Best Ever Instant Pot Pot Roast is a classic comfort meal. The savory gravy drizzled over the fall apart meat and perfectly cooked veggies (no mushy veggies here!) will be a new family favorite meal!
Best Ever Instant Pot Pot Roast
This is a recipe that has been needed on my site for some time. Somehow today in between the internet repairman, nap time and playing outside, I finally got around to photographing this recipe so I could get this post written and published!
The Instant Pot (or electric pressure cooker) is totally my jam because I don’t have to be thinking about dinner when I am eating breakfast. 😉 Making a pot roast in the crockpot is an all day affair which begins with browning it .2 seconds after you peel your eyelids open for the day.
Bleh.
I am not a morning person, if you didn’t know. 😉 I tossed this pot roast in at about 1:30 and by 4:00 I was photographing, drooling and feeding my 1 year old pieces of the meat faster than imaginable.
The best part? The veggies aren’t mush. There is a little extra step which may take a few more minutes, but 100% worth it in my book.
Pot Roast With Veggies
The secret to cooking those veggies without getting them mushy? Cook them separately. I know, I know. With the Instant Pot we want to throw everything in and press a button. The cook times vary SO greatly between the roast and the veggies, though, that cooking them all together just isn’t a good idea.
So, cook the roast first. Pull the roast out and cover with foil and let it rest (this makes it even more tender). Then pop the prepped veggies in your steamer basket into the Instant Pot with the hot broth and liquid and pressure cook for an additional 4 minutes.
Because the liquid is already hot and boiling in there, the pot will come to pressure in no time! You can quick release with the veggies and because they are in our handy steamer basket, they can be pulled out easily!
Then, thicken that gravy. Boom, done!
How to Cook a Roast in the Instant Pot
Here are a list of tips to help you be successful with cooking a roast in your Instant Pot!
- Brown the roast before pressure cooking. You can brown the roast right in the Instant Pot on the Sauté MORE setting. Wait until the display reads HOT before adding some butter and then the roast. Brown on all sides, the roast is ready to flip when it is no longer sticking to the pot.
- Deglaze the pot with broth before pressure cooking. This means to pour liquid into the pot and scrape the bottom so there aren’t any stuck on bits of food.
- Pressure Cook on HIGH (either using the Manual or Pressure Cook button). For 3 lb roasts, pressure cook for 100 minutes. This is fall apart, melt in your mouth tender. If you need to use a bigger roast than that, I would suggest cutting the roast in half and then following the same cook time.
- For frozen roasts, add 20 minus to the cook time.
- Always, always allow for at least a 15 minute NPR. The longer the better though.
- Pull the roast out, cover with foil or place in another pot with a lid and let it rest.
- Cook the veggies in the broth- red potatoes halved and then each half quartered along with baby carrots. Cook on high pressure for 5 minutes with a quick release
- Turn the Instant Pot onto Saute and thicken gravy with a corn starch slurry.
I love serving this Pot Roast alongside my Honey Lime Fruit Salad, and homemade French Bread.
I hope you love this meal as much as me and my neighbors did!! Yes, this made so much I called my friend, Katie, and told her we were coming over for dinner.. and I was bringing the food! 😉
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Looking for more Instant Pot Recipes?
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Fresh Fruit and Cheesecake Fruit Dip
Best Ever Instant Pot Pot Roast
Ingredients
- 3 lb chuck roast
- 2 tbs butter
- 32 oz beef broth
- 1 cup crushed tomatoes
- 1 packet onion soup mix
- 1 packet au jus seasoning/gravy mix
- 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tsp parsley dried
- 2 lb red potatoes
- 2 cups baby carrots
- cornstarch for a thickening slurry
Instructions
- Turn the Instant Pot onto Saute MORE (or HIGH depending on your Instant Pot). Wait until the display reads HOT.
- While waiting for the Instant Pot to preheat, season all sides of the roast with salt and pepper, if desired.
- When the display reads HOT, add the butter. Proceed to brown each side of the roast. You'll know it is time to flip when the roast no longer sticks to the bottom of the pot.
- Remove the browned roast and set aside.
- Pour the broth into the pot and scrape the bottom until it is clean.
- Add the crushed tomatoes, onion mix, au jus mix, Worcestershire sauce and parsley to the pot. Add the roast back into the pot.
- Cook on Manual HIGH for 100 minutes with a 15 minute NPR before manually releasing the pressure.
- While the Instant Pot is naturally releasing it's pressure, wash and prep the veggies. I like to cut the potatoes in half, and then cut each half into four pieces. Place in your steamer basket.
- After the roast is finished, carefully remove the roast and place on a plate, cover with foil and rest.
- Place the steamer basket into the Instant Pot and cook on Manual HIGH for 4 minutes, quick release the pressure.
- Remove the veggies. Turn the Instant Pot onto Saute.
- Thicken the gravy with a corn starch slurry until it has reached your desired thickness.
- Roughly break up the meat, serve alongside the veggies with gravy drizzled on top.
Nutrition
Best Ever Instant Pot Pot Roast
Best Ever Instant Pot Pot Roast is a classic comfort meal. The savory gravy drizzled over the fall apart meat and perfectly cooked veggies (no mushy veggies here!) will be a new family favorite meal! Ingredients
- 3 lb chuck roast
- 2 tbs butter
- 32 oz beef broth
- 1 cup crushed tomatoes
- 1 packet onion soup mix
- 1 packet au jus seasoning/gravy mix
- 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tsp parsley dried
- 2 lb red potatoes
- 2 cups baby carrots
- cornstarch for a thickening slurry
Instructions
- Turn the Instant Pot onto Saute MORE (or HIGH depending on your Instant Pot). Wait until the display reads HOT.
- While waiting for the Instant Pot to preheat, season all sides of the roast with salt and pepper, if desired.
- When the display reads HOT, add the butter. Proceed to brown each side of the roast. You’ll know it is time to flip when the roast no longer sticks to the bottom of the pot.
- Remove the browned roast and set aside.
- Pour the broth into the pot and scrape the bottom until it is clean.
- Add the crushed tomatoes, onion mix, au jus mix, Worcestershire sauce and parsley to the pot. Add the roast back into the pot.
- Cook on Manual HIGH for 100 minutes with a 15 minute NPR before manually releasing the pressure.
- While the Instant Pot is naturally releasing it’s pressure, wash and prep the veggies. I like to cut the potatoes in half, and then cut each half into four pieces. Place in your steamer basket.
- After the roast is finished, carefully remove the roast and place on a plate, cover with foil and rest.
- Place the steamer basket into the Instant Pot and cook on Manual HIGH for 4 minutes, quick release the pressure.
- Remove the veggies. Turn the Instant Pot onto Saute.
- Thicken the gravy with a corn starch slurry until it has reached your desired thickness.
- Roughly break up the meat, serve alongside the veggies with gravy drizzled on top.
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Becky says
Sooooooo good! I made this with a venison roast. Normally I don’t like to make venison roasts because they turn out tough and I can’t stand to eat them. But this turned out so tender and juicy I wanted it all! Love the flavor combinations. And the veggies… to die for!! Thanks Karli!
Karli Bitner says
I am so happy to hear this!! I am glad you loved it! 🙂
Vicki Jones says
If I am only doing a 2# roast, do I need to alter the ingredients and cook time? And are the crushed tomatoes fresh or canned?
Karli Bitner says
I use canned crushed tomatoes, and no need to alter the cook time or other ingredients. Hope you enjoy!
Susan Gebauer says
Can you make the roast with out the tomatoes my family does not care for tomatoes.
Karli Bitner says
Sure, you can omit the tomatoes if you’d like.
McCall Oviatt says
The best pot roast ever! I’m finally trying out my Instant Pot and I’m excited to try more of your recipes. This was a huge Sunday dinner hit!
Karli Bitner says
Yay! I am so happy to hear this, McCall!! Welcome to the world of Instant Pots, you are going to love it. 🙂
Deborah Berry says
Hi Karli!
Love this recipe! Just wondering if can you do this with a frozen roast?
Karli Bitner says
I’m glad you like the recipe Deborah. I would thaw out the pot roast. The cook time might not work out for a frozen roast. Keep on cooking!
Diane says
Love it! Tried others this is the one I will now always go to. I did not use onion soup mix, I added a large onion, no tomatoes. Fantastic, and lots of leftovers and a delicious gravy. Thx for sharing
Karli Bitner says
I am so glad you enjoyed this recipe so much, Diane! Thanks for the comment and stars. 🙂