French Onion Pot Roast Is Comfort Food Perfection [Food Finds]

Chuck roast, caramelized onions, toasted baguette, and melted Gruyère. French onion soup just got a lot more filling. Get the recipe!

Few things are more comforting than a good pot roast.

Unless you give it the full French onion soup treatment and cover it with toasted bread and melted cheese.

That’s what this French Onion Pot Roast from Chef Elizabeth Reese does, and I’m all for it.

We’re talking chuck roast. Caramelized onions. Beef broth, white wine, and a splash of red. Toasted baguette. Gruyère.

And a quick trip under the broiler to make it all bubble.

French Onion Soup, Now With Beef

Reese has already made French onion steak soup and French onion chicken, so a pot roast was probably inevitable.

Season the chuck roast with garlic powder, onion powder, smoked paprika, and thyme, then sear it in a Dutch oven. Next, cook the onions in butter for 15 to 20 minutes, until golden and caramelized. Add the garlic, flour, both wines, Worcestershire, and broth, along with a bundle of thyme and rosemary.

Then return the roast to the pot and braise in a 350°F oven until it pulls apart with a fork.

It’s French onion soup, only now with a very large piece of beef.

Now, About the Cheese

While the roast finishes, toast baguette slices. Then shred the beef (or leave it in the pot), lay the toast on top, cover with 8 ounces of shredded Gruyère, and broil for a few minutes, until it’s bubbly.

Toasting the bread first matters, by the way. Reese says it keeps the baguette from turning to mush the second it hits the broth.

Melted cheese on pot roast should happen more often.

This One Takes Some Planning

This is not a weeknight dinner. The recipe lists 20 minutes of prep and about six hours of cooking, with the braise taking five and a half to six of those.

Most of that time is hands-off, though. Put it in the oven, then go do literally anything else.

If you’d rather use a slow cooker, Reese says that works too. Just sear the beef and caramelize the onions first, then add the bread and cheese at the end.

She also says it tastes even better the next day. Just make the baguette and cheese topping fresh.

Go Make the French Onion Pot Roast

Is it a long cook? Yes.

Is it worth it for beef, onions, and bubbling Gruyère? Also yes.

The recipe serves four, which seems optimistic.