This Instant Pot Pot Roast with potatoes and carrots is the perfect Sunday dinner. This Instant Pot method of cooking a Pot Roast is as tender as a traditional recipe but cooks in less than half the time!
Sunday Pot Roast in the Instant Pot
Pot Roast has always been a favorite Sunday dinner in our family. Sometimes we make it with mashed potatoes, sometimes with carrots and potatoes cooked with the roast. Either way, it is always delicious. Because I sometimes forget to put the roast in the oven or slow cooker in time, I find myself scrambling to get dinner ready. I’ve walked in the door from church and thought, “SHOOT! I never put the roast in!” If you are like me, this Instant Pot recipe is a lifesaver – especially on those days.
If you haven’t jumped on the Instant Pot train yet – YOU NEED TO! It is one of the most convenient kitchen appliances I have ever owned. This recipe is just one of the MANY Instant Pot recipes that I have incorporated into my regular meal rotations. You can find our favorite Instant Pot here!
Update: Since we first created this recipe, we’ve had many comments regarding the success of this recipe. We’ve updated the original post to include some of the most frequently asked questions and comments.
What Cut of Beef is Best for Pot Roast?
For this recipe we use a boneless chuck roast but there are several different cuts of beef you can use. Here is a list of the best cuts to use for pot roast:
- Chuck roast
- Ribeye or Eye of round roast
- Brisket
- Top sirloin petite roast
- Bottom round rump roast
- Top round roast
How Long Do I Cook a Pot Roast in an Instant Pot?
Instant Pot Pot Roast cook time varies depending on the size of the roast. A 2-pound roast should take about 45-50 minutes on high pressure. Each additional pound should be an additional 8-10 minutes. Check in the comments below to see the times others have used with success.
Can This Be Made in Any Pressure Cooker?
This recipe is not exclusive to the Instant Pot brand. This easy pot roast recipe can be made in any kind of pressure cooker! Follow the recipe below using the settings of your pressure cooker and enjoy a delicious roast.
Why I love Using the Instant Pot
- It’s EASY. With the instant pot, you can sear the roast and saute the onions AND cook it ALL in the same pot. You don’t have to dirty 3 different pans to do it. Even a slow cooker can’t do that for you. Did I mention cleanup is a snap? It is. SO easy.
- It’s FAST. Beginning to end, we are talking around 2 hours. TOTAL. That is literally a quarter of the time it takes to make.
- It’s DELICIOUS. Honestly, I think this pot roast turns out just as good, if not better, than most slow cooker pot roast recipes I have tried. It is full of flavor and perfectly tender and easy to shred.
Crock Pot Roast
All the above reasons have me hooked on making a pot roast quickly in an Instant Pot. However, sometimes I like to take it slow and just let it cook all day. If this is the way you want to go, we have a great Crock Pot Roast recipe too, see our Slow Cooker Roast Beef and Vegetables Recipe. If you don’t have a pressure cooker, you will definitely want to give the slow cooker version a try!
Instant Pot Pot Roast with Potatoes
A quick note about adding potatoes, using baby potatoes are totally the way to go. They are the perfect size and they don’t get mushy. Potatoes that are peeled and cut tend to get mushy in the Instant Pot when they cook for a longer amount of time. By keeping the skin on and not cutting them, the potatoes cook thoroughly while remaining firm. If you must use peeled diced potatoes and carrots, you will definitely want to release the pressure a few minutes before the regular cooking time, then add the potatoes and cook on high pressure an additional 8 minutes. 30+ minutes is too long to pressure cook diced potatoes.
Instant Pot Roast Gravy
Making gravy in the Instant Pot is a breeze. The easiest method is to remove the pot roast and vegetables when they are done cooking then switch the cook setting to “saute”. If there aren’t enough beef drippings to make a gravy, add some beef broth. Combine a little water and some corn starch in a liquid measuring cup to form a slurry. When the drippings and broth start to simmer, whisk in the cornstarch mixture a little at a time until it becomes a gravy consistency. Simmer about 3 minutes adding more beef broth to thin if needed. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Tips For Making Pot Roast
- Pot roasts can be made using many different cooking methods. If you don’t have an Instant Pot, you can try our recipes for making pot roast in the slow cooker (here) or in the oven (here).
- To avoid mushy vegetables just add them later! 10 minutes before your cooking time is up, release the pressure and add the carrots and potatoes. Press “cancel” and then re-set to high pressure for 8 minutes. If you have bigger potatoes or potato dices, cook for 10 minutes.
- If you have leftovers, roast can easily be shredded and frozen to eat at a later date. Just remove any vegetables (potatoes and carrots don’t freeze well) and place in a Ziplock bag to freeze. When ready to re-heat thaw in the refrigerator overnight and reheat or add to your favorite shredded beef recipes.
Pot Roast Side Dishes
Because this pot roast includes potatoes and carrots, you have a full meal in just one pot! However, if you are looking to add more side dishes, here are some great ideas:
Sweet Sauteéd Asaparagus Perfect Mashed Potatoes Nuts About Berries Salad
- Sautéed Sweet Asparagus
- Oven Roasted Vegetables
- Spinach Salad with Roasted Pecans
- Sautéed Lemon Brussels Sprouts
- Southern Corn Casserole
- Nuts About Berries Salad
- Mashed potatoes (if you make the roast on its own without adding potatoes and carrots)
How to Cook a Pot Roast in an Instant Pot
Ingredients
- 3 pounds beef chuck roast
- salt to taste
- 4 tablespoons olive oil divided
- 2 cups beef broth *can use gluten-free beef broth
- 1 packet dry onion soup mix *can use gluten-free onion soup mix
- 1 white or yellow onion, quartered
- 1 pound baby potatoes (see notes above)
- 1 cup baby carrots
Instructions
- Sprinkle pot roast with salt and set aside. Add 2 Tbsp. Olive oil to Instant Pot and set to "Saute". When oil becomes hot and shimmery, add pot roast and sear for 4-5 minutes on each side.
- Add beef broth to Instant Pot. Add vegetables, 2 Tbsp. olive oil, and onion soup mix to a gallon-sized Ziploc bag and shake until vegetables become evenly coated with mix. Put veggies in Instant pot and distribute evenly around roast.
- Place lid on Instant pot with steam valve closed. Switch Instant Pot setting to "manual" and set for 60-80 minutes on "high" pressure (70 minutes seems to work ok, judge the time depending on the size of your roast). Do a natural release for at least 10 minutes, then quick release.
- Remove roast from instant pot, slice, and serve with vegetables. Use extra drippings from the instant pot to make gravy or au jus (see notes above to see how to make gravy).
Equipment
- 6-Quart Instant Pot Pressure Cooker (See Instant Pot Note Below)
Notes
Recipe Video
Nutrition
I feel I need to mention that this post is not sponsored. I bought my Instant Pot with my own money and we are not getting paid to write about it. I know many of you out there have Instant Pots as well and we have been getting many suggestions and e-mails about adding some Instant Pot recipes, so this is us responding to you.
RENE says
I always have to cook my roast an additional hour. The multi-cooker doesn’t get it as tender in a shorter time otherwise. It’s still faster than a traditional slow cooker but 2 hours is not enough (in my experience). My son complains that it chewy if I don’t cook an extra hour.
Suz says
Fab – u – lous!! I did 75 min in the Instant Pot then I added the veggies, did another 10 minutes. The Yukon gold potatoes were perfection as were the carrots and onions. I thickened the gravy & wow! It was a hit!
Alan Hickman says
Made this last night in the power pressure cooker XL and it came out fantastic. Only wish I had a bigger roast for more leftovers.
kirian says
I just made this last night. I went a bit rogue and coated the meat with a bit of salt and lots of pepper. I also added two cloves of garlic. I put the meat on the bottom and it covered the whole bottom (my cut was a bit thinner and flatter, Walmart… need i go on). I covered it with the broth, added a sprinkle of onion soup mix, halved yellow potatoes, more soup mix, onions, baby carrots, and the rest of the mix (I didn’t feel like wasting a bag to shake it up). I cooked it for 60 min with the 10 min natural release. The meat was good, the potatoes were good, the carrots were tasty but mushy. Next time I’m going to try large pieces of regular carrots. I prefer pot roast with broth almost like soup so i didn’t make the gravy. We had leftovers today and they were even better! Yummy!
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