The first Instant Pot recipe I want to share is my Perfect Pot Roast, a Sunday family favorite, which cooks in half the time
(sometimes even less!)
Instant Pots are everywhere! They’re a cooking appliance known as a “Multi Cooker” which means it has several different functions, it's most notable (and useful, in my experience) being a pressure cooker. I have to say, I was a bit of
a latecomer to the Instant Pot world. I am generally resistant to new electronic cooking appliances because I’m a bit old school-New school and love a dutch oven and slow cookers. But then saw this beautiful floral Instant Pot and became an IP evangelist.
I’ve slowly but surely come to LOVE, LOVE, LOVE it.
Here’s how it’s done!
Sear the roast before you cook it, so hit the “saute” button. This heats the bottom of the insert. While it heats up, season a chuck roast with salt and pepper.
When the Instant Pot is ready to saute, it will say “Hot!” Pour in a little oil and throw in the roast!
It’ll start to smoke and steam. It gets hot in there! Not quite as hot as a heated cast iron… But definitely hot enough to brown the surface of the meat.
When it’s browned on both sides, remove it to a plate.
Then throw in some large chunks of onion. These are going to cook down to almost nothingness, so the bigger the pieces, the better.
Move the onions around for a couple of minutes and let them start to brown.
Note: Some normally add carrots to their pot roast but I’m not that fond of carrots so I add extra onions.
Now’s the time to add in some red wine. A little…or not a little. (About 1/2 cup.)
Stir the onions, scraping up the bits from the bottom as much as you can. Let the wine cook for a minute or so…
Then pour in beef broth.
I love rosemary, thyme and wine in my pot roast! No need to chop.
Finally, the meat—as well as all the juices on the plate.
Now it’s time to pressure cook! Put the lid on. lock it closed, and you’ll know it’s locked when it emits a lovely little chime.
This is the pressure valve. You want to make sure it’s in the “Sealing” position.
Push the “Manual” button.
Hit the plus sign until it gets to 60 minutes, then give it a few seconds…and it will start the pressure cooking process! After a little time, you will see some steam releasing from the valve in a steady stream. This is normal! The Instant Pot is releasing excess steam as it comes up to temperature. This can take several minutes. When this little button pops up, that means the unit is sealed and the pressure cooking has begun. From there, it will cook for 60 minutes.
Once the 60 minutes is done, the unit will automatically change to “Keep Warm.” During this time, the Instant Pot will remain locked and will begin naturally releasing pressure on its own. It is best not to disturb the process during this time. Rather than counting down from 60 as it did when it was pressure cooking, the Instant Pot will now count up the minutes it is taking to release the pressure naturally.
You have the option to use a spoon handle to manually push the valve to “Venting” to manually release the pressure. However, when I have the time, I try to let the Instant Pot release as much pressure naturally as possible before I release the rest of the pressure manually. I think the food is better for it.
After about 15 minutes of natural release, I’ll often go ahead and release the rest manually so I can get this show on the road!
When the steam is no longer coming out… The button will pop down, indicating the pressure has been released and it’s safe to open the lid.
And look at that! It looks like a roast that’s been simmering away for 3-4 hours. At this point, It is absolutely falling apart.
Next, skim off as much fat as you can from the top before disturbing everything and mixing the fat in.
Serve big shreds of the pot roast with a side of mashed potatoes and the cooking liquid spooned over the roast.
INGREDIENTS
2 teaspoons seasoning salt (I use Lawry's)
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon dried parsley
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon Sea Salt
3 sprigs Fresh Rosemary
3 sprigs Fresh Thyme
3 To 4 Pounds beef chuck roast cut into 1lb chunks
1 tablespoon canola oil
2 -3 whole Large Yellow Onions, Peeled And Quartered
1 cup Red Wine (I use a sweet wine)
1 cup low sodium beef broth
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1.5 lb Little OR for Mashed Garlic- Potatoes
3 large carrots peeled and cut into thick slices for me, OPTIONAL
OPTIONAL: corn starch to thicken juices
INSTRUCTIONS
Set the Instant to “Saute” and allow to warm. In a small bowl, combine seasoning salt, garlic, parsley, onion powder, and pepper. Season roast generously.
Turn Instant Pot to saute. When it reads "hot", add the oil and sear roast on all sides. To do this, place the roast in the pot and do not move for 2-3 minutes. When you flip it, it should release from the pan easily. Remove to a clean plate.
Add in onions and carrots and cook for an additional 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Deglaze with red wine, scraping the bottom of the pot to get all of the delicious bits. Add in the beef stock, rosemary, thyme, and beef.
To the Instant Pot add broth, tomato paste, vinegar and Worcestershire sauce -- if there are brown bits stuck to the bottom from the meat, give them a scrape and they should release easily. Stir to combine.
Lock the lid into place, place vent to sealing, push "Manual," and set time to 60 minutes. The Instant Pot will release some steam as it comes up to pressure, then it will seal automatically.
When the cooking time is done, allow the Instant Pot to naturally vent for at least 10 minutes, 20 is better. Using a wooden spoon, carefully push the valve open to release the rest of the pressure. Remove lid.
Add the Little Potatoes and carrots, put the lid back on, turn the valve to sealing and select Manual or Pressure Cook for 3 minutes.
When the cook time is over, let the pressure release naturally for 10 minutes before moving the valve to venting, releasing remaining pressure and opening the lid.
Skim as much fat off the top of the liquid as you can before disturbing the roast.
Serve alongside carrots and onions, topped with the pan juices. Serve with Little OR Mashed Garlic Mashed Potatoes and carrots.
OPTIONAL: If desired, combine equal parts corn starch and water, stir into the remaining juices and turn the Instant Pot to saute. Whisk continuously until juices are thickened. Taste sauce and adjust seasoning as desired, adding a tablespoon of honey if you want to add a little sweetness.
