This Instant Pot Pot Roast is a Sunday classic but it’s a great recipe for any day of the week! Thanks to the Instant Pot you can say goodbye to the 6-8 hour wait before enjoying your roast beef. This pressure cooker pot roast recipe is ready to devour in under 2 hours.
Pot Roast is the ultimate comfort food, am I right? No better way to end a long day than with a bowl of flavorful, juicy, tender meat and potatoes. From the beautiful cut of chuck roast, to the vegetables and fresh herbs, this pressure cooker pot roast is a melting pot of incredible aromas and bursts of flavor!
I enjoy creating Instant Pot recipes like this pot roast because I’m able to serve a variety of delicious home cooked meals in a fraction of the time and my family loves them! If you’re new to the Instant Pot world, check out my Instant Pot guide for all of the tips and tricks of the trade.
Why You’ll Love this Recipe
- Instant Pot meals mean less cook time, dishes and hassle. All you have to do is sear, stir, shred, and serve.
- This roast beef recipe serves 8! If you don’t have 8 mouths to feed, store it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
- Tender beef. The roast will literally fall apart once you take it out of the Instant Pot! It’s super tender and moist, and you’ll be very happy you used the Instant Pot for it.
Ingredients Used
- Chuck Roast: Cut your chuck roast into thirds so it lays in your Instant Pot with ease.
- Oil: I chose vegetable oil for this recipe but you can use olive oil, or any neutral oil will work.
- Spices: Dried rosemary and thyme, bay leaves, salt and pepper will add a wonderful flavor to the roast.
- Beef broth: The perfect base liquid to create a gravy that is packed with flavor. You can also use beef stock if you prefer.
- Tomato paste: The rich tomato flavor adds depth to the flavor profile of this pot roast.
- Worcestershire sauce: Worcestershire sauce adds a nice flare to most any beef dish with its deep umami flavor.
- Vegetables: I went with the traditional yellow onion, baby potatoes and carrots for this pot roast.
- Cornstarch: To make a slurry when the time comes to thicken your gravy.
What I used for my Pot Roast
6-Quart Instant Pot: The 6-quart Instant Pot is the perfect size for a wide variety of recipes.
Complete list of ingredients and amounts can be found in the recipe card below.
How to Make Instant Pot Pot Roast
Follow these steps for the best pressure cooker Pot Roast in under 2 hours:
- Cut beef. First, cut your beef into 3 equal portions.
- Season beef. Then, season your chuck with salt and pepper. Don’t be shy, use your hands to rub it in. This will add a little extra flavor to your roast.
- Sear meat. After setting your Instant Pot to the SAUTE setting, add cooking oil to the pot and sear your roast on all sides.
- Saute onions. After searing, remove your beef from the pot and add the diced onion. Saute until translucent.
- Deglaze. A very important step. You want to deglaze your pot with beef stock to lift all of those delicious little browned bits from the bottom of the pot.
- Add some flavor. Add your tomato paste, worcestershire sauce, rosemary, thyme and bay leaves. Give it a good stir then add the chuck back to your pot.
- Pressure cook roast. Secure the lid and make sure the vent is set to the SEALING position. Pressure cook on high for 60 minutes, when the cook time is done quickly release the steam.
- Add the vegetables. Remove the lid, then add your potatoes and carrots. Pressure cook on high for an additional 10 minutes, then let the steam release naturally for 10 more minutes.
- Shred the roast. Remove the beef and vegetables from the Instant Pot. Shred the beef with two forks.
- Thicken the sauce. Make a cornstarch slurry and whisk it into the beef broth to create a luscious gravy.
Tip!
Make your roast beef the day before serving it! I enjoy eating my pot roast on day 2 because the flavors have had time to marry and create a richer flavor. It also gives the fats a chance to congeal and float to the top, so you can easily remove the excess fat before serving, making the meal a bit healthier!
Tips and Tricks
The beauty of pot roast is how easily it comes together. If you’re looking for a few tips, try:
- Don’t have an Instant Pot? Make this recipe in your slow cooker. It will take several hours longer but the flavor will be worth the wait. Be sure to sear your beef on the stove before adding all of your ingredients to your slow cooker. You could also make your pot roast in a dutch oven!
- Hungry for pot roast but want to spice things up a bit? Try this Mississippi Pot Roast recipe instead!
Frequently Asked Questions
You want to pressure cook the beef for an hour before adding the vegetables because the meat takes longer to cook and become tender. The potatoes and carrots will become tender much quicker.
Yes, beef and stock are interchangeable but stock is a bit richer in texture. In order to achieve the most flavorful gravy stick to beef stock.
You can easily make this recipe in a crock pot. It will take 6-8 hours, depending on if you cook it low and slow or on higher heat.
What to Serve with this Instant Pot Pot Roast
Given the fact that this pot roast is rather hearty, I would pair it with a light salad! This simple tossed green salad would be the perfect appetizer.
You could also serve with a side of steamed broccoli to add a little color. Crunchy broccoli will contrast nicely with the tender meat!
You might also consider serving your roast beef over a bed of creamy mashed potatoes to help soak up all that gravy, or you could use a good crusty bread! Pick up your favorite baguette at the store or make a loaf of homemade no-knead bread.
How to Store
Store your leftover pot roast in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. You could also freeze your pot roast and reheat it later!
Instant Pot Beef Recipes
All Instant Pot Recipes ➜
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Instant Pot Pot Roast
Equipment
Ingredients
- 3-4 pound chuck roast excess fat trimmed
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil or olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion diced
- 2 cups beef broth or beef stock
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 pound baby potatoes halved
- 3 large carrots peeled and cut into thick chunks
For the corn starch slurry:
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch mixed with 3 tablespoons of cold water
Instructions
- Cut the beef into 3 (1lb) portions.
- Season the beef with salt and pepper.
- Set the Instant Pot at SAUTE setting, when the message HOT is displayed. Add the oil, and sear the roast on all sides (2-3 minutes per side).
- Remove the roast from the pot, and add the onion. Cook until it’s translucent.
- Deglaze the pot with beef stock, and scrape off any bits stuck to the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon. Switch off the SAUTE setting.
- Add the tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, rosemary, thyme and bay leaves. Give everything a quick stir, and add the roast back in.
- Secure the lid and set the vent to SEALING. Select the PRESSURE COOK/MANUAL setting and set the cooking time for 60 minutes at high pressure. The Instant Pot will take around 7-8 minutes to come to pressure and start cooking. When the cooking program ends, quickly release the steam.
- Remove the lid, add the potatoes and the carrots, secure the lid and set the vent to SEALING. Select the PRESSURE COOK/MANUAL setting and set the cooking time for 10 minutes at high pressure. When time is up, naturally release the steam for 10 minutes, then quickly release the rest of the steam.
- Remove beef and veggies on a serving platter, shred the beef and thicken the sauce.
- To thicken the sauce, switch on the SAUTE setting. Add the corn starch slurry and whisk until thickened.
- Spoon the gravy over the beef. Garnish with chopped parsley leaves. Serve with crusty bread.
Notes:
- Choose fresh marbled beef for the best flavor.
- When cutting the chuck roast into portions, cut into even size pieces against the grain to shorten the fibers as this will help to make the beef more tender, and easier to shred when cooked.
- Store the leftovers in the fridge in a sealed container for up to 4 days, or freeze for up to a month.
Nutrition Information
This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.
© Little Sunny Kitchen
Carol says
Absolute best pot roast recipe ever!! I used a 3 lb round roast and it came out perfectly!!