Mississippi Pot Roast
294 Comments Apr 08, 2025
Updated Jun 25, 2025
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This famous recipe for Mississippi Pot Roast features only 5 ingredients and makes melt-in-your-mouth tender beef, made with a few packets and tangy peppers. A perfect Cozy dinner that isn’t boring!
Recipe Highlights
- I first came across this recipe in my Crockpot Facebook group, where it’s wildly popular.
- Some people refer to the roast as Mississippi Mud Roast, Memphis Roast, or even the forbidden roast because it’s so popular on social media.
- Great for a unique Sunday dinner – everyone in my family looks forward to this!
- This is my most popular and favorite recipe among my readers, with over a million views!
Key Ingredients
Let’s break down what goes into this flavor-packed roast.
- Chuck Roast – A well-marbled cut of beef that’s perfect for slow cooking.
- Brown Gravy Mix – This handy little packet thickens the sauce and gives it a hearty beef base.
- Ranch Dressing Mix – It adds garlic and onion flavor without being overpowering.
- Unsalted Butter – Makes the roast extra rich.
- Pepperoncini Peppers – Don’t skip these! They give the roast a vinegary, zesty pop that balances out all the savory flavors. These do add a touch of spicy kick.
How to make Mississippi Pot Roast
- Add everything to the slow cooker—no need to sear the meat.
- Let it cook low and slow until fall-apart tender.
- Shred the beef right in the pot to soak up all the flavor.
Why is Mississippi Pot Roast So Salty?
Many of my readers believe the Mississippi Pot Roast recipe is too salty. I have found that when they say that, they are using one of the saltier packets. Compare the options if you prefer to use Au Jus or Onion Soup mix instead of my recommended brown gravy mix.
- McCormick Brown Gravy (entire packet): 1360mg sodium – This is what I use
- Lipton Recipe Secrets Onion Soup Mix (entire packet): 2800mg sodium
- McCormick Au Jus Gravy Mix (entire packet): 3600mg sodium
If you want to use onion soup mix or au jus, I recommend using half a packet or serving over something plain like white rice.
Sarah’s Tips & Variations
Here are some easy ways to switch things up:
- Butter: The butter adds a rich flavor, but many people reduce the amount or skip it entirely without issue.
- Meat Swap: Instead of chuck roast, consider using a beef bottom round or rump roast. Pork roast, chicken breasts, or thighs work great too—use pork gravy or chicken gravy mix instead.
- Make it a Complete Meal: Add cubed potatoes and carrots.
- Gravy – For a thicker gravy, you can make a pot roast gravy by whisking in a cornstarch slurry made from cold water and cornstarch
- Not a fan of pepperoncini peppers? You can use jarred pickled red onions or baby dill pickles instead—don’t forget to pour in some of their juice for that tangy kick! (See my Dill Pickle Pot Roast, or Georgia Pot Roast, which have the same recipe concept.)
How to Serve
This roast is very versatile! Serve with one of these options or try a different way to enjoy the leftovers.
- Mashed Potatoes are my go-to. Nothing better than a bite of the roast and mashed potatoes together.
- Steamed white rice – The roast can be on the salty side and rice is one way to tone that down.
- On hoagies, hamburger buns, or slider buns – Don’t forget the French fries!
Featured Comment
“I just love this recipe! This is my 3rd time making it and I used all the same ingredients as you did. Perfection! I placed the shredded meat over roasted garlic potatoes..MMMMM!”
– julia
Mississippi Pot Roast Recipe
How to Video
Equipment
Ingredients
- 4 lb. chuck roast, 3-5 lbs will work
- 1 oz. ranch packet, (can use original packet, dip packet or spicy packet)
- .87 oz. brown gravy packet, (I use McCormick) See substitutions in notes below
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, (1 stick) can use salted
- 10 or more peperoncini peppers,
- 1/4 cup peperoncini juice, (optional but adds more tanginess and flavor)
Instructions
- Add the roast to the slow cooker. You can brown the meat in a skillet on the stovetop if desired but I do not.
- Add the ranch packet and brown gravy packet on top of the roast.
- Add the stick of butter, peppers and pepper juice.
- Cover and cook on LOW for 8-10 hours or HIGH for 6-7 hours. Do not open the lid while the roast cooks.
- Shred with two forks right in the slow cooker. Remove any fatty pieces.
Sarah’s Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition info is auto-generated. This information is an estimate; if you are on a special diet, please use your own calculations.
More Comfort Food Recipes:
- For classic comfort, you can’t go wrong with Crockpot Pot Roast, 3 Packet Pot Roast, or tender London Broil—each one is rich, hearty, and perfect for a filling dinner.
- If you’re in the mood for something tangy and bold, the Mississippi Chicken and Mississippi Pork Roast deliver big flavor with a buttery ranch twist.
- And for a little extra heat, the Spicy Mississippi Pot Roast adds just the right kick!
Made this today, and followed the recipe to a tee and it turned out amazing. I totally recommend this recipe! !!! 2 thumbs up!
Just curious, do the pepperoncini’s make this dish spicy? Everything about it, along with the variations sound delicious and my 12 year old loves pot roast. Just don’t want to make a big roast and he won’t eat it.
I don’t think it’s spicy. I think it adds a layer of flavor to the roast. If you are worried, you could add just a few of the peppers. 🙂
OMG! This was so good my husband wants me to make it again! The only changes I made were because my roast was frozen I put some of the juice from the peppers and some Shiraz wine on the bottom of the pot so it wouldn’t crack (which also meant I couldn’t brown it, but it was still delicious) and I used Lipton Onion Mushroom Soup (it’s what I had in the pantry). My English Cut Roast was only 2.5 lbs. but I still used a full stick of butter (unsalted, we try to watch our salt intake). Eight hours on low and it was falling apart. The “gravy” was awesome. We ate it over No Yolk Noodles one night and shredded on buns with a little raw onion another night. I left the peppers in for the sandwiches (removing the stems and cutting them up). Sent this recipe to my brother who made it and claimed it to be delicious! P.S. I put frozen meat in the slow cooker all the time – just make sure there is some liquid in the pot to avoid cracking.
I am going to use a pork roast. Does anyone know if the cook time needs adjusted?
Jessica, just curious how this turned out with pork? My husband can’t eat red meat and I am dying to try this recipe. Any suggestions?
Try it with chicken thighs or breasts
You don’t need to add water with the powdered packets of ranch and au jus?
No, the butter will add liquid, as will the roast as it cooks. 🙂
Carey, interested to know how it turned out with the whiskey!
Trying this recipe for a surprise dinner for my wife. I added beef stock and some whiskey to the mix of ranch powder and onion soup mix. 2 more hours to go, and my mouth is watering!!
TRY IT WITH PORK ROAST. AWESOME.
Great idea! 🙂
This was definitely “to die for”. I used 3/4 stick of butter, added a splash of wine, prepped the meat with ground pepper and thyme, and left out the peppers. When it was finished cooking there was a delicious sauce. I made the mistake of cooking it on high. I noticed my error after four hours, but everything was fine. I just needed to cook it on low for one more hour. So, if you don’t have 8 hours it cooks well on high. My husband grew up eating a lot of pot roast dinners and he said this was the best he’s had!
Your comnent was very helpful! Mine is cooking now without the peppers. I added baby bella shrooms and small golden potatoes plus an onion
Should the roast be thawed or can you use frozen? Do you need to ad any water or juice?
I used thawed meat, I personally never use frozen meat in the slow cooker. And if you use all the butter, no other liquid needs to be used. 🙂