How to Cook Beef Chuck Roast Slow Cooker

How to cook fresh or frozen beef chuck roast slow cooker style turns out great! Turns out fork tender in your Crockpot with tons of flavor in every bite is here. You can cook this as a frozen roast in slow cooker, or a fresh piece in the same amount of time.

How Long to Cook Chuck Roast in Crock pot

You will want to have 6-8 hours to get this cut of meat to fall apart and easily shred with two forks. When you roast in a crock pot frozen, you give the meat plenty of time to break down the connective tissues, resulting in a tender, melt-in-your-mouth texture. Plus, you’ll end up with a delicious gravy to serve with it, as we show in the recipe below.

This is one cut of meat we have a lot of. You see, we buy half a cow at the beginning of each year from a local farmer. That means easy beef recipes, like cooking pot roast in a crock pot frozen, are our go-to. Buying in bulk is where it’s at when it comes to saving money, and it also means fewer trips to the grocery store (yay!). Whether you’re using a frozen pot roast in a slow cooker or thawed, this method ensures you’ll get a perfect meal every time.

How to Cook Frozen Chuck Roast

At the top we share how to do it low and slow. Then here we shared how to cook frozen roast Instant Pot style, that turns out great too. Not everyone has that “magic pot” though. SO I thought I’d come up with the best chuck roast recipe in our Crockpot too.

At the top, we share how to cook a beef chuck roast in a slow cooker low and slow for the best results. But here, we also showed how to cook a crock pot chuck roast from frozen, which turns out just as delicious. Not everyone has that “magic pot” (Instant Pot) though, so I thought I’d come up with the best chuck roast recipe for our Crockpot too. Whether you choose the Instant Pot or the slow cooker, both methods deliver a tender, flavorful roast.

Let’s talk a little bit about slow cooking shall we?? First off I have a few different varieties and I love them all. Each one has an occasion to be used like….

1. This is my favorite 6 quart programmable one with a locking lid so it’s great for bringing to a potluck too.
2. I prefer not to use liners, but rather just spray olive oil inside before adding my food for easier cleanups.

Let me give you a peek of my pretty thang I bought recently. It goes with my kitchen so I can just leave it out on the countertop all the time. 😉

Is it better to cook chuck roast on low or high in Crockpot?

I always recommend with chicken and red meat that you cook low and slow to become as tender as possible, unless it’s frozen. When you’re preparing a roast in the slow cooker from frozen, it’s important to give it enough time to break down the connective tissues and melt in your mouth. I first made a really nice bottom round roast, which was a first for me, and then I moved on to using frozen pot roast in the slow cooker. Both turned out fabulous right out of the freezer—you’d never know they were rock hard just a few hours before!

For this recipe, I wanted the roast to literally fall apart with just a fork, so I used a beef chuck crock pot method. This is key if you’re making something like shredded beef tacos, which require really tender meat. If it’s defrosted, the cook time will be the same, but you’ll want to cook on low rather than high for the best results. That’s really all there is to it!

The biggest downside to using chuck slow cook is that there are some big chunks of fat and bone that you’ll need to remove. However, if you cook it long enough to get really tender, you can just pull out the fat and bone about an hour before serving. Then, let it slow cook in the sauce for an additional 30-45 minutes to really absorb all that flavor before serving. If you’re starting with a crock pot roast from frozen, it’ll still work perfectly with the same approach!

4o mini

We will share both methods below. If you bought a fresh piece at the store that is great. In case you are Ms. Forgetful like myself and sometimes pulls it out in the morning still rock hard, this will help you too. The only real difference between the two in the Crock is using the high vs. low temperature control.

Obviously frozen will need 6-8 hours on high to get it to fall apart, whereas soft would use low. I prefer low and slow always but that always isn’t an option when I am having “one of those days”.

When to add Vegetables to Crock Pot Roast

If you wanted to add veggies into the pot together I would wait until the last 2 hours. You can set them right on the top and not disturb anything else. Baby carrots are great as well as quartered baby potatoes. I don’t know that anything else would go well but just make sure they cook at the same rate for success.

Should You Cover Chuck Roast in Slow Cooker with Liquid?

I would recommend at least 1/2 cup so it can start to steam, but adding broth and gravy mix is even better. Let’s talk about this cut of meat first shall we? If you haven’t cooked this a lot you should know that it does have a strong beef flavor. Beyond that is is quite bland. That means you need to add a lot of dry seasonings and/or sauces to really amp up the goodness.

If you want to make a really cheap meal this is a great cut to buy. In this case you can only cook one at a time or else it all won’t get done at the same time. If you have two crocks though you could double this.

Easy Crock Pot Recipe for Chuck Roast

I have to be honest how I came up with this. Opened my deep freezer and saw that I had a few of these to use up. Then I just went to dumping. Sometimes this works out as a WOW meal, and other times it needs seasonings when done. This was the BEST chuck roast I have ever made, my husband and kids even agreed with me.

Literally I thought of all the flavors I love and threw in what I had. I love the taste of pepperoncini chicken. SO I used the juices and a few of the peppers leftover from the jar I used for that. Great add for sure! Dry gravy packets thicken whatever sauce you put together so I added that with some air fryer garlic and more garlic salt.

Slow Cooker Pulled Beef Ingredients

1. Frozen or fresh chuck roast, I will include cook time for both below in the printable recipe card.
2. Pepperoncini peppers and juice from that same jar
3. Packet of dry gravy mix
4. Beef broth
5. Minced garlic goes in everything I make
6. I sliced 1/2 an onion because why not

Garlic salt and pepper were the seasonings I threw in this time and worked fantastic. Garlic powder could be added. Potatoes and carrots can be added before the last hour is up to get tender. If you want more Mexican flavors, follow the sauce in our slow cooker beef barbacoa recipe but this timing.

THIS is the biggest difference. If it’s frozen I let it go on high for 6-8 hours. Fresh just set to low for the same timing. Of course there will be a slight variation depending on how thick your piece is. That is why I have a range. For a smaller piece you might be able to enjoy it at hour 6.

How to Cook Slow Cooker Pot Roast

• Place meat in side slow cooker. Slice onions and peppers and put into pot.
• In a bowl whisk together dry gravy mix, pepperoncini juice and broth together. Then pour into the pot.
• Sprinkle garlic salt and pepper on top, then add garlic. Cover and cook until tender.
• If defrosted slow cook roast beef and gravy on low for 6-8 hours, cook on high for the same time if frozen solid.
• You’ll get the best results if you are able to flip the meat after hour 4. Then remove all the bones and fat pieces and shred meat at hour 6.

Leave shredded beef inside juices 30 min-1 hour before serving to soak up juices. If you want to add carrots celery and red potatoes only do so 1 hours before it’s done.

Do you have to brown chuck roast before cooking in the crock pot?

Some would refer to this as pot roast, either way it is the ultimate comfort food when it’s chilly outside. If you have a defrosted piece you could sear the meat first over medium high heat on the stovetop. Add olive oil in a large skillet and just sear on both sides, then add into the pot. This will lock in juices better but not a game changer if you skip that step.

I usually don’t bother because I am more of a dump and go type of cooker. This turned out so good from frozen without doing this that it solidified my “why bother” attitude on that. TONS of flavor I tell you, as is.

This will add a bit of texture to the meat and also sear in the juices while it cooks. This is not necessary but some prefer adding this step to the process. If you want to try another great beef recipe, give our Ninja Foodi roast beef dish a whirl.

Can you save leftover beef?

Of course, I always recommend saving leftovers and using them in a beef stroganoff casserole or otherwise within the next few days. You want to keep it really moist though so don’t throw away that gravy at the bottom of the pot. In airtight containers, save as much as you’ll want to reheat later on WiTH juices.

If you save this or our air fryer chuck roast without any type of liquid it will dry out. After a day and there won’t really be any turning back. With the gravy mixed within it you can reheat in the microwave and keep it really nice and moist. Serve it over rice, mixed in with butter noodles or piled on slider buns for another meal within 3 days.

That means you will likely get two meals out of this one cheap dinner. That is a huge win for me. I mean it’s not like I don’t like cooking but some days I’m just over it.