Mom’s Best Pot Roast Recipe in Oven Bag

Mom’s Best Pot Roast recipe uses an oven bag to cook a chuck roast in the oven with potatoes and carrots until fork tender, juicy and delicious! This easy one pot meal is a family favorite!

This is my mom’s super easy recipe for pot roast in an oven bag. We had this roast beef dinner all the time when I was growing up, and it was always tender, flavorful and perfectly cooked!

Yes, I’m totally biased, but I just think this pot roast with potatoes and carrots is the best pot roast in a bag recipe ever. It’s also a one pan meal with easy clean-up, so it’s perfect for Sunday dinner or busy weeknights!

The secret to fork-tender beef pot roast in the oven is an oven bag. No need for a special roasting pan or Dutch oven. You should be able to find oven bags in just about any grocery store — usually with the food storage bags and disposable bakeware. You’ll want to read the manufacturer’s instructions before using.

Ingredients

There are just a few simple ingredients in this pot roast in bag recipe. You can find them in your grocery store. Full amounts are in the printable recipe card below.

• Boneless Beef Chuck roast
• Flour — to thicken the juices
• Lipton Onion Soup Mix — or any dry onion soup mix
• Onion — yellow or white onion
• Garlic cloves
• Potatoes — Use Yukon gold potatoes or baby yellow potatoes or russet potatoes
• Carrots — Whole carrots or baby carrots work
• Celery — adds flavor
• Beef broth — or water to make gravy

Best Meat for Pot Roast

My mom and grandma always used beef chuck roast, and that’s the cut of meat I’ve always used, as well. You can shred it with a fork, and it just melts in your mouth. You can also try using rump roast, but it really doesn’t shred like chuck. If you want to slice your roast, go with the rump roast.

How To Cook Chuck Roast in an Oven Bag

So first, place the roasting bag in a 13×9-inch baking dish. Add some flour to the bag, and shake bag so that flour gets evenly distributed. Then, add your chuck roast and sprinkle dry soup mix on top of the roast.

I like to add whole garlic cloves to the top of the roast and mash them into the roast after it’s cooked. Oh, talk about flavor!

Add the garlic gloves and place potatoes, carrots, onions and celery around and on top of the roast.

Pour in a little beef broth or water, and close the bag with a nylon tie that comes with the oven bags. Next, use a sharp knife to poke small slits in the top of the bag for the steam to escape.

How Long to Cook Chuck Roast in Oven at 325

I cooked the chuck roast in the oven at 325 degrees F, and it was done in about 2 hours and 30 minutes. You can test the temperature by inserting a meat thermometer in one of the slits you made for venting. The temperature should be at or above 200 degrees F.

When done, the roast should shred easily with a fork. Don’t forget to mash the roasted garlic into the meat for even more flavor. And, be sure to pour those awesome juices over everything before serving!

How to Store Leftovers

Store leftover pot roast in an airtight container in your refrigerator for 3-4 days. For longer storage, you can freeze the roast in a freezer-safe container or storage bag for up to 3 months.

More of the Best Pot Roast Recipes

If you love this easy chuck roast recipe, try my Slow Cooker Pot Roast. You can also make an Instant Pot Pot Roast or this easy Crock Pot Mississippi Roast. Browse even more easy beef recipes to make for your family.

For more easy dinner recipes, sign up for the weekly newsletter and follow me on social media.

Recipe first posted in 2019 and updated in 2024.