Instant Pot Mississippi Pot Roast

This flavorful Instant Pot Mississippi Pot Roast is a great low carb dinner that will melt in your mouth! New to the Instant Pot? This is the perfect EASY, first recipe to make in it!

When you think of food from Mississippi, a Mississippi Mud Pie is likely the first thing to come to mind. Mississippi is also home to a famous pot roast that is genuinely one of a kind. While variations of this recipe have been found across the South, the real origin of this recipe dates back to Mississippi. The source of this delicious recipe comes from Robin Chapman from Ripley, Mississippi who had adapted a recipe that was given to her back in the late 1990s. 

Robin Chapman was trying to make her aunt’s pot roast recipe a little less spicy for her children, and ended up developing a whole new pot roast recipe! Her family ended up loving this recipe, and so Robin Chapman shared it with her friends, and well, the rest is history!

WHAT IS MISSISSIPPI POT ROAST?

Before you think about making this delicious Mississippi pot roast, you may be asking what it is? A Mississippi roast is typically made using a slow cooking method in either a crockpot or a slow cooker. However, you can use your Instant Pot to speed up this recipe! To make this recipe, you cook your chuck roast in under a little bit of butter, ranch dressing mix, au jus mix, and pepperoncini.

What you get is a roast that is fork-tender and doesn’t require much prep work! I’m not sure if it’s the butter or the combination of the au jus gravy and ranch dressing mixed together but the gravy from the pot roast is unlike anything I’ve ever tasted before! I love eating my Mississippi pot roast with mashed potatoes and the gravy from this pot roast.

WHAT KIND OF MEAT SHOULD I USE? 

Chuck roast is a popular choice for pot roasts since it’s so affordable and easily found in most grocery stores. It’s a lean meat with lots of connective tissue and very little fat. You’ll want to look for a chuck roast that has lots of marbling throughout. When this cut of meat is braised for a long period of time, the high amount of collagen breaks down and tenderizes the meat. This makes the meat super juicy, tender and delicious!

HOW TO MAKE MISSISSIPPI POT ROAST IN THE INSTANT POT

Turn on the Instant Pot and set it to sauté mode (30 minutes should be enough time for you to brown the meat and saute the onions without the pot turning off). Put the oil into the inner pot of the Instant Pot. Next, add salt and pepper to each side of the chuck roast. Place the chuck roast into the inner pot. Cook on each side for about 3-5 minutes until golden brown. If you prefer not to brown your meat first, you can totally skip this step!

Remove the roast from the Instant Pot. Add onion; cook and stir for about 2 minutes, or until onion is tender.

Next, add in beef broth and deglaze by scraping the bottom of the pot. It is very important to layer in the ingredients when cooking in the instant pot so that you don’t get the “burn” message. First, place the chuck roast back into the pot. Then, add the ranch dressing mix powder, au jus gravy mix, butter, and pepperoncini pepper and its juice.

Press “manual” (older model) or “pressure cook” (newer models) and set it on high pressure for 60-70 minutes (see tips below for cook time). When it is done cooking, let the pressure naturally release until the pin drops and the lid can be opened. The result will be the best Mississippi Pot Roast you’ll ever have!

TIPS FOR MAKING THE BEST INSTANT POT MISSISSIPPI POT ROAST:     

• Look for a chuck roast that is well marbled
• It’s easy to over-salt this dish since the ranch packet and au jus packet already contain sodium. Use unsalted butter and low sodium beef broth. You can always add more salt at the end, if needed.
• Sear the meat on all sides to ensure it stays juicy and tender. This step isn’t necessary if you’re short on time. It’ll still be very flavorful using the “dump and start” method.
• When deglazing the pot, make sure you scrape off all the bits stuck to the bottom. This will avoid the “burn” error message.
• 60 minutes for 3 pounds of chuck roast. Add an extra 10 minutes of cook time for every pound. (3 lbs = 60 minutes, 4 lbs = 70 minutes)
• Let the Instant Pot naturally release once it’s done cooking. This will make the meat more tender.
• Thicken up the gravy: Make a cornstarch slurry by adding 1 tablespoon of cornstarch and an equal amount of cold liquid in a small bowl. Stir until a smooth paste forms and then add this mixture into the Mississippi Pot Roast. Use more cornstarch if needed by using a 1 to 1 ratio of cornstarch and water.

WHAT CAN I SERVE WITH IT?

There are so many options for serving this Mississippi pot roast. Some of my favorite things to serve with it include:

• mashed potato,
• baked potato,
• rice,
• egg noodles,
• or make them into Mississippi pot roast sliders.

If you are looking for something Keto-friendly, you could do mashed cauliflower or cauliflower rice.

Looking for more Instant Pot recipes? Try Instant Pot Lentils Stew or Instant Pot Crab Dip

Print Recipe

5 from 5 votes

Instant Pot Mississippi Pot Roast

This flavorful Instant Pot Mississippi Pot Roast is a great low carb dinner that will melt in your mouth! This is the perfect EASY, first recipe to make in your Instant Pot!

Prep Time5 mins

Cook Time1 hr 15 mins

Total Time1 hr 20 mins

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Instant Pot Mississippi Pot Roast, mississippi pot roast

Servings: 8 people

Calories: 398kcal

Equipment

• Instant Pot, 6 quart or 8 quart

Ingredients

• 3-4 pound Chuck Roast
• ½ tablespoon Oil
• ½ tablespoon Pepper
• 1 large Onion (Diced)
• 1 cup Beef Broth
• 4 tablespoon Butter
• ⅔ packet Ranch Dressing Mix (approximately 1 ½ tablespoon)
• ⅔ packet Au Jus Gravy Mix (approximately 1 ½ tablespoon)
• 5-6 Pepperoncini Peppers and ¼ cup of it's juice

Instructions

• Turn on the Instant Pot and set it to "sauté" mode (30 minutes should give you enough time to brown the meat and cook the onions). Put the oil into the inner pot of the Instant Pot. Next, add pepper to each side of the chuck roast. When the instant pot reads "hot" on the display screen, place the chuck roast into the inner pot. Cook on each side for about 3 minutes until golden brown. (Skip this step if you prefer not to brown your meat. But be sure to add 2-3 extra minutes to the pressure cook time.)
• Remove the roast from the Instant Pot. Add onion; cook and stir about 2 minutes, or until onion is tender. Next, add in beef broth and deglaze by scraping the bottom of the pot. Then, layer the ingredients in by adding the chuck roast; followed by ranch dressing mix powder, au jus gravy mix, butter, and pepperoncini pepper and its juice.
• Place the lid on and make sure the knob is set to "sealing". Press "manual" (older model) or "pressure cook" (newer model) and set it to cook on High Pressure for 60-70 minutes. (60 minutes for 3 pounds of chuck roast. Add an extra 10 minutes of cook time for every pound. For example, 3 lbs = 60 minutes, 4 lbs = 70 minutes). Once it is done cooking, let the pressure naturally release until the pin drops down and the lid can be opened.

Notes

Tips for making the best Instant Pot Mississippi Pot Roast:     

• Look for a chuck roast that is well marbled
• It’s easy to over-salt this dish since the ranch packet and au jus packet already contain sodium. Use unsalted butter and low sodium beef broth. You can always add more salt at the end, if needed.
• Sear the meat on all sides to ensure it stays juicy and tender. This step isn’t necessary if you’re short on time. It’ll still be very flavorful using the “dump and start” method. If you’re doing the dump and start method, be sure to add a few minutes to the pressure cook time.
• When deglazing the pot, make sure you scrape off all the bits stuck to the bottom. This will avoid the “burn” error message.
• 60 minutes for 3 pounds of chuck roast. Add an extra 10 minutes of cook time for every pound. (3 lbs = 60 minutes, 4 lbs = 70 minutes)
• Let the Instant Pot naturally release once it’s done cooking. This will make the meat more tender.
• Thicken up the gravy: Make a cornstarch slurry by adding 1 tablespoon of cornstarch and an equal amount of cold liquid in a small bowl. Stir until a smooth paste forms and then add this mixture into the Mississippi Pot Roast. Use more cornstarch if needed by using a 1 to 1 ratio of cornstarch and water.

Have you made this recipe? Rate it below and tell me what you think.