The secret must be caramelizing the tomato paste. It’s very good!
Best pot roast I ever made. My family loved it and had 3rd’s which is high praise. Thx for sharing! Love your content!
My husband loves pot roast and I made a passable one but I just made yours tonight and it was a huge hit. I do not like cooked carrots but ate these. Can’t wait to try the roast chicken. Made cheesy herb bread to go with it. Cheesecake for dessert. Bless you. I just discovered your post a few days ago.
Excellent! I used an almost 4 lb. chuck roast, and followed your directions exactly. I did add some Italian seasoning to the step using the tomato paste. No further additions or changes. The meat was wonderfully seasoned and extremely tender. That gravy was off the charts delicious! It was a comfort food meal at its best!