This easy Instant Pot Pot Roast recipe with vegetables and a luscious, flavorful gravy is the ultimate comfort food. Incredibly tender, melt-in-your-mouth pot roast is possible in far less time with the help of your pressure cooker.
We also love my Instant Pot Ranch Chicken for a cozy one pot meal!
When you don’t have the time to cook a classic Dutch Oven Pot Roast, your Instant Pot is the solution!
My ultimate goal with this recipe was to create an Instant Pot Pot Roast that is fast, easy and flavorful. I’m thrilled with the result and so happy to be sharing it with you today.
There are important tips and tricks in this recipe that set it apart from other pressure cooker pot roast recipes. This post includes all the details you need for a perfect result.
Table of contents
Why This Recipe Works
- Simple Ingredients – It calls for common, easy to stock ingredients
- Flavor! – A delicious seasoning blend creates the perfect, old-fashioned pot roast flavor.
- Fast – The Instant Pot comes to pressure and releases pressure only one time, saving precious time.
Many of us grew up eating our mom’s or grandma’s pot roast for Sunday dinner and it is truly a comfort food classic. Most of those old recipes were cooked on the stove, in the oven and sometimes both. With the pressure cooking method, you can reach that same tender result in a fraction of the time.
How Long Do You Cook Pot Roast in an Instant Pot?
No more having to start a meal like this in the early afternoon. With the help of your Instant Pot you can have perfectly tender pot roast on your table in just over an hour.
To speed the cooking process along even more, you can cut the chuck roast into chunks so that it cooks in one 35 minute cycle with the vegetables. This is about half the time it can take to cook a whole roast.
Ingredient Notes
- Boneless beef chuck roast – See below for detailed information on which cut is best for pot roast.
- Pot roast seasoning mix – An assortment of commonly stocked dried herbs and spices creates amazing flavor.
- Veggies – Look for substantial carrots and cut them into large 2- to 3-inch pieces. I like to use a combination of baby gold and red potatoes. You’ll also need a yellow onion and some minced garlic.
- Tomato paste – Adds richness to the amazing gravy.
- Red wine – A medium to full-bodied red wine, like Cabernet, Zinfandel, or Merlot, is the best choice.
- Low-sodium beef broth – Always go with low-sodium and season with additional salt only if needed.
- Worcestershire sauce – One of the best flavor boosters!
- Cornstarch – For thickening the gravy.
- Olive oil
How Do You Add Flavor to Pot Roast?
A delicious mixture of dried herbs and spices adds a TON of flavor to the chuck roast and the gravy. This is the key to flavor and one of the things that sets this recipe apart from others. Many other pot roast recipes are under seasoned resulting in a bland, flavorless roast.
The amounts called for in the recipe will make exactly the amount of seasoning needed. It can be mixed up in advance and stored in an airtight container to save time.
What is the Best Cut of Beef for Pot Roast?
Chuck roast is the most common cut of beef used to make pot roast. Chuck is from the front part of the animal and the different cuts will be labeled as blade, boneless cross rib, top blade, bottom blade, and shoulder. And, there can even be different names for the same cut from store to store. I know how confusing this can be! Certified Angus Beef has detailed information on the specific cuts of beef that are best for braising.
Here are the details on my favorite cuts to use for pot roast.
Boneless Chuck Cross Rib Roast
I love the boneless chuck cross rib roast (the cut pictured above) which is sometimes labeled as a shoulder roast. This is a leaner cut of chuck and it requires less trimming. Using a leaner cut means the drippings will be less greasy and you’ll end up with a clean and luscious gravy for your Instant Pot chuck roast.
Boneless Chuck Pot Roast
A traditional chuck pot roast is a rectangular, highly marbled cut that’s easy to find at most grocery stores. Nothing rivals a chuck pot roast in terms of a tender result, but it has quite a bit of fat and requires more trimming. As an example, we used a chuck pot roast in the video for this recipe so take a look at the recipe card below to see it in action.
Cutting the chuck roast into chunks allows you to cover more surface area of the meat with the seasoning mix which means more flavor. It also gives you the opportunity to more effectively trim the fat which will yield a better gravy.
How to Make Instant Pot Pot Roast
Prep the Roast
- Using a sharp knife, cut the roast into 4 to 6 chunks. How many chunks will depend on the size of your roast. If you are using a highly marbled cut of chuck, cut it at the seams where you see veins of fat running through it. Trim and discard the fat from the edges of each piece. There will be small fat deposits left, but if you start with a 4 pound highly marbled piece of chuck, you could end up trimming as much as ½ pound of fat.
- Sprinkle the seasoning mix over the chunks of beef and use your hands to press it into the surface of the meat. I like to do this on a foil lined board for easy cleanup.
Cook the Chuck Roast and Vegetables
- Use the sauté function on your Instant Pot to sear the seasoned beef chunks in a little olive oil in batches. Set the seared beef aside and sauté the diced onion and garlic. Add the tomato paste, a little red wine, beef broth, and Worcestershire sauce. Flavor baby! Return the seared chunks of beef to the pot and tuck them down into the cooking liquid.
- Next, layer the carrots and potatoes on top of the meat so they’re slightly above the level of the liquid. Secure the lid and cook the pot roast on high pressure for 35 minutes. When done, allow the Instant Pot to do a natural release of pressure for 10 minutes and then manually release any remaining pressure.
Because the beef has been cut down and will cook much faster, you can add the carrots and potatoes at the beginning of the cooking process. This means the pot only needs to come to pressure and release pressure once and saves you about 15 to 20 minutes.
How Much Liquid Should I Use?
In a 6-quart Instant Pot, it takes about 2 ½ cups of liquid to rise just to the top of the chunks of beef. The chuck roast needs to be completely submerged in the liquid to cook properly. To ensure that the carrots and potatoes don’t get mushy, they should rest on top of the chunks of beef.
How to Make the Best Pot Roast Gravy
- After removing the pot roast and vegetables from the Instant Pot, set it to sauté and add ½ cup of water to the concentrated cooking liquid in the bottom of the pot. Taste and if needed, add additional water to dilute as desired.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the water and cornstarch and whisk the slurry into the cooking liquid. Then, simmer the gravy for about 5 minutes, or until it is thickened to your liking.
Pro Tip
If the gravy is not as thick as you’d like after simmering, mix together an additional 1 tablespoon water with 1 tablespoon cornstarch and whisk it in to the gravy to thicken it further.
Serving Suggestions
Use two forks to shred or separate the cooked chuck roast into large chunks and place it on a serving platter with the carrots and potatoes. Serve it with the gravy and a warmed loaf of crusty French bread for dipping.
Now, go forth and eat pot roast! If you try this recipe I’d love to hear how it worked out for you in the comments section below.
More Instant Pot Recipes You’ll Love
- Instant Pot Beef Stew
- Instant Pot Ranch Chicken
- Chili in the Instant Pot
- Instant Pot Rotisserie Chicken
- Pressure Cooker Baked Potato Soup
- Instant Pot Mexican Casserole
Check out my entire collection of Instant Pot Recipes.
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Instant Pot Pot Roast
Video
Ingredients
For the Pot Roast
- 3 ½ to 4 pound boneless beef chuck roast
- 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 1 cup diced onion
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- ½ cup medium to full-bodied red wine , like Cabernet, Zinfandel, or Merlot
- 2 cups low-sodium beef broth
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 4 carrots, peeled and cut into large 2- to 3-inch chunks
- 1 ½ pounds whole baby potatoes
For the Pot Roast Seasoning Mix
- 1 ½ teaspoons sea salt
- 1 ½ teaspoons dried crushed rosemary
- 1 ½ teaspoons dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon granulated garlic or garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon paprika
For the Gravy
- ½ cup water, or as needed
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch, or as needed
- 2 tablespoons cold water, for the cornstarch slurry
Instructions
- Cut the chuck roast into 4 to 6 chunks, separating at the seams to expose the fat deposits (if using a highly marbled chuck roast). Use a sharp knife to trim as much of the fat as possible from the chunks of roast. It's fine if some fat remains but trim as much as you can to ensure that your gravy will not be overly greasy. Place the trimmed chunks of roast on a large piece of foil and blot dry with paper towels.
- Combine the seasoning mix ingredients in a small bowl. Sprinkle the rub over the pieces of beef and use your hands to press the seasoning into the meat. Wash those hands!
- Press the SAUTÉ key on the instant pot and the ADJUST key to toggle to the MORE setting. Wait for the pot to say “HOT” before adding ingredients.
- Add 2 tablespoons olive oil to the heated pot. Add half of the seasoned beef (or as much as will fit comfortably without being too crowded) and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes per side, or until nicely seared. Transfer seared beef to a plate and repeat with remaining 1 tablespoon oil and the rest of the beef. Transfer second batch of beef to the plate and set aside.
- Press CANCEL and then select SAUTÉ again and ADJUST to the REGULAR setting. Add the onions and garlic to the pot and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes or until tender. Add the tomato paste and cook, stirring to scrape up any browned bits from the bottom. Add the red wine, broth, and Worcestershire sauce. Nestle the chunks of browned beef down into the sauce and then top with the carrots and potatoes. Don’t stir. You want the meat submerged in liquid and the carrots and potatoes on top.
- Place the lid on the Instant Pot. Press the MANUAL button, select HIGH, and set the time to 35 minutes (making sure the steam release handle is in the “Sealing” position). After the cooking is complete allow the Instant Pot to do a natural release for 10 minutes then use a long handled spoon to push the steam release handle to the “Venting” position to allow any remaining steam to release completely before you open the pot. Press CANCEL.
- Transfer the carrots and potatoes to a serving dish and tent with foil to keep warm. Transfer the beef to a cutting board and let it rest while you make the gravy.
For the Gravy
- Press SAUTÉ and ADJUST to select the LOW setting Stir ½ cup water to the concentrated cooking liquid in the Instant Pot to dilute it a bit. Taste and if needed, add additional water to dilute as desired. In a small bowl whisk together 2 tablespoons cold water and 2 tablespoons cornstarch. Whisk the mixture into the Instant Pot and simmer for about 5 minutes or until the gravy has thickened to your liking, stirring occasionally. Press CANCEL and unplug the Instant Pot. Transfer the gravy to a gravy boat.
For Serving
- Shred or chunk the chuck roast and serve with the potatoes, carrots, and plenty of gravy!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated using generic ingredients, and is an estimate not a guarantee. For more accurate results, please refer to the labels on your ingredients at home.
Instant Pot Recipes
I made this with a very small piece of chuck roast (1.6 pounds!) I seasoned, sauteed then put it in the pot with the vegetables and let it cook for 25 minutes under high pressure. It was delicious! Thank you for this recipe and I’ll surely make it again.
Meh. Flavor was great and carrots and potatoes were perfectly cooked, but the meat was so dry! If I make this again I’ll cook it for 30 min instead of 35.
I can’t believe how tender this roast turned out!! My family loved it and I was super impressed at how quickly it cooked. Super yummy and tender. Thank you for this recipe!
Was delicious according to my significant other. I don’t know because I’m vegan. It just sounded good, something I remember my mom making in her pressure cooker every Sunday. Was my favorite meal.
Knowing full well going into it that instant pot recipes are never as good as the “real thing” I still have several complaints:
First and foremost, please change the “total time”. By your own math, the stated 50 minutes is significantly low… “brown on all sides” in 2 batches equals 16 minutes (4 sides each times 2 minutes each, times 2 batches equals 16) then the actual pressure cooking time is 35 minutes) so the time it takes just to brown and pressure cook the meat is 51 minutes. Add to that the 10 minutes to release the pressure (61 minutes) plus the 10 minutes it takes to thicken the gravy (71 minutes) plus the 20 minutes it takes for the instant pot to warm up to sauté and build up pressure (91 minutes) plus the 20 minutes of pre time to get your mise en place ready (111 minutes) means this takes more than double the stated time. For me, it actually took nearly 2.5 hours – which is only an hour and a half less than what it takes me to cook the real thing. I never would have taken this on knowing the time required.
Second, the meat was not as tender as I expected. I followed down the recipe to the letter – my Chuck roast was 4.01 lbs and I cut it into 6 pieces, and they were still a bit tough. As long as it took to make, I would’ve added the 5 or 10 extra minutes required to get tender meat.
Third – the flavor just wasn’t there. At least 1/2 to 1 tsp more salt, and probably another 1/4 tsp of all the other dried herbs/spices would be needed.
Forth – somehow the wine never tasted like it fully burned off. With the Worcester sauce and the salt and the pressure the meat should already have enough to tenderize it so I don’t even know why the wine is necessary.
To summarize, The end result was a resounding “meh” and not worth the effort. I will stick to my traditional pot roast as it doesn’t take that much more time, requires no additional cleanup (it’s all done in a Dutch oven) and tastes much better.
I’m sorry it didn’t work out for you, Tim. The time for IP’s to come to pressure, etc., can vary and is not included in the total time. This is mentioned in the Notes section of the recipe card. However, even when taking that into consideration, 2.5 hours is much longer than it should take. Many of the times you stated are much longer than what I would recommend, for example, only sauté the meat until it is browned, it should not be cooked through at this point. As far as the flavor, this recipe contains a good amount of seasoning but you can always add more salt, to taste, as written. The wine is not added to tenderize the meat but instead, adds great depth of flavor to the gravy.
Thanks Valerie. As you note, the seasoning can easily be adjusted, I think I was tired & frustrated when I wrote the review and nit picking. Had this recipe taken an hour, I would’ve given it 4 stars because the outcome would’ve been well worth the effort. But putting in all that time I expected a more flavorful outcome. Not to argue, but browning meat for 2 min a side does not cook it through – 2 min per side is really the minimum needed to get a solid brown on it. But regardless, thanks for your recipe and I’m glad it works out well for so many people.
Thanks, Tim.
Extraordinarily easy – and beyond delicious. I used Merlot for the wine and “Beef Beyond Bouillon” for the stock.. Added some celery with the onions, did not add potatoes. Cooked a 2.5lb flat Chuck roast for 45 minutes with a 10 min rest before releasing. Added some half and half to the gravy. This is now my go to recipe when a bit of comfort is needed for dinner!
This was the best pot roast I have EVER made! Tender and flavorful!
Everything looks delicious even your pepper soup pot roast and also thanks for some shortcuts I can’t wait to taste it thank you for sharing I can’t stand the ads cut you right out
This is delicious! I made this with a 2.5 lb roast and adjusted the cook time to 30 minutes. It turned out great – meat was tender and flavorful, and the potatoes and carrots were perfectly soft. However, I agree with a previous commenter that the stated total cook time is way off. Personally, this took me around two hours start to finish. No clue how others are able to do it in half the time.
I will 5 star any recipe my picky eater tells me to make again. In fact, she told me this is something I should make twice a week! I had a 2lb center roast, small red potatoes, baby carrots and reduced my cooking time to 30 minutes. My InstantPot took 15 minutes to come to pressure and dinner was ready in an hour.
Adding to my recipe rotation!
I just made this for the second time with a few tweaks to make sure it wasn’t a fluke. Still fabulous! I actually prepared the meat the day before to allow the flavors to meld overnight. I roasted the potatoes and carrots. They dry rub makes such a difference. This is now in my permanent recipe rotation.
Great recipe, pot roast was tender and delicious. I started with a 2lb hunk of beef (that my grocer labeled “pot roast”). Instead of wine, I used a 6oz apple juice (happened to have a juice box in my pantry). I was nervous that the result would be too sweet/appley but it was not-it was DELICIOUS, my kids ate it up and they are picky about red meat-if it is too hard to chew they won’t eat it. Also, I didn’t have to help them cut it, it fell apart with their forks and butter knives. I will always cut up pot roast and season all sides from now on-why didn’t I do this sooner? It took me about an hour to make, start to finish. I followed the 35 min cook time even though I had a smaller roast. This recipe was a home run in our house, I’ll definitely make it again and again. I printed the recipe, put it in a page protector, and stuck it in the “go to” recipe drawer.
It’s good to know that apple juice was a good sub for the wine. Thanks so much for your comment, Christine. I think it will be helpful to others!