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How Long to Cook Roast in Crockpot Per Pound

With the various recipes for crockpot roast out there, it can seem a challenge to be certain about the cooking duration. Tons of other

r factors can also contribute to this, with the most prominent being the size. And not everyone understands how to calculate cooking time per pound. But here, we’ll explore these areas surrounding pot roasts and quell the issue so it becomes easier for you.

Roast Type

Slow cookers are renowned for cooking all kinds of roast cuts. As such, you can prepare both beef and pork roast in the appliance. You get options ranging from chuck to round roasts and briskets for beef roasts. But the cut alone isn’t what you need to focus on.

Because of its long cooking time, crockpots work best when the meat has rich fatty content. This prevents it from drying out as it cooks for long, which wouldn’t be the case if you worked with leaner cuts. And the meat gets tenderer the more it’s left in the slow cooker.

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It’s why when picking beef cuts for the crockpot, it’s always recommended that you choose fatty ones. Most times, this isn’t a problem for naturally fatty pork roasts. But it also matters whether the roast is bone-in or not; the bone extends the cooking time but adds more flavor.

Roast Size

Technically, larger roasts will take longer to reach doneness on a crockpot. But the size and weight aren’t the only factors at play here, and the roast’s shape and thickness can also influence how long it cooks in a crockpot.

Regardless of the weight, if the meat cut is as thick as wide, it’ll take a while to reach doneness. This factor also means that flat cuts of similar sizes will cook faster, as the steam doesn’t have to go through much meat.

Crockpot Setting

Every slow cooker comes with two distinct settings for making meals; HIGH and LOW. And both settings can work for roasts as well. The HIGH setting cooks food faster, and usually at a range of three to four hours, at an average temperature of 300F. But the LOW setting mostly takes up to eight hours to prepare a meal, or maybe longer. And its average cooking temperature hovers around 190F.

The speed of the crockpot roast also depends on how quickly your selected brand of appliance cooks. But as a general rule, roasts are best prepared using the LOW setting. It’s because the cuts of meat preferred for crockpot roast recipes thrive on low and slow cooking methods. And the longer they cook in the steam, the more fall-apart tender the meat becomes.

 

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Cooking Time Per Pound for Crockpot Roast

With all these factors coming to play, it may seem that mastering crockpot roast methods will be hard. But it’s quite the opposite, as roast sizes are mostly easy to plot, with the proper guidelines. That said, consider cooking roasts in the crockpot using these parameters;

Beef Roasts- two hours per pound (LOW), one-and-a-half hours per pound (HIGH).

Pork Roasts (large)- 105 minutes per pound (LOW), 65 minutes (HIGH).

Pork Loin Roasts- 90 minutes per pound (LOW), 75 minutes per pound (HIGH).

By this logic, a three to four-pound beef roast will need eight hours on LOW and four to five hours on HIGH. And a typical seven-pound pork butt will cook for nine and a half hours on LOW, but the HIGH setting cuts this time by two hours.

The roast should easily be fork tender and pull-apart at the end of cooking time. But it would help if you still were sure about the internal doneness, especially when dealing with pork cuts. So, check for a final internal temperature of 145F with a meat thermometer before concluding the cooking time.

More Tips

  • A full crockpot will take time to reach proper cooking pressure. So, endeavor to only fill your crockpot by half to 2/3 its volume for faster cooking.
  • When filling your crockpot, consider layering a bed of veggies and roots before placing the roast. These allow it to simmer in a rich broth and become tasty for serving the meat.
  • If you add anything else after the veggies and meat, consider this arrangement; grains first, followed by soft vegetables and liquid ingredients.
  • Note that constantly opening the crockpot can stretch your recipe by an additional 15 to 20 minutes of cooking time. So, next time you’re tempted to check the progress of your cooking, resist.
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Crockpot Roast (6 Servings)

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Ingredients

  • Three pounds beef roast
  • One-and-a-half cups baby carrots
  • Half cup water
  • Six potatoes
  • Three cubes beef bouillon
  • Two celery stalks
  • One yellow onion

Instructions

  1. Chop the vegetables and aromatics into large chunks and arrange the pieces at the bottom of the crockpot. Then, place the beef roast on the vegetable bed and put the bouillon cubes on top of it.
  2. Pour the water over the port’s content and place the lid. Then, seal it and cook the roast on LOW for six to eight hours, or HIGH for three to four hours. When the time is reached, check for an internal temperature of 145F, and confirm that the meat is fork-tender before serving.

Also, click this video for more tips.

  • Author: Bobby