Slow Cooker

Hugh Acheson's Slow-Cooker Pot Roast With Chickpea Salad

by:
September 13, 2018
3.5
13 Ratings
Photo by Andrew Thomas Lee
  • Prep time 25 minutes
  • Cook time 8 hours
  • Serves 6 to 8
Author Notes

Reprinted from The Chef and the Slow Cooker. Copyright © 2017 by Fried Pie, LLC. Photographs copyright © 2017 by Andrew Thomas Lee. Published by Clarkson Potter/Publishers, an imprint of Penguin Random House, LLC.

Pot roast sometimes gets a bad rap for being dry, boring, and bland. I understand the hesitation with dishes that maybe you had bad versions of growing up, but this recipe shines a new light on a classic. Using chuck and cooking it slow-and-low allows it time to fully develop its flavor. Pair it with a fresh chickpea salad to brighten up the dish. —Food52

Test Kitchen Notes

Featured in: 10 Slow-Cooker Recipes Made for Fall TV Binges. —The Editors

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Ingredients
  • Pot Roast
  • 1 boneless beef chuck roast (about 3 pounds)
  • Kosher salt
  • 1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 tablespoons canola oil
  • 4 medium carrots, large-diced
  • 6 garlic cloves, smashed
  • 6 bay leaves
  • 6 sprigs fresh thyme
  • 1 quart beef stock
  • 1 quart dry red wine
  • 1 tablespoon coriander seeds, toasted and ground
  • Charred Onion & Chickpea Salad, recipe follows
  • Charred Onion & Chickpea Salad
  • 1 tablespoon canola oil
  • 1 large red onion, halved lengthwise, root end of each half left intact
  • 2 (15-ounce) cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
  • 2 cups coarsely chopped fresh cilantro (from about 1 bunch)
  • 4 red jalapeño peppers, thinly sliced
  • 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
  • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon ground cumin
  • Kosher salt
Directions
  1. Pot Roast
  2. Pat the chuck roast dry and season it all over with salt and the pepper.
  3. Place a large braising pan, such as a Dutch oven, over high heat and warm the canola oil in it until it shimmers. Add the chuck roast and sear it for about 5 minutes per side, until nicely browned. Transfer the roast to a plate to rest, and add the carrots and onion to the braising pan. Cook for 3 minutes on high heat, stirring, until the vegetables are starting to soften; then add the garlic, bay leaves, and thyme sprigs and cook for 1 minute more. Add the stock, red wine, and ground coriander and deglaze the pan, scraping up any browned bits. Cook for 5 minutes.
  4. Remove the pan from the heat and carefully pour the contents into a slow cooker. Add the chuck roast, cover with the lid, and cook on the low setting for 8 to 10 hours, until very tender. Season with additional salt, if desired.
  5. Transfer the roast to a platter, discard the bay and thyme, and serve the Charred Onion & Chickpea Salad alongside.
  1. Charred Onion & Chickpea Salad
  2. Heat a small skillet over medium-high heat. Add the canola oil, and when it begins to shimmer, add the onion halves, cut-side down, and char for about 10 minutes—you want them to be well blackened. Remove the skillet from the heat and let the onion halves cool to room temperature; then slice each half into 1/4-inch-thick half-rings.
  3. In a medium bowl, combine the chickpeas, cilantro, jalapeños, charred onion slices, lemon juice, olive oil, and cumin. Toss well and season with salt to taste.

See what other Food52ers are saying.

11 Reviews

Handlace February 20, 2022
My son asked why this tasted like hand sanitizer. The amount of wine seemed too much but the chickpea salad was yummy.
iacornejo January 4, 2022
I loved it! I prepared it before I went to bed and let it cook in slow cooker/instapot over night. The onion missing in the ingredients did catch me off guard, luckily I had tons of shallots. Overall my family of 6 was very happy with the meal.
NXL March 14, 2020
This is very good, although honestly the best part was the salad . I'm trying not to waste anything , so I used the cilantro stems. Per the comments , I braised in the combo steam oven. Set aside the 'gravy' and the carrots for a second meal with smashed potatoes .
marti February 18, 2020
I made this over the weekend. I added a scallion rather than the phantom onion listed in directions. I also really enjoyed the salad with this roast. I served it with sliced avocado. It was the perfect Sunday dinner.
Kstark November 14, 2019
If you don’t love pot roast then you MUST try THIS recipe!!❤️
Kstark November 14, 2019
Made this last night. Was never a fan of pot roast growing up (Sorry mom!) but the intro paragraph caught my eye and I was intrigued enough to try it. My family LOVED it!! (Unfortunately no leftovers!). The beef was tender and delicious and the chickpea salad was light and bright and lended this dish a very modern twist on an old and tired classic.
Wendy F. September 23, 2018
Is there a way to do this without a slow cooker? Any advise?
Annika K. October 21, 2018
Absolutely. If you put the cover on your Dutch oven and cook in the oven on low heat (200-225F) it will braise. I would check it after a couple of hours to see how it's doing. Oven temperatures can vary a bit even if your oven is regularly calibrated, so I usually just pay closer attention than if it's in my slow cooker. Good luck!
Dave A. September 23, 2018
Hi—the roast portion of the method calls for adding an onion, but none is noted in the ingredients. What kind of onion and how much? Thanks!
Mary M. September 26, 2018
The epicurious.com version has an additional ingredient -- one large sweet onion, large diced.
Dave A. September 27, 2018
Thanks! Threw a diced onion in anyway—figured it couldn’t hurt :)