This slow cooker recipe for pot roast with onion soup mix is a great way to get tender roast beef on a weeknight after a long day.
This is my favorite way to prepare the ever popular Sunday dinner…pot roast. Slow cooking and onion soup mix creates a delicious fork-tender roast from an inexpensive cut of meat. Serve it up with a green salad and you have a great meal with little effort and almost zero minutes of prep.
Are you looking for great roast recipes? Try my Grandma’s Sunday Oven Pot Roast or my Slow Cooker Shredded Pork Roast for a Crowd OR even Guinness Beef Roast. When it comes to roast…I’ve got you covered!
INGREDIENTS FOR SLOW COOKER POT ROAST recipe:
- Dry Onion Soup Mix. The best thing is that you can use whatever packet of onion soup mix you prefer and you’ll still get a flavorful roast.
- Beef Roast. A chuck roast is an inexpensive cut of meat that becomes super tender and flavorful after hanging out in the CrockPot all day. Best of all, if you make a big one you will have yummy leftovers!
- Water. For extra flavor use beef broth instead of the 1/2 cup of water, if you have it.
- Cream of Mushroom soup. I like to make up a big batch of my Homemade Cream of Mushroom soup and use some for this recipe. But the red and white can works great!
- Carrots & red potatoes …optional. Use baby carrots to keep this easy and fast. Red potatoes are my favorite but my husband prefers golden potatoes. Both taste yummy if you feel like adding them.
How to make Slow Cooker Pot Roast:
- Heat oil in a hot skillet on medium-hight heat and place roast in when it is hot. Sear until the sides of the roast are nicely browned. Place the roast on a platter to wait.
- Mix cream of mushroom soup, water, and soup mix. Be sure to get the brown bits off the bottom of the pan…that adds great flavor.
- Pour mixture (only half!) into the bottom of the slow cooker.
- Place pot roast on top and pour the rest of the soup mixture on top of the roast.
- For 6 hours on the high setting or 8 hours on low heat.
- If desired, make a delicious gravy from the remaining broth.
Tips for Making Pot roast in the CrockPot:
For a bit of extra flavor try adding in:
- Worcestershire sauce. Just a bit goes a long way in adding depth of flavor. Try using about a tablespoon the first time.
- Garlic powder. I love adding a bit of garlic powder to the soup mixture to amp up the garlic flavor.
- Beef broth. Use part of a can of beef broth for the water for added flavor.
- Red wine. Or, a great substitute for the water is red wine. The alcohol helps break down the meat even better!
What order do the meat and veggies go into the CrockPot?
- Generally your root veggies like potatoes, onions, and carrots should go on the bottom of the slow cooker and the roast is put on top. This helps ensure your veggies don’t dry out and that they absorb the yummy flavor. However, sometimes they get mushy. If you don’t like that then place them on top of the roast and, half an hour or so before you serve, give them a bit of a stir to be sure they get coated in the liquid.
Do you have to brown a roast before putting it in the CrockPot?
- Yes, you really should brown your roast. It helps create flavor, speeds up the cooking time, and eliminates extra grease in your dish. It really is worth the extra five minutes it takes.
Should pot roast be covered with liquid in the slow cooker?
- It really doesn’t need to be. The little amount of liquid added will help to steam and moisten the roast. However, liquid is often used to help add flavor (imagine that roast being steamed with beef broth. Basically getting a beef broth infusion :)).
- To be sure your pot roast won’t dry out if it really is concerning you, use a turkey baster (or simply a spoon) to baste the cooking liquid on to the top of the pot roast about an hour before it’s done. Don’t be tempted to do this too often or you will slow the cooking time.
Do you need to stir food in a slow cooker?
- Nope. Nope. And nope. In fact, taking the lid off the slow cooker releases the heat and slows down the cooking process. Try to refrain from stirring until the end of the cooking time.
Got leftover Pot roast?
- Cut the leftover roast into smaller pieces and serve it over egg noodles for a beef stroganoff (sub the ground beef for the leftover beef).
- Roast beef sandwiches with mashed potatoes are always delicious!
- Make up a yummy shepherds pie (especially if you have leftover veg!)
- Vegetable Beef Soup is always perfect for using up leftovers.
The Slow Cooker Onion Soup Pot Roast Recipe
| 8 servings
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This recipe always results in tender and flavorful meat and heads to the CrockPot in minutes.
Ingredients
- 4 lb. beef roast usually chuck roast is used for pot roast
- 1 can cream of mushroom soup
- 1 pkg dry onion soup mix
- 1/2 cup water
- 6 small red potatoes scrubbed
- salt and pepper
- oil for frying
- Optional: onions or carrots. Slice and add in with the potatoes if you like.
Instructions
- Put the oil in a cast iron skillet, salt and pepper roast, and brown over medium heat, turning to brown all sides of roast.
- Remove roast to a platter and turn heat to low.
- In same skillet, mix together soup, dry onion soup mix, and water. Stir to mix and get browned bits off the bottom (this is the good stuff :)).
- Pour 1/2 mixture from skillet into the crockpot, then lay roast in.
- Pour remaining mixture from skillet over the top of roast.
- Arrange potatoes around the roast.
- Cover and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours or until roast falls apart and potatoes are tender.
Notes
Why do you take the extra step to brown the meat before it heads to the CrockPot?
– Searing gives a yummy caramelized flavor to the meat.
– Searing helps eliminate extra fats and grease from the meat.
– Searing helps speed up the cooking time. But…You don’t HAVE to sear your meat. Why don’t you try not searing one time and searing the next and see which you prefer?
– Searing gives a yummy caramelized flavor to the meat.
– Searing helps eliminate extra fats and grease from the meat.
– Searing helps speed up the cooking time. But…You don’t HAVE to sear your meat. Why don’t you try not searing one time and searing the next and see which you prefer?
Paulette advises:
“Recipe is easy to follow and is delish! I recommend adding the onions and carrots just because I love veggies. Makes a lot of gravy so some mashed potatoes might help use that up :)”.
Other easy crockpot recipes:
- Sweet & Spicy Crockpot Meatballs
- Crock Pot Strawberry Dump Cobbler
- Shredded Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches (Slow cooker recipe)
- 3 ingredient Slow Cooker Beef Brisket Recipe
- Slow Cooker Chocolate Stout Cake
- 17 Slow Cooker Desserts you NEED to try!
- the Easiest Sausage Queso Dip (slow-cooker)
- CrockPot Baked Beans (with bacon)
- easy Homemade Applesauce Recipe (stovetop, crockpot, instant pot recipes)
I’m so glad it worked out great!
I started making this for Easter dinner for my siblings and it was a hit! Used a red wine and broth mixture for the liquid.
Who doesn’t love a Pot Roast?! This one is fast and oh so tasty! Adding it to my list of great comfort food recipes!