Have you ever watched the Pioneer Woman? I think I want to be her when I grow up! She is the one who has helped me the most on my cooking journey. I love to watch her cooking show and I have all her cookbooks. She makes everything look so simple and easy! I also feel a special connection with her because she homeschools her kids, started out as a food blogger, and our birthdays are a day apart! This recipe for Slow Cooked Chuck Roast is based off of her recipe for Tomato Brisket. I can rarely find a piece of brisket meat small enough for my family so I substitute with chuck roast and it comes out fine! This recipe has a lot of versatility in serving and can be made in the oven or Crockpot.
The first 3 ingredients are super simple. In fact, I bet you have them in your pantry right now! All you need is 24 oz of regular ketchup, 1 package of dry onion soup mix, and 1/2 cup of water. Mix those all in a medium-sized bowl until nice and creamy.
Now cover a roasting pan with foil (for easy clean-up) and layer a small amount of ketchup for the bottom of the meat. You can also use your Crockpot for this recipe. Be sure to put ketchup on the bottom there too so that the bottom of the meat won’t burn.
Now place a 3-4 lb chuck roast inside and pour the ketchup mixture on top. The Pioneer Woman suggests using a brisket, and it is delicious, I assure you! But I find that chuck roast is less expensive, easier to find, and comes in smaller portions meant for my family of 5. However, if you are cooking for a large group or want to have leftovers for another night, you may want the larger sized brisket meat and to double the ketchup mixture.
Let the meat roast in the oven at 275 degrees for 4 hours or until it shreds easily with a fork. If you are using your slow cooker, turn it to low for 6 hours or until the meat falls apart.
When finished, remove the roast from the heat and let it sit in it’s juices for awhile. If you are using the Crockpot, turn the heat setting to WARM.
CAUTION: YOUR HOUSE IS GOING TO SMELL AMAZING! It is quite possible neighbors, gardeners, the mailman, and even stray cats will show up at your front door! The slow-cooked tomato aroma from this roast might be my favorite part of this recipe. I say “might” because it is rivaled by it’s tangy flavor and versatility in serving. Sometimes I eat it straight out of the roasting pan. Sometimes I am more civilized and eat it on a plate with mashed potatoes, oven roasted brussel sprouts, or my kid’s favorite: baked macaroni and cheese. But if I don’t have time to serve a full course meal, I stuff the shredded tomato roast in hoagie rolls and serve it with kettle chips.
If you try this recipe, let me know what you think! You may also like to try one of my top 3 Crockpot meals of all time: 5 Ingredient Crockpot Orange Chicken, Crockpot Baby-Back Ribs with Homemade Rub, or Healthy Crockpot Enchilada Quinoa. Happy cooking y’all!
4 Ingredient Slow Cooked Chuck Roast
Ingredients
- 3-4 lb chuck roast
- 24 oz regular ketchup
- 1 dry onion soup mix
- 1/2 cup water
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 275 degrees or the Crockpot to LOW.
- Coat the bottom of the pan with ketchup and set roast on top.
- Mix the ketchup, onion soup seasonings, and water until smooth.
- Pour the mixture over the meat and cover.
- Cook in the oven for 4 hours or until meat shreds easily.
- Cook on LOW in the Crockpot for 6 hours or until meat shreds easily.
- Shred the meat.
- Let the meat sit in it's juices 10+ minutes after it is shredded.
- Serve warm over mashed potatoes or inside hoagie rolls.
