This Southern Pot Roast is the coziest one pot dinner. It is loaded with fresh herbs, garlic, red wine, potatoes, carrots, onion, celery, and whole mushrooms. It is all slow cooked to perfection in a dutch oven creating the best pan sauce. You can turn the cooked potatoes into a white cheddar mash or serve them as is. Regardless, there is plenty of red wine leftover for drinking!
If you are looking for more chuck roast recipes, try my Easy Dutch Oven Beef Stew, Old Fashioned Slow Cooker Pot Roast, or Instant Pot Shredded Beef.
Looking for some sides to serve with pot roast? Check out these 50 Sides for Pot Roast!
If you love roast, my Dutch oven Red Wine Short Ribs are an even more decadent dinner with all the same flavors.
Jump to:
Highlights
- Cozy winter one pot dinner
- Tons of fresh herbs
- Red wine pan sauce
- Tender and juicy roast
- Perfectly cooked carrots, celery, & potatoes
- Optional white cheddar mashed potatoes
- Hands off recipe
Ingredients
Pot Roast
White Cheddar Mashed Potatoes
- Dry Red Wine: I like to use a dry Pinot Noir. Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, or Syrah work as well. I recommend using what you like to drink!
- Fresh Herbs: I highly recommend using fresh herbs if you can. However, dried herbs can be used as well. 1 Tablespoon of fresh herbs = 1 teaspoon of dried.
- Mushrooms: Swap for whole white mushrooms.
- Yellow Potatoes: If you can’t find super small or baby yellow potatoes. Slice regular yellow potatoes in half or into quarters.
- Cornstarch: I like my pan sauce to be pretty thin so I just add 2 tablespoons of cornstarch. If you prefer it thicker or want to make a gravy out of it add an additional 1-2 tablespoons. I recommend adding additional cornstarch 1 tablespoon at a time.
- Milk: I normally just use whatever I have on hand. Nonfat, 2%, whole milk, and half and half will all work.
Complete list of ingredients and amounts is located on the recipe card below.
Instructions
before you start . . .
- Press the garlic. This garlic press is the best!
- Wash & dry herbs. Be sure to pat dry all herbs before chopping.
- Wash & chop all of the vegetables. Be sure to cut the carrots, potatoes, and celery in uniform pieces so that they cook evenly.
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
Step 1: Heat the olive oil over medium high heat in an 8 quart ductch oven. While the oil heats, in a small bowl combine the salt, pepper, and sugar. Rub every side of the roast with the spice mixture. Sear each side of the roast for 1-2 minutes or until deep brown.
Step 2: Deglaze the pan with broth and wine, scraping any bits off the bottom of the pan. Stir in the worcestershire, garlic, rosemary, oregano, thyme, and bay leaves. Add the mushrooms and the onion around the roast. Bring to a simmer and cover.
TIP - Use tongs to hold the roast so you can sear the sides.
Step 3: Braise in the oven for 2 ½ hours. Add the potatoes, celery, and carrots in this order.
Step 4: Cover and braise for another 1 ½ hours or until vegetables are done to your liking.
TIP - Be sure to braise the roast covered.
Step 5: Remove the roast and all vegetables. Discard the bay leaves and thyme sprigs. Bring the pan drippings to a simmer. Combine the cornstarch with 2 tablespoons of broth or water. Pour into the pan drippings and thicken. Add more if desired.
Step 6: In a small saucepan, bring the butter, milk, salt, and pepper to a simmer. Remove from heat and stir in cheese. In a large bowl mash the potatoes with a masher or ricer. Fold in the milk mixture until completely incorporated.
TIP - The sauce will thicken as it cools.
TIP - It may seem like a lot of milk, but the potatoes will absorb a lot more than you think.
Expert Tips & Recipe Notes
- Press the rub. After you have made the rub. Press it into the meat with some pressure rather than just sprinkling it on because when you flip it it will fall off.
- Sear the roast. Getting a nice crust on the roast adds so much flavor. Don’t be shy. I normally end up cranking my heat up to get a dark brown crust. Take your time and sear each side.
- Use fresh herbs and red wine. Fresh herbs infuse the best flavor into the roast and vegetables. The red wine is also an important flavor note. Since this pot roast has a simple flavor profile, it is important to use quality ingredients.
- Slow cook. Chuck roast is a tough cut of beef. This is why it is less expensive. With that being said, it can be super tender and delicious if cooked properly. Chuck roast must be cooked at low temperature for a long period of time. This allows the collagen to break down.
- Rice the potatoes. For the smoothest potatoes, use a ricer. If you like lumps, use a masher. Using an electric hand mixer gives the potatoes a stickier and almost rubbery consistency.
- Grate the cheese. Buy a block of white cheddar cheese and grate it at home. Shredded cheese has added starches which prevent it from melting as well. This will also affect the texture of the mashed potatoes.
- Warm the milk, butter, and cheese. You want to take the chill off of the dairy so that it melts into the potatoes. This gives them a smooth consistency and keeps them hot.
FAQs
Store leftovers in an airtight container for 3-4 days. I normally store the meat/veggies, potatoes, and sauce separately. It all reheats great in the microwave.
Yes. Half and half has a higher fat content so it will make the potatoes even richer.
I like to arrange the vegetables around the meat suspended in the liquid.
An oven roast is roasted dry in the oven typically on a rack. A pot roast is braised in liquid in a covered pot in the oven. This produces lots of steam or wet heat.
It was likely not cooked long enough. The cook time on the recipe is for 3 - 3 ½ pound roast. The larger the roast, the more time it will need to become tender.
In general, yes. Of course if you cook anything long enough eventually it will dry out. If the meat is not as tender as you would like it, cover it and put it back in the oven in 30-45 minute increments.
Related Recipes
Southern Pot Roast
Equipment:
Ingredients:
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil
- 3 - 3 ½ pound chuck roast
- 1 Tablespoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 Tablespoon brown sugar
- 3 cups beef broth, plus more if needed
- 1 cup dry red wine*
- 2 Tablespoons worcestershire
- 8-10 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
- 1 Tablespoon fresh chopped rosemary*
- 1 Tablespoon fresh chopped oregano*
- 1 Tablespoon fresh chopped thyme*
- 1-2 bay leaves
- 8 ounces whole baby bella mushrooms*
- 1 large yellow onion, sliced into large wedges
- 2 ½ pounds small yellow potatoes, 1 - 1.5 inch*
- 4 small celery stalks , (3 ½ ounces), sliced diagonally into 1.5 - 2 inch long pieces
- 6 medium carrots, (12 ounces), sliced diagonally into 1.5 - 2 inch long pieces
- 2-4 Tablespoons cornstarch*
Optional White Cheddar Mashed Potatoes
- 4 Tablespoons unsalted butter
- ¾ cup milk*
- 1 teaspoon salt
- fresh cracked pepper
- 6 ounces (1 ½ cups) white cheddar cheese, shredded
Instructions:
- Review all recipe notes and instructions before beginning.
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
- Heat the olive oil over medium high heat in an 8 quart ductch oven. While the oil heats, in a small bowl combine the salt, pepper, and sugar. Rub every side of the roast with the spice mixture. Sear each side of the roast for 1-2 minutes or until deep brown.
- Deglaze the pan with broth and wine, scraping any bits off the bottom of the pan. Stir in the worcestershire, garlic, rosemary, oregano, thyme, and bay leaves. Add the mushrooms and the onion around the roast. Bring to a simmer and cover.
- Braise in the oven for 2 ½ hours. Add the potatoes, celery, and carrots in this order.
- Cover and braise for another 1 ½ hours or until vegetables are done to your liking.
- Remove the roast and all vegetables. Discard the bay leaves and thyme sprigs. Bring the pan drippings to a simmer. Combine the cornstarch with 2 tablespoons of broth or water. Pour into the pan drippings and thicken. Add more if desired.
- In a small saucepan, bring the butter, milk, salt, and pepper to a simmer. Remove from heat and stir in cheese. In a large bowl mash the potatoes with a masher or ricer. Fold in the milk mixture until completely incorporated.
- Serve the roast and vegetables over the mashed potatoes with the sauce on top.
Can this be made in an instant pot? I only have a counter top oven so I can’t make it that way but I’m dying to try it, it sounds delicious!
I have not tested it in the Instant Pot!
Sounds delicious! Nervous about the red wine, I don’t really cook with wine. Can you taste the red wine?
Yes! It definitely adds flavor, but since it reduces for so long, it does not have a strong red wine taste.
This pot roast recipe is really amazing! It was a huge hit at my house! Thank you for sharing!
Thank you so much!
This is the ultimate comfort food! The sauce came out so wonderfully flavored, and the meat was melt-in-your-mouth tender.
Very good recipe! I left out the mushrooms (no one will even look at a mushroom in my house lol). We barely had any leftovers and really enjoyed it.
One pot recipes are the best, especially when you have a family to take care of and work on top too. Thanks for sharing this deliciousness!
I love a pot roast but you really elevated the traditional flavour with this recipe! The meat was so tender and every bite full of flavour!