Description

This French Onion Pot Roast recipe combines tender, slow-cooked beef chuck roast with deeply caramelized onions and rich onion soup flavors, resulting in a hearty and comforting meal. The roast is seared for a flavorful crust, then slow-cooked with sherry wine, beef broth, and a blend of aromatic seasonings until fork-tender. Perfect for a cozy dinner served alongside mashed potatoes, noodles, or roasted vegetables.

Ingredients

Scale

Main

2 tablespoons all purpose flour (or gluten-free flour mix)
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
2.5 lb boneless beef chuck roast, trimmed
½ tablespoon olive oil
4 cups onion, thinly sliced half moons (3 small or 2 medium)
⅓ cup sherry wine
2 cups beef bone broth
1 1¼-ounce package dry onion soup mix (about 3 tablespoons, check labels for gluten free or use homemade recipe)
4 sprigs thyme

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Instructions

Prepare seasoning mix: In a small bowl, combine flour, garlic powder, onion powder, kosher salt, and black pepper. Rub 1 tablespoon of this seasoning mixture thoroughly over the chuck roast. Set the roast and the remaining seasoning mixture aside.
Caramelize onions: In a large pan starting with cold olive oil and onions, cook over medium-low heat for 25 to 30 minutes, stirring often. Adjust heat to prevent burning. Cook until onions are deeply golden, caramelized, and sweet in flavor.
Thicken onion mixture: Add remaining seasoning mixture to the onions and stir well. Pour in sherry wine and cook for 1 to 2 minutes until the mixture thickens and becomes fragrant. Add beef bone broth and dry onion soup mix, stir to combine, then transfer the entire onion mixture to the slow cooker.
Brown the roast: Wipe out the pan used for onions (doesn’t need to be completely clean, just dry). Spray with olive oil and heat over medium-high. Brown the seasoned chuck roast on all sides, about 2 to 3 minutes per side, until caramelized and crusty.
Slow cook roast: Place the browned roast into the slow cooker on top of the onion mixture. Nestle thyme sprigs around the meat. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours.
Slice and finish cooking: At the 7-hour mark, remove the roast and slice it into 6 pieces. Taste the broth and adjust salt if needed. Return the sliced beef to the slow cooker and continue cooking uncovered for 1 more hour until meat is fork tender.
Serve: Serve the pot roast hot with your choice of sides such as egg noodles, mashed potatoes, mashed cauliflower, or roasted potatoes and vegetables.
Alternate stove/oven method: Place the browned roast and caramelized onions into a Dutch oven or heavy oven-safe pot. Bake in a preheated 375°F oven for about 2½ hours, or until the meat is fork tender. Check liquid level at 1½ hours to ensure enough moisture remains. Cook until meat and vegetables are tender.

Notes

Use gluten-free flour if gluten intolerance is a concern.
Check dry onion soup mix labels for gluten content or prepare a homemade version for a gluten-free option.
Sherry wine can be substituted with dry white wine or apple cider for a non-alcoholic version.
For thicker gravy, you can remove the roast after cooking and reduce the broth on stovetop before serving.
This recipe works well with a heavy oven-safe pot if slow cooker is unavailable.
Leftovers store well and flavors improve after a day.