Instant Pot Beef Roast Recipe

Easy Instant Pot beef roast recipe for dinner tonight! Shredded chuck roast in a Ninja Foodi pressure cooker too makes tender sliders with barbecue sauce for dinner. You can even make this with a frozen roast in Instant Pot now!

Ninja Foodi Beef Roast Recipe

Some cuts of meat you just don’t know what to do, like before we made this pressure cooker beef arm roast and then fell in love with it. Under high pressure you can make meat taste great every time. I swear, everything comes out amazingly tender with tons of flavor sucked right in.

You can use any brand you have at home to make these. I have them all including a Crockpot Express and use them to make several easy Ninja foodi recipes throughout the month too.

How do you cook beef roast in a pressure cooker?

You literally can just add bottled sauce with your piece of meat and set to the correct cook time for that cut. Beyond that you can add dry rub and some pineapple if you like to make it a bit sweet. I have done that with a homemade barbecue sauce and that gives your shredded beef TONS of flavor.

I also add onions to just about every pressure cooker recipe I make, because they’re cheap and add lots of flavor. They provide a bit of texture too which is great when the rest of your ingredients are rather soft. Our pressure cooker shredded beef recipe has a dry rub coating the outside to add lots of flavor but that add on is up to you.

Yes you can make this in a Crockpot Express or Ninja Foodi machine too. They all work pretty much the same. This recipe is somewhat similar to our Instant Pot pulled pork recipe but I used a larger cut of meat for that. Either way there is nothing this multi cooker can’t make so tender it melts in your mouth.

What cut of beef is good for shredding?

Chuck roast! It probably isn’t something you buy every day but it is one of the cheapest cuts actually and works great for this. Rump or bottom round will shred too but guaranteed you’ll find chuck roast in every grocery store for next to nothing.

How do you cook roast in an Instant Pot Duo?

Of course it’s better to have it thawed for Instant Pot roast beef but it happens. If you have this “old” pot (I do too) the only difference is one button. Instead of just hitting pressure you have to touch manual first, then pressure and adjust the timing. Follow the recipe card instructions below for the rest.

Ingredients

1. 3-4 lb. roast, we used chuck roast
2. Onion sliced for flavor and texture
3. Apple cider vinegar for a pop of flavor for the sauce
4. Ketchup gives it a rich flavor
5. Beef broth or stock works too
6. Tomato paste to thicken the sauce
7. Brown sugar makes it sweet to your liking
8. Garlic, minced goes in everything
9. Paprika I love
10. Garlic powder or onion works
11. Some soy sauce
12. Salt and I used Mrs. Dash salt free seasoning

Substitutions

If you need gluten free options, one is for soy sauce. You can use aminos instead of that. Sugar-free brown sugar can be used like Splenda in a 1:1 ratio typically.

Can you make shredded beef with frozen roast?

Yes, you can even cook beef from frozen if you forgot to defrost it like we did with Frozen Chuck Roast Instant Pot directions. Just as easy as this one and almost the same timing. You will be surprised at the fact that under high pressure you can break down connective tissues in about 1 hour!

How long does it take to cook chuck roast in Instant Pot?

Pressure cooker cook time for beef in large chunks like this is 60 minutes for 3 pounds or about 80 minutes for 5 pounds. Now this will vary just a bit depending on whether yours is bone-in or boneless but give or take even 10 minutes won’t ruin it like it will with poultry which doesn’t take as long.

Honestly I used it because it was something in my freezer that needed to be used up and I was curious to see how it would soften up cooking it this way.  It’s cheap but typically isn’t a popular cut of meat because it tends to be tougher unless it’s slow cooked.

It did surprisingly well too with this really flavorful sauce and high pressure cooking. I also made a version of air fryer chuck roast that was pretty killer too. If you have both appliances, or have the Instant Pot air fryer lid you could make both and compare.

Whether you use a bone in or boneless chuck or beef roast shoulder the timing will work for a piece that is 3-3.5 pounds.

How to Cook Shredded Beef in Pressure Cooker

• Slice your onion, large slices and put into your pressure cooker on bottom. Place your chuck roast on top (cut in half if you need to to fit properly with lid closed).
• In a separate bowl whisk together all other items until smooth and pour on top of your meat.
• Close your pressure cooker lid and close steam valve. Set to high pressure for 1 hour 10 minutes, then allow to naturally release for 10 minutes.
  • Quick release isn’t the best when cooking large cuts of meat. You can maintain more of the juiciness and tenderness if you allow it some time to pressure release the steam slowly.
  • Same idea goes when making Instant Pot Mississippi roast that becomes seriously incredibly tender like this.
• I shred the beef and remove all the large pieces of fat and bone(s) at this time. Leaving it in the liquid will keep it tender and it will continue to soak up more of the flavor the longer it sits in it too.

That’s how we made our Instant Pot barbecue beef recipe. This is how we serve it! SO good right??!!

What should you serve with pulled beef?

I mean it isn’t much different than anything else we would make with any of our other 3 ingredient Instant Pot recipes. We like to top ours with some cold macaroni salad!! Seriously, don’t knock it until you try it.

• Put some Hawaii cole slaw on top or as a side dish
• Serve it with a salad
• If you want a low carb keto dish then just enjoy it alone or with brussel sprouts

If you’re having a party this is a great way to make a slider bar with all the fixings! Just keep this on warm after it is done with all the sides available with small hamburger buns and tortillas available as well. 

How do you freeze cooked beef?

Store Pressure cooker roast beef in a freezer bag or airtight container. It should last 3 or 4 days in the refrigerator. You can also freeze it in the same containers or wrap tightly with heavy duty aluminum foil.