Whole30 Pot Roast {Pressure Cooker Pot Roast}
Fall-apart tender, this Whole30 Pot Roast is the ultimate comfort food. You can get an “it cooked all day flavor” in a fraction of the time thanks to using an Instant Pot. But don’t worry, I have slow cooker and oven instructions for you too!
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Listen, people, this is about to be your family’s new favorite dinner. Just sit back and prepare for the accolades and appreciation to be heaped all over you.
This Instant Pot pot roast is filled with all the classic flavors of your mom’s recipe, but it’s ready in a fraction of the time. If you could put a hug on a plate, it would be this dinner.
And because not everyone has a pressure cooker (yet!), I’ve also included slow cooking and oven-baking instructions.
Do You Have to Sear Pot Roast?
Nope! It does help lock in the juices for a deeper flavor, but it’s not necessary. In fact, I don’t include that step in this recipe because I feel that it intimidates people from making these kinds of meals. It’s those kinds of extra step that is a barrier for some home cooks.
Just like this Instant Pot Beef Tips and Gravy recipes, we’re not searing and still getting great results! Instead, follow the instructions for the cooking and release times (Instant Pot) and your roast is going to be amazingly tender. Cross my heart.
What Type of Meat is Best For Pot Roast?
I used chuck from Butcher Box, but you can also use brisket, rump, or round roast. Rump can be a tougher meat to cook compared with the others, but it will still be amazing if you cook it the right way.
Choose a cut that has decent fat marbling as it will add more flavor to the dish. You will be trimming some of the fat prior to cooking to keep the gravy/broth from being greasy.
How Long Do You Cook a Roast in a Pressure Cooker?
I have found the sweet spot is 21 minutes per pound of meat. This was a 3 lb cut, so I cooked it for a total of 63 minutes. That does not take into account the amount of time it took getting up to pressure or the natural release time after it was done cooking.
I used an 8 quart Instant Pot and it took 27 minutes for this to get up to pressure. This recipe calls for a 15-minute natural release and then a quick release. If you prefer a 100% natural release, my Instant Pot took 34 minutes to fully depressurize.
Pro Tips/Recipe Notes
- If you’re pressed for time and perform a “quick release”, the meat will likely become tough. The quick-release option increases the temperature inside the Instant Pot to above boiling. As it can take ~12 minutes to depressurize the pot manually, you’re essentially boiling the meat for that time. Boiling = tough meat.
- Cut vegetables into large pieces to avoid them becoming too mushy during the cooking process. I used baby potatoes and left them whole. We were able to easily cut them in half with just our forks when serving.
- If you prefer veggies al dente, cook the roast without the carrots and potatoes. Remove the meat when the Instant Pot has depressurized and set it aside to rest. Add veggies, lock the lid, press manual>high pressure>4 minutes and then do a quick release after it has finished cooking.
- If you’re not following a Whole30 or paleo way of eating, you can use cornstarch in place of the arrowroot. You may also want to replace 1/3 cup of the beef stock with red wine.
- Use whatever veggies you prefer (mushrooms, etc.) but anything that is small (ex: green beans) will probably get mushy if cooked with the meat for the full amount of time.
What To Serve With Pot Roast
This meal calls for lots of additional veggies on the side! We love these dishes to go along with the main dish:
- Roasted Frozen Broccoli
- Air Fryer Brussels Sprouts
- Spicy Green Beans
- Air Fryer Cauliflower
- Check out all these Whole30 + Paleo Side Dishes
More Delicious Easy Whole30 Instant Pot Recipes
- Instant Pot Orange Chicken
- Pressure Cooker Chicken Tacos
- Whole30 Beef Stew
- Instant Pot Zuppa Toscana
- Check out all my Paleo + Whole30 Instant Pot Recipes
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Whole30 Pot Roast {Pressure Cooker Pot Roast}
Ingredients
- 3 lb chuck roast {or: rump, round, brisket}
- 3 cups beef stock
- 1 lb baby potatoes {whole}
- 4 cups carrots {peeled and cut into large pieces}
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1/4 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 cup onion {chopped or sliced}
- 4 cloves garlic {minced}
- 2 tbsp marinara sauce
- 2 sprigs fresh rosemary
- 1 tsp thyme {dried}
Gravy {optional}
- 3 tbsp arrowroot powder
- 1/4 cup broth {taken from the Instant Pot after the meat has cooked}
Equipment
Instructions
- Cut the meat into 4-6 pieces, somewhat uniform in size. Trim most of the fat (about 75%). Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and the smoked paprika.
- Add stock, onions, minced garlic, thyme, and marinara to the Instant Pot.
- Place the meat into the pot and then top with any veggies you want to cook along with the roast. Throw a few springs of rosemary on top.
- Lock the lid into place and set the steam release handle (valve on top) to “Sealing”. Press Manual>High Pressure>63 minutes.
- When it has finished cooking, allow the pressure cooker to sit for 15 minutes. Then, carefully flip the steam release handle to "venting" and allow any additional pressure to be released.
- Remove the lid. If you'd like to make the optional gravy for this recipe, carefully remove the meat and potatoes and set aside to rest in a baking dish.
- Shred the meat with two forks after it has rested for ~10 minutes.
Optional Gravy
- Combine 3 tbsp of arrowroot powder and 1/4 cup of broth from the instant pot in a small bowl. Whisk really well.
- Make sure you have removed the meat and vegetables and press "Saute".
- Add the arrowroot slurry to the broth and gently whisk it in. Allow the mixture to cook for 5 minutes, stirring often.
- You can place the meat and veggies back into the pot or serve the gravy separately.
Notes
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Can i use a tender roast?
Take my advice with a grain of salt because I had to google what a tender roast is. 🙂
It looks like it is a cut that is great for grilling which would make it a “short cooking” cut of meat. Pot roast tends to use chuck or rump roasts which are tougher cuts that need to be cooked slowly to make them tender.
So, hypothetically, yes you could use a tender roast. But it may be a more expensive cut than you want to use for a pot roast. Clear as mud?
Well i got it already. Its a lil over 3lbs.. so do you have any advice? Lol
I would cook it just like the instructions in the post. At 3 lbs x 21 min per roast, it would be 63 minutes. After cooking, wait at least 15 minutes for a natural release before doing a quick release.
Hi.
Do the vegetables get mushy?
To me they are the same texture as if you cooked them in a slow cooker all day.
I have seen some people add them at the end and pressure cook them for 2 minutes after removing the roast. It’s all preference at that point. 🙂
Delicious, simple, and so easy to customize! We loved this Pot Roast in the Instant Pot. I ladled out some of the liquid to steam veggies as an additional side item. Oh. My. Word. My husband now wants all broccoli cooked in with pot roast juices. I move that we now call broth by “juice”. All in favor?
Ohhhh, I have never thought about using the liquid to steam veggies. Brilliant! And I’m 100% in on the new name.
Despite being a long time reader, this was my first time making this pot roast. Ohemgeeeeee this was beyond perfect. I had a 2.5 pound roast so I cooked it for 51 mins (my not so scientific time adjustment). The meat was tender and juicy. I took one of the chunks and shredded it for two people. I fried the veggies in an actual ton of butter after they cooked to make them super crispy. I’m off to my food coma, after I bookmark this recipe.
I think you get to claim “OG reader” status. 🙂
So glad you and the family liked it! The veggie part sounds fantastic and something I need to try.
I am so excited to make this! My chuck roast is about half the weight of what the recipe calls for (1.65lbs). Any idea if I should decrease the cooking time in the instant pot?
I recommend 21 minutes per lb of meat. So that would be about 34 minutes for your 1.65 pounds.
Can I make this with a pork roast?
Yep! I actually did last night. 🙂
But we make it to shred for tacos.
What’s the white stuff in the small bowl in your picture?
Delicious delicious horseradish!
I have cooked pot roast in the instant pot for less time than recommend it in this recipe and the veggies were all mushy and coming apart. I now use a YouTube recipe that explain how to do a pot roast in the IP.
My veggies never got mushy because I used the tips in this post – put them on top of the meat and not in the broth. They’re perfectly cooked every time.
I’m used to waiting hours and hours for pot roast. I’m so happy I found this instant pot recipe. Fastest I’ve ever made it and was so tender and flavorful. Veggies and potatoes turned out perfectly, too!
So glad you liked it, Shawna! I agree, not having to wait all day is such a treat. 🙂
This is the tastiest, fastest Pot Roast recipe ever and making it in the Instant Pot was toooo easy!
The meat was tasty and tender and the veggies were perfect!
So glad you liked it Alison!!