You are going to love this easy slow cooker beef roast with balsamic vinegar, cranberries and maple syrup. It turns out so juicy and tender and has the most amazing flavour. This healthy one pot meal is perfect for fall and winter meal planning.
Table of Contents
Why you will love this recipe:
- It's incredibly easy to make and can be cooked in either the slow cooker or Crockpot. It only requires a few minutes of hands on time.
- This moist slow cooker beef roast has such a delicious flavour. The combination of tart cranberries with the sweet maple syrup and balsamic vinegar blend perfectly. Plus the meat turns out melt in your mouth tender.
- This healthy beef roast makes great leftovers and is perfect for meal prep.
- This beef roast recipe is gluten free, refined sugar free, dairy free, paleo and healthy.
Ingredient notes:
You should be able to find all of these simple ingredients at your local grocery store. For the exact measurements refer to the recipe card at the bottom of the post.
- Beef roast - I used a cross rib beef roast to make this recipe but you can use any other type of beef roast that you have on hand. Make sure you let your beef roast thaw before cooking it. This recipe does not work if you try to cook the roast from frozen.
- Broth - broth helps add moisture and tenderize this beef roast. You can use any type of broth that you like including beef broth, chicken broth, vegetable broth or bone broth.
- Seasonings and spices - sea salt, ground black pepper, dried rosemary and herbs de Provence spice blend all combine perfectly to help give this roast recipe such an incredible taste.
- Onion - onion helps add both flavour and tenderness to this beef recipe.
- Balsamic vinegar - balsamic vinegar helps tenderize the beef to make it so juicy and fall off the bone tender.
- Maple syrup - maple syrup adds a bit of sweetness to this recipe and combines beautifully with the tart cranberries.
- Cranberries - cranberries help make this beef roast recipe so pretty and full of festive flavour. The tartness of the cranberry is contrasted by the sweetness of maple syrup and balsamic vinegar. You can use either fresh or frozen cranberries to make this roast recipe.
How to make (step-by-step):
Step one:
First, add all the ingredients, except for the cross rib roast, to your slow cooker or Crockpot and stir well to combine.
Step two:
Add the beef roast into the slow cooker, turning a few times to coat it well. Then turn your slow cooker or Crockpot onto low heat and cook for 8 hours.
Top Tip:
- Turn the roast a few times while it is cooking to help it cook evenly on all sides and help the meat become even more fall apart tender.
Recipe variations:
- Add a couple chopped apples to this recipe for even more flavour.
- You can use any type of broth that you like for this recipe including bone broth, vegetable broth, beef broth or chicken broth.
- If you don't have a beef roast this recipe can be made with a pork roast instead.
How to serve:
You can serve this beef roast in so many ways. It makes a great dinner or main dish and is fancy enough to serve on special occasions like Thanksgiving or Christmas. It pairs really well with many different side dishes including cooked or roasted vegetables such as air fryer diced potatoes, broccoli, cauliflower, honey glazed carrots with parsnips, turnip apple casserole or squash.
You could also finely slice the beef roast to make a roast beef sandwich.
How to store:
Store any leftover cooked beef roast in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Frequently asked questions:
No you do not need to put water in a slow cooker when you cook beef. You will need to add some sort of liquid however, but instead of water you can use broth or different types of vinegars such as balsamic vinegar to help tenderize the beef and keep it nice and moist.
You do not need to brown a roast before putting it in a slow cooker or Crockpot.
This is not a Whole30 beef roast recipe as it is made with maple syrup.
I find that cooking a beef roast at low heat, for many hours works best to cook beef roasts in a slow cooker. If you cook it at high heat for a shorter period of time, the meat tends to get more tough rather than tender.
Other recipes you will love:
- Beef Curry Stew
- Slow Cooker Chili with Blueberries
- Healthy meat sauce
- The best healthy gluten free meatloaf
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Recipe
Easy Slow Cooker Beef Roast
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups beef broth (or use chicken broth, vegetable broth or bone broth)
- 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 227 grams fresh cranberries
- 1 medium white onion, chopped
- 2 tablespoon dried rosemary
- 1 tablespoon Herbes de Provence spice
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 10 bay leaves
- 1 cross rib beef roast
Instructions
- Place all the ingredients, except for the roast, into your slow cooker and stir well to combine.
- Add the roast to the slow cooker.
- Turn the slow cooker onto low heat and cook for 8 hours, turning the roast occasionally.
- Serve and enjoy!
Notes
- Nutritional values are an estimate and will vary depending on the exact ingredients used.
- Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
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