Instant pot is used for many recipes, and cooking a roast in an instant pot could be tricky for most amateur chefs, but once you make it, you realize it’s one of the easiest and tastiest ways to cook a pot roast, many professional chefs would agree.
There are many things to consider when making this family’s favorite comfort food, from the roast cut to the cooking method and, most importantly, the time and directions used to prepare your meal. This article discusses some great tips to consider when making your instant pot roast to get a delicious tender roast with soft, not mushy, or overcooked veggies; keep reading to find out.
Roast Nutrition Facts
Tips to Note When Cooking Your Instant Pot Roast
To get a tender, quick, and delicious instant pot roast, try some of these tips below:
Wrap your veggies in a foil- an instant pot roast recipe wouldn’t be as tasty with mushy vegetables, so to avoid this, wrap your veggies in aluminum foil and add them later in the cooking process.
Use the right meat cut- meat cuts like chuck, brisket, and round are the best go-to option for beef pot roast. Since the beef cooks for a long period, it is beneficial to use tougher cuts like those above; they are lean cuts with lots of connective tissues and hold up well when cooking.
Place the fatty side of your meat cut facing upward- if you get a beef cut that has fat in it, you could either cut it out if you don’t want it or use it as an extra favor enhancer, all you’d have to do is place the beef with the fatty sides facing upward for the fat juices to drip through the meat giving a nice flavor to your meat and overall recipe.
Use a low-sodium beef broth-most beef broths are full of sodium because of their high salt content, so choose one with less sodium for taste and health benefits.
Use prepared horseradish sauce- Prepared horseradish is a flavorful liquid condiment often used in this recipe; use it instead of the creamy horseradish sauce. It is made with grated horseradish root, vinegar, salt, and water and is available in most grocery stores. In cases where you can’t find the prepared horseradish, you could use Worcestershire sauce as a substitute.
Add some drinking red wine instead of cooking red wine- using your regular drinking red wine would add some flavor to your recipe.
Do not sauté with the lid on- putting on a lid when sauteing is not necessary, but if putting the lid on is something you often do, and you’re comfortable with it, then you can go ahead and always remember to wait for the pot to get hot before adding your food.
Naturally, release the pressure cooker for 15 minutes and serve- after cooking your meat, allow it to sit in the pressure cooker for an additional 15 minutes, allowing the pressure cooker to release some of its pressure. After about 15 minutes, use the quick-release button to release any remaining pressure in the cooker before opening the lid.
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Cooking Time for a Roast in an Instant Pot
The estimated cooking time for a roast in an instant pot has been described in this table below:
| Cooking procedure | Cooking time |
| Cooking a roast in an instant pot | 1hr 45mins to 2 hrs |
| Cooking frozen meat in an instant pot | 2 hrs to 2 hrs 15mins |
To get a full guideline on how to properly cook an instant pot roast recipe, check out the recipe below:
PrintInstant pot roast (6 servings)
Ingredients
- 3lb of any meat cut of your choice
- 2 medium onion
- Baby carrots and potatoes
- 2 teaspoons of black pepper
- 1 1/2 teaspoon of salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoon of seasoned salt
- 1 teaspoon of dry thyme, rosemary, garlic powder, and onion powder
- 1/2 tablespoon of dry parsley flakes
- 1 tablespoon salted butter
- Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon of fresh garlic
- Mushrooms
- Au jus seasoning (optional)
Equipment
- An instant pot
- Wooden spoon
- Trivet
- Measuring spoons
- Bowls
Instructions
- Mix all the dry spices in a bowl and rub the mixed spices thoroughly on the surface of the meat cut.
- Press the saute button and pour 2 tablespoons of olive oil and let it heat for 2 minutes then sear each side of the seasoned meat cut for a minute, making it two minutes in total for searing.
- Take out the meat and add 1 tablespoon of salted butter to the pot, mix thoroughly with a wooden or plastic spoon to remove the burnt spices in the pot then add some chopped onion, stir and let it cook for 2-3 minutes.
- Add a tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce and sliced garlic to the pot and mix thoroughly then allow it to cook for another 2 minutes.
- Place the seared roast in a trivet leaving the handles of the trivet up and the fatty side on the meat (if any) facing up and add some mushrooms, 2 cups beef broth, 1 cup red wine, and the foil-wrapped vegetables in the pot. Pressure cook for an hour, after one hour, allow a 15 minutes natural release and finish with a quick release.
- Remove the foil-wrapped vegetables and meat cut from the pot with the aid of the trivet.
- Once cooled down cut the meat into desired sizes and keep it aside, then go ahead with making the sauce.
- Press the cancel button on the instant pot and press the saute button then make a slurry with any thickener of your choice (cornstarch, xanthan gum, etc).
- Remove the veggies from the foil and add to the sauce, add the slurry, add any seasoning of your choice (if you’d like), and finally add the meat chunks.
- Cook for about 30 minutes and serve. Note that you could always add more thickener if you aren’t pleased with the consistency.
If you’d still like more ideas and a better visual experience, you should check out this video recipe