Do I Add Water to Beef in Slow Cooker
Tender roast beef, mashed potatoes, vegetables and a rich meaty gravy – all made in your slow cooker. Warming comfort food bliss.
Whilst I adore putting the slow cooker on the in the morning and having a meal pretty much waiting for me in the evening, one of the things I'm not keen on is when everything tastes the same .
It's all been cooking together for hours, and those flavours have been mingling, which means every mouthful can taste like the last. B-O-R-I-N-G!
I don't want greeny-brown green beans and potatoes that have no texture or bite to them. I want fall-apart meat, thick gravy, and veggies with flavour!
This one-pot slow cooker roast beef with veggies has a lovely, juicy beef brisket, with vibrant, al-dente green beans, flavour-packed buttered carrots, rustic creamy mashed potatoes and a thick meaty gravy.
If you are after a traditional Roast Beef or even a Roast Pork then i have got you covered too.
So how do make do it?
We start by seasoning the beef, then searing it in a pan, or your slow cooker if it has a searing function like my crockpot has (<-- affiliate link). Then along with the beef we add garlic, thyme, red wine and stock. Bring to the boil (and transfer to your slow cooker at this point if you've been using a pan up until now). Add carrots, shallots and chopped skin-on potatoes, and cook on 😋.
Add in the green beans for the last 20 minutes of cooking - this will ensure they're hot through, but retain colour and bite.
Once it's all cooked, remove the brisket and veg from the pan and place in a serving dish. Pick out the potatoes (leave the skin on) and mash up in a bowl using a fork. Add a good knob of butter and a glug of double (heavy) cream and mash again.
You can thicken up the juices left in the slow cooker by bringing to a boil (either in the slow cooker using the sear function) or in a pan, and stirring in a little cornflour (cornstarch) slurry.
Serve the gravy with your dish of brisket, veg and mashed potatoes.
Pro Tips for ensuring your one-pot slow cooker dinner isn't boring:
- Sear the meat before it goes in - this browning, known as the maillard reaction, enhances the brisket's flavour, giving it that umami, caramelized meatiness and aroma. It's not about sealing the juices in (as is commonly believed), it's about enhancing the flavour, and ensuring that flavour carries through to the rest of the dish. Think about those lovely crusty bits on the bottom of the pan when you make a roast (and the lovely flavoured sauce you can get from them), that's what that crustiness on the meat helps to flavour the dish with.
- Add a few veggies that only need light cooking in the last 20 minutes . If you have some veggies that usually only need 10 minutes to cook (green beans, small florets of broccoli, asparagus etc), add them into the slow cooker for 15-20 minutes. Remember, a slow cooker isn't simmering away like a pot of water would be, so the veggies take a little longer to cook.
- Scoop out some of the veggies and add a little something to them to give them a different flavour or texture. I've purposely left the skin on my chopped up potatoes in this dish. I scoop them out, then mash them with a fork (skin too) with salt, pepper, a big knob of butter and a good splash of double (heavy) cream. This results in a lovely rustic mash. Yes, it's browner than classic mashed potatoes - as it's been cooked in the braising liquid, but it tastes fab. And you can always spruce up the colour by sprinkling on a little fresh parsley.
- Add a little cornflour (cornstarch) slurry to the sauce to thicken it and make feel more rich and satisfying. That cooking liquor, after hours of cooking with the meat and veg, as going to be really tasty . Thicken it up for a big jug of gravy that you can pour over your brisket and vegetables - rather than serving the meal as a stew-like dish.
That 'maillard reaction we were talking about above? You can see the result in this close-up. A lovely dark, flavourful crust on the beef 😋
What joint of beef is best for slow cooker?
- Brisket - from the breast or lower chest of beef.
- This is one of the most flavorful cuts of meat, but it can be tough if not cooked in the right way. It's got a moderate amount of fat, but that helps keep the meat juicy. It's basically made of the chest muscle and is a coarse-grained meat that needs long, slow low-temperature to tenderize. That course-grained type of meat means it's often used for US-style corned beef, and it can crumble when cut (not in a dry way – rather in a juicy, fall-apart way when cooked slowly). So thick slices are the way to go if you don't want it to fall apart when slicing.
- Chuck Roast (braising steak joint) - comes from the forequarter- Consisting of parts of the neck, shoulder blade, and upper arm.
- It's a tough but very flavorful cut of meat. It has a lot of connective tissue, which needs long slow cooking to break down and become tender. Unlike the crumbliness of brisket, chuck roast can be shredded (pulled) into strips.
- Silverside (bottom round) - comes from the hindquarter - just above the back leg
- It's a leaner, inexpensive cut of meat with little marbling. The lack of fat means it doesn't have as much flavour as the brisket or chuck roast, so make sure you use good quality stock to cook it in. It's good for slow cooking, but must be cooked with moisture/liquid so doesn't dry out and become tough. Silverside can be sliced without falling apart too much.
The Slow Cooker Roast Beef Video:
The Slow Cooker Roast Beef Recipe:
Slow Cooker Roast Beef
Tender roast beef, mashed potato, vegetables and a rich meaty gravy – all made in your slow cooker. Warming comfort food.
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1.2 kg -1.5kg rolled brisket or chuck roast - *Note 1
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- ½ tsp celery salt
- ½ tsp dried thyme or two sprigs of fresh thyme
- 3 cloves garlic - peeled and minced
- 1 cup (240ml) red wine
- 2 cups (480ml) beef stock
- 1 kg floury potatoes – such as Maris Piper or Albert Bartlett - chopped into large chunks (no need to peel)
- 3 large carrots - peeled and roughly chopped into large chunks
- 10 shallots - peeled
- 10 ½ oz (300g) trimmed fresh green beans
- 1 tbsp salted butter
- 2 tbsp double/heavy cream
- 2 tbsp cornflour (cornstarch) mixed with 5 tbsp cold water
- A few sprigs of fresh thyme
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Heat the oil on high in a large frying pan (or use the sear function of your crockpot if it has one like mine - check it out here).
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Sprinkle the salt, pepper and celery salt on the beef joint and place in the pan. Cook, turning every few minutes until well browned on all sides. This should take about 10-12 minutes altogether.
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Add the thyme, garlic, red wine and stock and bring to the boil.
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If you've been using a pan so far, now is the time to transfer the beef brisket to the crockpot and pour over the juices from the pan.
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Add the potatoes, carrots and shallots. Place the lid on and cook for 5-6 hours on high or 7-8 hours on low.
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About 20 minutes before the beef is ready, add the green beans to the slow cooker. This should allow them to cook lightly, so they still have a bit of crunch and retain their bright green colour.
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Turn off the crockpot and transfer the beef, carrots, shallots and green beans to a large serving dish.
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Place the potatoes in a bowl and mash together with the butter and cream. I like to leave the skins on, but you can peel the skins off before mashing if you prefer.
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Transfer the cooking juices to a pan (or use the sear function on your crockpot if it has one) and bring to the boil.
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Slow pour in the cornflour whilst stirring, until the sauce is thickened. You may not need all of the cornstarch.
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Slice the beef brisket and serve with the vegetables, mashed potato and red wine gravy.
Note 1: Slow cooked brisket often crumbles (not in a dry way – rather in a juicy, fall-apart way when cooked slowly. If you prefer a meat that holds together better, use a beef roasting joint such as silverside. Try to find one with a little fat running through it for flavour).
What joint of beef is best for slow cooker?
- Brisket - from the breast or lower chest of beef.
- This is one of the most flavorful cuts of meat, but it can be tough if not cooked in the right way. It's got a moderate amount of fat, but that helps keep the meat juicy. It's basically made of the chest muscle and is a coarse-grained meat that needs long, slow low-temperature to tenderize. That course-grained type of meat means it's often used for US-style corned beef, and it can crumble when cut (not in a dry way – rather in a juicy, fall-apart way when cooked slowly). So thick slices are the way to go if you don't want it to fall apart when slicing.
- Chuck Roast (braising steak joint) - comes from the forequarter- Consisting of parts of the neck, shoulder blade, and upper arm.
- It's a tough but very flavorful cut of meat. It has a lot of connective tissue, which needs long slow cooking to break down and become tender. Unlike the crumbliness of brisket, chuck roast can be shredded (pulled) into strips.
- Silverside (bottom round) - comes from the hindquarter - just above the back leg
- It's a leaner, inexpensive cut of meat with little marbling. The lack of fat means it doesn't have as much flavour as the brisket or chuck roast, so make sure you use good quality stock to cook it in. It's good for slow cooking, but must be cooked with moisture/liquid so doesn't dry out and become tough. Silverside can be sliced without falling apart too much.
Nutritional Information is per serving
Calories: 615 kcal Carbohydrates: 45 g Protein: 49 g Fat: 24 g Saturated Fat: 11 g Cholesterol: 136 mg Sodium: 978 mg Potassium: 1965 mg Fiber: 6 g Sugar: 9 g Vitamin A: 5582 IU Vitamin C: 26 mg Calcium: 86 mg Iron: 7 mg
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Source: https://www.kitchensanctuary.com/slow-cooker-roast-beef/
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