A French Onion Roast Worth Beefing About
The holidays always bring opportunities for easy entertaining. When hosting family or friends this season, simplify your life with this easy yet delicious French onion pot roast.
I mean onions and garlic sautéing in a pan together….it’s a heavenly combo. With just a few pantry ingredients plus your pick of beef cut, it practically cooks itself.
Here’s how it works its magic: First, seasoned roast beef sears to juicy, browned perfection. Then a mess of sliced onions cozy up to the beef as they caramelize down with garlic, Worcestershire, broth, bay leaves and thyme into the ultimate savory-sweet flavor base that permeates every bite. For my party, I served it over Thyme Mashed Potatoes and ended the night off with some French Chocolate Cake for dessert. It made for a perfect dinner course!
Simple ingredients and easy hands-off prep means more time spent with your friends and family. Plus this pot roast manages to feel cozy, craveable AND a little bit fancy all at once.
Ingredients:
3-4 lb beef roast (chuck, rump, sirloin)
3-4 onions, sliced (yellow)
2+ cups beef OR vegetable broth
2-3 tbsp Worcestershire (or soy) sauce
3-5 garlic cloves, minced
Salt and pepper
Oil/butter for searing
Thyme/bay leaves to taste (optional)
Corn starch or flour (optional)
Cooking Steps:
Season Roast: You know the drill. Season the beef roast with salt and pepper. In a hot skillet with some oil or butter, brown all sides of the roast to seal in the juices. Remove the roast and set it aside.
I cheated here and bought a prepared, semi-cooked beef roast cut from my local butcher. Therefore, I just needed to cook it off in the gravy. However, if you’re roasting your beef, follow the steps below as is. If not, read steps 4 and 5 carefully!
Caramelize Onions: In the same skillet, add more oil or butter if needed, then add the sliced onions. Cook them slowly until they are soft, browned, and caramelized. Add garlic and cook for another minute.
Deglaze: Use broth to scrape up flavorful bits stuck to bottom. I used vegetable stock since it’s what I had on hand, but beef stock would work even more wonderfully for this recipe.
Assemble and Add Liquid: Place the beef roast in a slow cooker or oven-safe pot. Add the caramelized onions and garlic on top. Mix in Worcestershire or soy sauce with the beef broth and pour it over the roast. Add thyme or bay leaves if desired.
Cook Low & Slow: Cook the roast on low in a slow cooker for about 8 hours, or in an oven at 325°F (165°C) for about 3-4 hours, or until the beef is tender.
However, because I used a pre-prepped roast, I let all of the ingredients meld together in a cast iron pan on the stove for about 1-2 hours. The beef cooks fully in the gravy and absorbs all of the delicious flavors. If you feel like the gravy isn’t thickening up, then add 1-2 tablespoons of cornstarch and/or flour (depending on the amount of liquid) and mix it in throughly. You will notice it becoming thicker once it comes to a simmer and starts cooling down.
Serve: Serve the roast sliced, with the onions and some of the cooking juices drizzled over the top.
Let me know if you try this recipe or dinner menu course! I know it’ll be quite the crowd-pleaser :)