Easy Dutch Oven Pot Roast with Beef Gravy Recipe (2024)

FAQs

Should pot roast be submerged in liquid in Dutch oven? ›

One of the best is that there's no need to fully submerge the roast in the cooking liquid. Pot roast is prepared using a braising method, which involves slow-cooking meat in a liquid such as stock or red wine.

Undercooked pot roast will be tough and chewy. If you're using tougher or bigger cuts of beef (other than a chuck roast), you may need to increase the cooking time to give the meat fibers plenty of time to break down and become tender and juicy.

My first choice for a beef roast is a top-round roast (also known as inside round). If you can't find one where you are, other good options are top sirloin roast, bottom round roast, or eye of round roast.

A pot roast only needs a small amount of liquid added to the pot, especially if you are using a slow cooker or instant pot with a tight lid that doesn't allow for evaporation. After you sear the meat to brown it, the modest amount of liquid used to deglaze the pot will likely be just enough for the braise.

1. **Vegetables on the Bottom:** Placing vegetables on the bottom of the crock-pot allows them to cook directly in the flavorful juices released by the meat as it cooks. This can result in very tender and flavorful vegetables, but they may become quite soft or even mushy if cooked for a long time.

Add the carrots and potatoes to the pot when there's about an hour of cooking time left, turning the roast over when you do. To serve, spoon any excess fat off the surface and slice or shred the beef to serve with the veggies, drizzled with sauce.

Because a slow cooker cooks, well, slowly, it simply cannot achieve the same results as the dutch oven. Meats do not sear, meaning undeveloped flavors, and since starches and gelatins can not get hot enough to activate, you get thinner and less flavorful results.

Pot roast is prepared using a braising method, which involves slow-cooking meat in a liquid such as stock or red wine. If you add too much liquid, the meat might end up boiling instead of braising.

Browning adds more flavor to the gravy and gets rid of the raw flour taste. You're basically making a roux. We find that a flour-based gravy holds up better and reheats better later, which is why we tend to prefer using flour over cornstarch to make gravy unless we have a guest who is eating gluten-free.

If your gravy is on the skimpy side, you can thicken it quickly with flour or cornstarch. But don't add your thickener directly to the gravy, which will create lumps. Instead, try stirring in three or four tablespoons of flour or cornstarch into a small amount of cold water until you have a smooth paste.

Does gravy get thicker the longer you cook it? ›

If you've added too much liquid, you can try cooking it longer. Reducing the volume may be enough to thicken it up. However, if your gravy is thin and the seasoning is where you want it, cooking it down may make it too salty.

When roasting meat and poultry, set the oven temperature to 325°F (163°C) or higher. Explore the charts below to learn how to get great results every time you cook.

Go for the chuck

The most common beef used for stew is chuck steak, also known as gravy beef or braising steak. Beef chuck comes from the forequarter of the animal consisting of parts of the neck, shoulder blade and upper arm. It is easy to find and it's affordable, making it a great choice for your stew.

Remember to reduce the temperature after 20 minutes and deduct the 20 minutes from the total cooking time - leave the oven door open for a couple of minutes to help it cool down. There's no need to cover your beef while it cooks; you want to get a good crust on the outside and foil won't help with this.

Just remember there is no need to fully submerge your roast in liquid -- a little goes a long way to making a moist and fork-tender pot roast.

Put the roast in the pot; the water should come only about 1 inch up the sides of the meat.

To keep a pot roast from drying out, your slow cooker needs liquid to create a moist environment, and that can include meat or vegetable stock, wine or water. This doesn't mean the meat should be submerged; a cup or two of liquid will be enough, since the cooker is covered and liquids stay trapped inside.

Pot roast is prepared using a braising method, which involves slow-cooking meat in a liquid such as stock or red wine. If you add too much liquid, the meat might end up boiling instead of braising.