French Onion Pot Roast | Easy, Comforting, Delicious (2024)

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French Onion Pot Roast is simple, yet so comforting when you’re craving a recipe that will warm your soul on a cold day. Classic flavors of french onion soup are transformed to a succulent, fall-apart beef roast. The flavors are rich and wonderful as the onions caramelize and help create a sauce that can be drizzled on perfectly creamy mashed potatoes. It’s comfort food at it’s finest with flavors that are both familiar and drool-worthy.

And, to finish any good French onion recipe, you need melty gruyere toasts. Don’t worry. That’s our garnish and its the perfect way to top off a dish that you will be making again and again!

Let’s get started!

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French Onion Pot Roast | Easy, Comforting, Delicious (1)

French Onion Pot Roast Ingredients

Beef Chuck Roast
Kosher Salt and Black Pepper
Yellow Onions
Tomato Paste
Dry White Wine
Worcestershire Sauce
Dried Mushroom Powder
Thyme, fresh or dried
Fresh Garlic
Bay Leaves
Beef Broth
Optional, crusty bread and gruyere cheese for serving

French Onion Pot Roast | Easy, Comforting, Delicious (2)

Let’s Cook!

‘Tis the season for comfort food. The weather is changing and it’s time for rich flavors that just make hungry bellies happy and warm. French Onion Pot Roast is rich in flavor, fall-apart tender, and is so simple that you’ll add it to your cold weather rotation again and again.

For this pot roast recipe, we are not only going to make it easy, but we are also going to make this in the instant pot. Comfort food, but quick!

I’ll lay out the steps for the instant pot below, but will include instructions for a dutch oven and slow-cooker in the frequently asked questions section. There is not wrong way to make this recipe as long as you just make it!

Instant Pot Method

Sear the salted and peppered chuck roast on the high sauté function until both sides are browned. This creates flavor and you don’t want to skip this part!
Remove the roast and set aside. Add the tomato paste, stirring constantly until it becomes a deep red color.
Add the sliced onions, stirring to coat with the tomato paste.
Deglaze with the white wine. This just means to scrape up all the bits created by searing the roast. It’s an amazing way to add flavor with almost zero effort! Cook this until the liquid has reduced by about half.
Add the mushroom powder, dried thyme, garlic, Worcestershire sauce. Stir to combine these ingredients.
Return the pot roast to the instant pot and add the broth and bay leaves.
Close the lid on the instant pot and cook on high pressure for 90 minutes.
Carefully, depressurize the instant pot (you can do the rapid release or let it release on its own). I’m impatient so I almost always do the rapid release.
After the instant pot is depressurized, shred the beef and serve!

French Onion Pot Roast | Easy, Comforting, Delicious (3)

Pot Roast Frequently Asked Questions

Can I cook this recipe in a crock pot or slow cooker?

This French Onion Pot Roast would be a wonderful slow cooker recipe. You can simply add all of the ingredients and cook on high 5-6 hours or on low for 7-8 hours. The end result will be amazing and your house is going to smell incredible.

I do recommend searing the pot roast before you put it in the slow cooker, but don’t let this stress you out. It’ll turn out fantastic either way!

is the french onion pot roast recipe gluten-free?

This recipe is gluten-free! I don’t use flour or other thickening agents so no need to make any adjustments for this dietary concern!

How do I serve french onion pot roast?

The ways to serve your new favorite comfort meal are endless. From using creamy mashed potatoes to simple buttered noodles as base, you cannot go wrong! Just don’t forget to drizzle with that sauce!

Think:

Over mashed potatoes
On top of mashed cauliflower
On buttered egg noodles
Alongside roasted vegetables
Spooned into your favorite hoagie or sandwich roll
Tossed with your favorite pasta
Eaten straight out of the pot. Just like me.

How can I make French onion pot roast in a dutch oven.

Pot roast and a dutch oven are wonderful friends. You’ll basically follow the same instructions as the instant pot. Start the recipe on the stove top, on medium-high heat. After you have added the roast back into the pot, simply put it in the oven. Let the pot roast cook at 250° for 6-8 hours or until the beef is fall apart tender.

Is this pot roast recipe dairy-free?

The pot roast recipe itself is dairy-free. I do serve this with cheesy gruyere toasts at the end, but you can definitely leave that out!

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French Onion Beef Pot Roast

5 from 1 vote

French Onion Pot Roast is simple yet so comforting when you're craving a recipe that will warm your soul on a cold day. Classic flavors of french onion soup are transformed to a succulent, fall-apart beef roast.

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Equipment

Ingredients

3-4 lbs chuck roast
1 tbsp avocado oil
kosher salt and black pepper enough to coat before searing
3 tbsp tomato paste
2 large yellow onions, sliced
1 ¼ cup dry white wine I used chardonnay
2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2 tbsp dried mushroom powder
1 tbsp dried thyme
2 bay leaves
3-4 cloves garlic
2 cups beef broth

Instructions

Heavily salt and pepper the roast. Sear on the high sauté function until both sides are browned.
Remove the roast. Add the tomato paste, stirring constantly until it becomes a deep red color.
Add the sliced onions, stirring to coat with the tomato paste.
Deglaze with the white wine. Make sure you scrap up all the bits at the bottom of the pot. You don't want to leave any flavor behind! Cook this until the liquid has reduced by about half.
Add the mushroom powder, thyme, garlic, and Worcestershire sauce. Stir to combine these ingredients.
Return the roast to the instant pot. Add the broth and bay leaves. Close the lid and cook on high pressure for 90 minutes.
After the 90 minutes, carefully, depressurize the instant pot (you can do the rapid release or let it release on its own). Remove the roast and shred.
Enjoy!

Cheesy Gruyere Toasts

French onion soup always comes with cheesy gruyere toasts. It's one of the best parts! Simply slice your favorite baguette or french loaf, pile high with grated gruyere, and broil until the cheese is bubbly. Dip these in the lovely juices and enjoy!

Notes

If you don’t want to cook with wine, just use beef broth instead.

Nutrition

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 5 out of 5.

5 from 1 vote (1 rating without comment)

French Onion Pot Roast | Easy, Comforting, Delicious (14)

Thank you!

I am so incredibly happy that you are here! I hope you try my French Onion Pot Roast recipe and fall in love with it. If you make this recipe, please share and tag me on Instagram, Facebook, or TikTok! And, please leave a comment or review. I absolutely love seeing each and every one of your kitchen masterpieces. And, as always, if you ever have any questions about any of my recipes, please don’t hesitate to contact me!

Happy Cooking!

–Rufus

Rufus for Real is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com. I may earn a commission, with no additional cost to you, if you purchase through those links.

For a great Pot Roast side, try my Crispy Oven Roasted Potatoes!