Name: Slow-Cooker Roast Beef With Hearty Mushroom Gravy
Total time: 2 h
Ingredients: 1 (4-pound) boneless eye-round roast , trimmed; Kosher salt and pepper; 3 tablespoons vegetable oil; 8 ounces cremini mushrooms , trimmed, halved, and sliced thin; 1 onion , chopped fine; 2 tablespoons tomato paste; 4 tablespoons all-purpose flour; 1 teaspoons minced fresh thyme or ¼ teaspoon dried; 1/8 ounce dried porcini mushrooms; 1 cup beef broth , plus extra as needed; 2 tablespoons unsalted butter; 2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley

Why This Recipe Works

For an evenly cooked, medium-rare roast from the slow cooker, we first salted the roast overnight, browned it well in a skillet, and then built a gravy in the same pan. Cremini mushrooms formed the base of the gravy, along with onion, tomato paste, flour, and beef broth. To boost the mushroom flavor, we added potent porcini mushrooms. Look for an eye-round roast that is uniformly shaped to ensure even cooking.

Before You Begin

You will need an oval slow cooker for this recipe. Check the roast's temperature after 1 hour of cooking and continue to monitor until it registers 120 to 125 degrees (for medium-rare). We prefer this roast cooked to medium-rare, but if you prefer to cook it to medium, cook the roast until it registers 130 to 135 degrees. Note that the roast needs to rest for at least 18 hours after salting.

Instructions

1. Sprinkle roast with 4 teaspoons salt. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 18 hours or up to 24 hours.

Pat roast dry with paper towels, rub with 1 tablespoon oil, and season with pepper. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until just smoking. Brown roast on all sides, 7 to 10 minutes; transfer to slow cooker.

Heat remaining 1 tablespoon oil in now-empty skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Add cremini mushrooms, onion, and ½ teaspoon salt and cook until vegetables are softened and lightly browned, 8 to 10 minutes. Stir in tomato paste, flour, thyme, and porcini mushrooms and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Slowly whisk in broth, scraping up any browned bits and smoothing out any lumps. Pour broth mixture over roast, cover, and cook until beef registers 120 to 125 degrees (for medium-rare), 1 to 2 hours on low.

Transfer roast to carving board, tent loosely with aluminum foil, and let rest for 20 minutes.

Whisk butter, parsley, and any accumulated meat juices into gravy. Adjust consistency with extra hot broth as needed. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Slice beef thin against grain. Serve with gravy.