Classic pot roast gets Italian love from red wine, tomato paste, garlic, and dried herbs. Made in the slow cooker, this is a super cozy meal that cooks hands-off all day long and results in fall-apart-tender meat with a rich gravy. Serve it over mashed potatoes or creamy polenta.
Want to know my favorite thing about football season? A Sunday slow cooker meal that simmers while we watch. I love nothing better on a Sunday than hanging out with Frank and the kids while dinner cooks hands-off and makes the entire house smell cozy and delicious. We’ve been doing lots of soups on Sunday to serve with homemade sourdough (been sharing lots of sourdough adventures on Instagram if you want to follow along), but this pot roast has been a family favorite. Served with a fresh salad and polenta, it’s a fun Italian twist on our other favorite slow cooker roast - Mississippi Roast.
What You’ll Love About Slow Cooker Italian Roast
What’s not to love about any slow cooker dish that can cook all day and yields a super tender, flavorful dinner? The best thing about cooking chuck roast in the slow cooker is that it’s nearly impossible to overcook it. The meat is marbled and fatty and will just continue to get tender as it cooks.
This recipe is:
- Tender
- Savory
- Family-Friendly
- Guest-Worthy
- Gluten-Free Adaptable
- Saucy
The Key - Cook on Low
Because this Italian Pot Roast is served in a tomato-based sauce, be sure to cook it on low. As the sauce thickens, the tomato paste can have a tendency to burn if cooked at too high a heat. If you check on the pot roast during cooking and it looks like the sauce is getting too dark around the edges, gently scrape the edges and stir them back into the sauce - cover and continue cooking.
Don’t Skip Searing
I love a dump-and-go slow cooker recipe as much as anyone, but don’t skip the initial steps to sear the meat and saute the aromatics in this recipe. Those initial steps take time but pay of BIG in flavor.
More Slow Cooker Classics
- Slow Cooker Classic Beef Chili
- Slow Cooker Chicken Carnitas
- Slow Cooker White Chicken Chili
- Slow Cooker Chicken and Biscuits
- Slow Cooker Hot Chocolate
Favorite Tools
Slow Cooker Italian Pot Roast
Equipment
- Skillet
- 6-quart Slow Cooker
Ingredients
- 2-3 pounds Boneless Beef Chuck Roast (see note)
- 1 teaspoon Kosher Salt
- ½ teaspoon Black Pepper
- ¼ teaspoon Garlic Powder
- 2 Tablespoons Cooking Oil (use a neutral oil like grapeseed, vegetable, or avocado oil)
- 4 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter
- 1 cup diced Yellow Onion
- 1 cup diced Carrots
- 4 cloves Garlic, minced
- 1 Tablespoon Italian Seasoning (store bought or homemade)
- 1 Tablespoon All-Purpose Flour (can use a gluten free all-purpose flour if needed)
- ½ cup Red Wine (sub 2 tablespoon Red Wine Vinegar mixed with 6 tablespoon Chicken Stock)
- 1 ½ cup Chicken or Vegetable Stock
- 2 Tablespoons Tomato Paste
- 2 Tablespoons Capers, drained and rinsed
- 1 Tablespoon Red Wine Vinegar
Instructions
- Season beef on both sides with kosher salt, black pepper, and garlic powder.
- Heat a large skillet with cooking oil over medium-high heat. When oil begins to shimmer, add beef and sear on both sides until deep golden brown, 5 to 6 minutes per side.
- Transfer meat to the bowl of a slow cooker (leave skillet over heat).
- Reduce heat in the skillet to medium and add butter.
- When butter melts, stir in onion, carrots, and garlic. Continue cooking until aromatics are tender, 6 to 8 minutes.
- Add Italian seasoning and flour and stir until no dry spots remain.
- Slowly pour wine into pan, scraping up any brown bits from the bottom of the pan. Whisk in stock, tomato paste, capers, and vinegar. When liquids begins to simmer, remove from heat.
- Pour vegetable and wine mixture around the sides of the beef.
- Cover and slow cook on low until roast can be easily shredded with a fork, 8 to 10 hours. (Note: Skim off any visible fat on the surface of the liquids that remain in the bowl.)
- Transfer meat to a cutting board and shred or slice.
- Serve meat with cooking liquid drizzled over top.
Notes
Lara
This recipe was good and easy to follow! My only negative comment was that there was so much grease in the sauce. I used chuck and I know there is fat in that cut but there should probably be instructions to spoon off the grease throughout the cooking as we were unable to utilize the sauce at all. Will definitely make it again though so thank you!
Jess Smith
The amount of fat in chuck can definitely vary, so I can totally see how this might be an issue. I must usually use a leaner cut because I've never had any noticeable fat to skim off, but I'm going to add a note to the recipe so that others know to look for that. Thanks so much for the feedback Lara!