Slow Cooker Dijon Pot Roast
A chuck roast rubbed with stone-ground Dijon, Worcestershire, garlic and herbs, then slow cooked on a bed of gold potatoes, carrots and celery until it's fork tender. The mustard mellows into a rich, savory crust by dinnertime.
Ingredients
2½ to 3 lb chuck roast, fully thawed
3 tbsp stone-ground Dijon mustard
3 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp kosher salt, for the rub
1 tsp black pepper, for the rub
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp dried rosemary
½ tsp paprika
1 yellow onion, chopped
4 medium carrots, cut into chunks
4 celery stalks, chopped
1½ lb petite gold potatoes, left whole
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp kosher salt and ½ tsp pepper, for the vegetables
1 cup low-sodium beef broth
Steps
Make sure the roast is fully thawed. A frozen center won't get tender in the slow cooker, and it isn't food safe. Thawing in the fridge takes about a day.
The night before, mix the Dijon, Worcestershire, garlic, 1 tbsp salt, 1 tsp pepper, thyme, rosemary and paprika. Rub it all over the roast, seal it in a gallon zip bag with the air pressed out and refrigerate overnight.
Chop the onion, carrots and celery the night before too, if you like. Store them in their own zip bag in the fridge. They hold up fine overnight.
In the morning, toss the vegetables and potatoes with the olive oil, 1 tsp salt and ½ tsp pepper. Whole potatoes with skins barely soak up the broth, so this step is what keeps them from tasting bland. Spread them in the bottom of the slow cooker.
Set the roast on top of the vegetables, scraping any rub left in the bag over it. Pour the broth in around the edges, not over the top, so it doesn't wash off the crust.
Cover and cook on low for 8 to 10 hours. It's done when a fork twists through the meat easily. If it still feels tough, it just needs more time, so give it another hour or two.
Taste the juices and add a pinch of salt to the pot if needed before serving. Slice or pull the roast and spoon the juices over the meat and vegetables.
Michael's notes
Our first try went in still partly frozen and came out tough at dinner. Two more hours on low fixed it, and the leftovers were great the next day, so don't skip the thaw. Use a ceramic crock that has come to room temperature, since a cold insert going straight into a hot base can crack. The mustard mellows way down as it cooks, so don't be shy with it.