Add 1 cup of beef broth to your slow cooker and turn on high.

I always brown my roast and get in the slow cooker in the morning, by roughly 10AM.

Add about 1 TBSP (just enough to cover the bottom of the pot) of cooking oil (I use canola) to the bottom of a large heavy pot. Turn your burner to medium high.

Place your roast in the pot. I didn’t give a specific size for the roast because it depends on how many you are feeding.

I always trim the thick layer of fat off of my roast. Some people prefer to leave it on. This is entirely up to you.

When you place the roast in the pot, sprinkle it with salt and pepper and give it a few dashes of worcestershire sauce. The worcestershire helps keep your meat nice and tender. As your roast browns on one side, turn it to another side and repeat the process of salting and peppering and adding worcestershire. Don’t forget to brown the ends!

When your roast is nicely browned, place it in the slow cooker. Meanwhile, turn your burner off and deglaze the pot. You can use either water or beef broth. Pour your liquid into the pot (get ready for the steam!). Use a spatula to scrape up the browned bits from the bottom of the pot.

When you add your au jus (liquid from deglazing) to the slow cooker, you want it to cover about half the height of the roast. If it doesn’t, add water or broth.

Cut 1 medium onion into quarters. Place bay leaves on top of the roast. I usually average about 4 leaves, depending on the size of the roast. Place onion on top of the bay leaves. Any extra onion can be placed in the au jus. If the leaves or onion fall off while cooking, don’t worry! Just try to get the leaves out before serving.

Put the lid on your slow cooker and let your roast cook on high for 1-3 hours. I usually leave mine on high for roughly 3 hours, or until it is simmering well, and then I turn it to low. If you are going to be gone all day, I suggest leaving it on high until you are about to leave and then turn it to low.

While your roast is on high, check it periodically to make sure there is still plenty of liquid in there.

Let your roast continue to cook on low all day. When it is about 30 minutes to an hour before you want to eat, add the vegetables. I use canned vegetables most of the time. If you choose to use fresh carrots and/or potatoes you will need to give them extra time to cook and soften up. Cut your other onion into quarters, or I like to add pearl onions. Add your vegetables to the slow cooker and turn it back on high.

After 30 minutes to an hour your roast will be ready to serve. If for some reason you aren’t ready to serve at that time, just turn your slow cooker to warm and it will be ready when you are!