Dutch Oven Mississippi Pot Roast is a widely popular beef roast recipe with 5 simple ingredients perfected by cooking it in cast iron.
Looking for more Dutch Oven Recipes? Our Dutch Oven Corned Beef and Cabbage is a great slow cooked dinner option, or enjoy a hearty breakfast with Dutch Oven Mountain Man Breakfast. Finish off these delicious options with a delicious Cola Chocolate Cherry Cake!
Jump to:
- What is Mississippi Pot Roast?
- Why is it called Mississippi Roast?
- What is in a Mississippi Pot Roast?
- What cut of meat is best for a pot roast?
- Dutch Oven Pot Roast
- What to Serve with Pot Roast?
- Making a Pot Roast in the Dutch Oven
- Our favorite tools to make a Dutch Oven Mississippi Pot Roast!
- Other Related Dutch Oven Recipes
- Get the Recipe
- Notes on making Mississippi pot roast in the Dutch Oven
What is Mississippi Pot Roast?
If you're like anyone else who has come across this recipe, you're probably wondering what it is and why it's called that.
Well, a Mississippi pot is one of the easiest pot roast recipes ever. You toss in 5 simple ingredients, put it in the oven, and a few hours later, dinner is done.
Why is it called Mississippi Roast?
Like everyone else, I have been super curious about why this roast is given the moniker Mississippi.
I assumed someone from Mississippi developed it and made it for someone who wasn't from Mississippi. Then that person gave it the name to differentiate it from the classic Sunday pot roast.
Turns out I wasn't too far off the mark. A woman by the name of Robin Chapman from Ripley, MS. adapted a roast her aunt was 'famous' in the family for. Voila, a new recipe was created.
Ms. Chapman made the roast for a friend. That friend shared it with her church and it ended up in their church cookbook. The recipe was made by a congregant, then shared to another friend. That friend then shared to another.
Internet famous pot roast
That last 'other' was a blogger and now the recipe is one of the most famous pot roast recipes ever. You can read about it in detail here in the New York Times.
What is in a Mississippi Pot Roast?
To make this recipe, you only need 5 ingredients:
- 3 pound chuck roast
- 1 packet dry Ranch dressing mix
- 1 packet au jus
- 1 stick of butter
- 3-10 peperoncini peppers with brine or jar 'juice'
That's it. Technically I used some salt and pepper, making it 7 ingredients, and a little oil for searing makes it 8.
What cut of meat is best for a pot roast?
There are a lot of cuts of beef to choose from when at the grocery store, it's hard to know what kind to buy.
Chuck roast is the best cut of beef to make a pot roast. It has incredible marbling that slowly renders away producing a juicy meal. When reading the labels, if you see the word chuck, that's the one you want. Unfortunately, there are so many combination of names with chuck. There isn't an industry standard on these things.
Dutch Oven Pot Roast
For as long as pot roasts have been made, they've been made in Dutch ovens. For me, there isn't any other way to make one.
What to Serve with Pot Roast?
The classic pot roast has onions, carrots, and potatoes cooked right in with the meat. But this Mississippi roast doesn't.
You can add the traditional pot roast ingredients of carrots, onions, and potatoes, but honestly, I love serving it over mashed potatoes.
Make this Dutch Oven pot roast - Mississippi style a complete meal:
- Yukon Gold Buttermilk Thyme Mashed Potatoes from The Complete Savorist
- Green Salad
- Buttermilk Biscuits
- Steamed Corn on the Cob
- Watermelon Limeade from Wet Whistle Drinks
- Skillet Apple Pie
Making a Pot Roast in the Dutch Oven
Here's step by step directions on how to make Dutch Oven Mississippi Roast.
First off, pre-heat your oven.
Liberally season both sides of the chuck roast with salt and pepper. Honestly, I always season with granulated garlic too, it's habit and won't hurt, but I didn't do that this time.
Heat the Dutch oven on medium high heat on the stove, then add your favorite high heat cooking oil (vegetable, canola, sunflower, safflower, etc.)
Sear each side of the roast for at least 2-3 minutes. You really want to get a nice browning on each side.
Searing the roast can be skipped if you're in a hurry. It won't ruin the recipe. Searing or browning only enhances the flavor.
You want to achieve a deep browning on your roast. Now it's ready to be turned into the famous Mississippi Pot Roast.
Evenly spread the the pack of Au Jus mix over the roast.
Spread the Ranch dressing/dip mix over the Au Jus mix on the roast. Try to get it as even as possible.
Cube the stick of butter and place it on top of the seasonings. Add the desired amount of peperoncinis. Use at least 3, but add as many as you like. Then pour ¼ cup of the liquid in the pepper jar over the roast.
Replace the Dutch oven lid and put it in an oven. You can bake it as low as 200°F for 8 hours. If you'd like to cook it faster, you can roast it at 300°F for 5 hours.
If your oven hasn't been calibrated lately or your roast is on the smaller side, check for doneness at 5-6 hours. Each oven and each roast size varies. More marbling i.e. less meat could cook quicker.
All cooked and ready to serve.
This post has been updated from its original earlier publishing with new text, clarified recipe card, and photography.
Our favorite tools to make a Dutch Oven Mississippi Pot Roast!
Lodge Blacklock 5.5 quart Cast Iron Dutch Oven
Buy Now →BuzzyWaxx Original Blend - Cast Iron and Carbon Steel Seasoning
Buy Now →Other Related Dutch Oven Recipes
If you tried this Dutch Oven Mississippi Pot Roast or any other recipe on my blog, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below. Thanks for visiting!
Get the Recipe
Dutch Oven Mississippi Pot Roast
Equipment
- 5.5 qt. Dutch oven with lid
Ingredients
- 3 lb beef chuck roast 3-5 lbs will work
- ½ teaspoon salt +/- to taste
- ¼ teaspoon pepper +/- to taste
- 2 tablespoon cooking oil
- 1 pkt au jus gravy mix
- 1 pkt Ranch dressing mix
- ¼ cup butter
- 6 peperoncini peppers +/- to taste
- ¼ cup pepper brine
Instructions
- Season both sides of the chuck roast with salt and pepper
- Heat 5.5 quart Dutch oven over medium-high heat on the stove.
- Once hot, add the oil.
- Sear each side of roast, 2-3 minutes per side; remove from hot burner.
- Sprinkle the au jus mix on top of roast.
- Sprinkle the Ranch mix over the top.
- Add the peppers and cubed butter.
- Pour the pepper brine from the jar over the roast. (see notes)
- Cover and bake 8 hours or until the roast reaches 145°F using an instant-read thermometer. (see notes)
- Remove from the oven, place on a cutting board covered (with foil or similar) and allow to rest for 10 minutes.
- Shred and serve.
Notes
Notes on making Mississippi pot roast in the Dutch Oven
I used salted butter, but use unsalted to decrease the salt content. The butter can be omitted. If oven cooks hotter, check doneness after 6 hours. If concerned about the spice level, decrease brine to ⅛ cup and use ⅛ cup of water. If roast is smaller than 3 lbs. check for doneness after 5 hours using a thermometer.Nutrition
Dutch Oven Daddy is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is only an estimate. We recommend running the ingredients through an online nutritional calculator if you need to verify any information.
Ben Michael Shoemaker
I figured out how to transform this dish to open fire cooking and couldn't be more impressed with the caramelize of the beef. The only other change was 3Tbs of bacon grease instead of oil for the browning.
Ned Adams
Thank you so much! Glad it turned out so well over an open fire! The bacon grease sounds like an awesome adjustment! Thank you for sharing your success!
Heather
Been using this recipe for years! I have to double the recipe because my kids Love it! I also sometimes add a pack of dry onion soup mix. But seriously, its a perfect meal. Making 2 batches tonight!
Mallory Weaver
I plan on making this recipe tomorrow for a fantasy football draft party! I'm making NINE lbs of chuck roast! I've made this recipe in an instant pot before, and that was my initial thought, but I know 9 lbs won't fit in my instant pot. Do you think I should just do 1/2 & 1/2? I think 9 lbs may be too much for the dutch oven as well, correct? Or can I just stuff it all in there?! It should be 4 chuck roasts total! Thanks for any help!
Ned Adams
You have quite a task there with a 9 lb roast. If you increase the size of the Dutch oven it may fit. You could try using a 7 quart Dutch oven. The other thing would be to cut the roast in half and use two 5 quart Dutch ovens and the same proportions in the recipe. A 9 lb roast will also take a lot longer to cook and that could make it very difficult to be done on time. Hopefully that helps?! Good luck with the Fantasy football draft! Can't wait to hear how the roast(s) come out!
Heather kowalski
I use this recipe every single time.ive added onions and extra seasonings sometimes. But the cook is so perfect. Mine cooks in about 3 n half hours and sets for 30mins. Its worth it. Especially the leftovers!
Colleen
We prefer it over mashed potatoes, too! Great recipe, it turned out perfectly!