Here is my recipe for a delicious slow cooker roast beef. With no added salt, it’s an ideal recipe for easily cooking a large, tender and juicy piece of beef.
Kidney nutrition
Be aware that current recommendations indicate that renal patients should prioritize plant based proteins to better preserve their kidney function.
On the other hand, it is not forbidden to consume a reasonable portion of red meat very occasionally. The goal is not to completely ban a specific type of food.
That’s why I present this slow cooker roast beef recipe for anyone who would like to cook a good piece of meat without added salt.
Nutrition facts and claims
Here are the nutritional values and claims of this recipe.
For informational purposes only.
How to make a good slow cooker roast beef
Here are my tips for making a great slow cooker roast beef.
Sear the meat
Searing the meat is not a mandatory step, but it will have much more flavor when seared than if you put it directly in the slow cooker. Considering that there is no addition of salt, this little trick that enhances the taste is worth it.
No need for expensive meat
The real magic of the slow cooker is that it can turn almost any piece of meat of lesser quality into a worthy meal.
It is not necessary to buy an expensive cut of meat. Generally, I buy discounted boneless bottom blade roast when available. Then I put it in the slow cooker the same evening so that it’s ready the next day to prepare lunches for the following days.
Broth quantity
When you add the broth to the slow cooker, you might think that there is not enough liquid in the bottom of it. Don’t worry, that’s exactly how I do it and I never run out broth while it’s cooking.
It is not necessary to use a large amount of broth for this recipe. During cooking, meat and vegetables will continue to increase the volume of broth.
Variations
Broth thickening
At the end of this recipe, I remove the meat from the slow cooker, add cornstarch to thicken the broth, put the piece of meat back and cook it again for 30 minutes semi-covered. But depending on your preference, it is possible to simply finish cooking without putting the meat back in the slow cooker.
Vegetables
For this recipe, you can use a variety of vegetables. If your diet allows, you can use turnips, potatoes, parsnips, etc.
Broth
As for the broth, it is very easy to modify it. You can use any type of unsalted broth or vinegar. You can also replace honey with maple syrup.
It is also possible to add other ingredients such as spices or herbs to customize your broth to your taste.
More flavor
Here are 2 very simple suggestions that significantly increase the flavor of this recipe in exchange for increasing the sodium content a little.
The first is to spread a little Dijon mustard before spreading the garlic on the roast. Dijon mustard will increase the sodium content a little, but will add a lot of taste.
The second is to use sodium-reduced beef broth instead of unsalted broth. Since there is not a large volume of broth for the entire recipe, the addition of sodium can be considered reasonable and the taste will be greatly improved.
On the other hand, you will have to pay attention to the nutritional values of the broth you will use. Sodium content can vary greatly from brand to brand.
Note that you can also use sodium reduced broth diluted with water. From experience, I have found that broth reduced in sodium diluted by half generally offers more taste than undiluted unsalted broth.
Type of meat
It is also possible to replace the pallet roast with another piece of meat. For example, you could use a pork shoulder.
Conservation
A slow cooker beef pallet roast can be kept for 3 days in the refrigerator or about 3 months in the freezer.
More recipes
If you like this recipe, you might also like these one:
Meat Mix for Low Sodium Tacos and Burritos
Slow Cooker Roast Beef
INGREDIENTS
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2.5 lb bottom blade roast boneless
- 2 cups carrot sliced
- 2 cups yellow onion chopped
- 1 cups celery stalks sliced
- 4 garlic cloves chopped
- 1 tsp pepper
Broth
- 1¼ cup unsalted beef broth
- ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
- 2 tbsp honey
Thickener (Optional)
- 3 tbsp cornstarch
- 3 tbsp water
INSTRUCTIONS
- Remove the piece of meat from the refrigerator, unpack it and let it sit at room temperature while prepping the vegetables.
- Heat the olive oil in a skillet on medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, sear the meat for a few minutes on each side.
- Place and mix all the vegetables in the bottom of the slow cooker. Then place the piece of meat on the vegetables in the slow cooker.
- In a bowl, combine the beef broth, balsamic vinegar and honey. Then pour the broth over the piece of meat.
- In a bowl, combine the unsalted beef broth, balsamic vinegar and liquid honey. Then pour the broth over the piece of meat.
- Spread the chopped garlic and ground black pepper over the meat.
- Program your slow cooker to cook at low temperature setting for 7 hours.
Optional
- At the end of cooking, you can use the meat as is. The next steps are optional and indicate how to prepare the meat to serve it in its thickened broth.To do this, it is first necessary to remove the piece of meat from the slow cooker and temporarily set it aside.
- In a glass, mix the water and cornstarch. Then mix in the broth of the slow cooker.
- Return the meat to the slow cooker and program it for cooking at high temperatures for 30 minutes. Simmer half covered and serve once slightly cooled.
NUTRITION FACTS
For informational purposes only. Nutrition data is primarily calculated from the USDA National Database. Values may vary from accuracy of measurements, brands, nutritional data and more. All measurements are metric (1 cup = 250ml). Readers are encouraged to make their own calculations.
Marc-Andre has been a kidney warrior since 2007. Since that time, he has learned to create his own kidney friendly recipes to preserve as much as possible his kidney functions. Now he wants to share what he has learned to help other kidney patients find tasty kidney friendly recipes.
Roxanne Papineau, RD, is a registered dietitian specializing in nephrology with over 15 years of experience in the field. She writes articles and reviews the content published on this site to ensure that it meets the most up-to-date recommendations for people with kidney disease.
Excellent! I seared the roast in my crockpot (bc it’s made for oven, grill, stovetop, crock), and just put the veggies (carrots and pearl onions, and a few mushrooms) around it. I used no salt beef broth and increased it by 1 cup. I probably didn’t need to, as I didn’t make the gravy. This is a keeper.
It will make a great leftovers as a lunch option this week.
Thank you for your comment Elaine, I’m glad you like this recipe!
I live alone and am cooking just for myself. Can you help me scale down th ingredients so that I have enough for a meal and 1 or 2 the following day(s)? I’m not great at scaling to one. I was recently diagnosed with stage 3 CKD so this is all new to me. Thank you.
Usually, you need a minimum volume of ingredients to properly use a slow cooker. Do you have a slow cooker small enough to reduce the size to just 1-3 servings? Otherwise, you should cook it differently in a saucepan. The cooking time and the final result will be different, but it will be more functional than using too small a volume of food in a slow cooker.
Since you are new to CKD, I want to mention that this recipe is not reviewed yet by a dietitian. In the update, a mention will be added to explain that people with kidney disease can eat red meat, but it’s preferable to get the majority of your protein intake from vegetal sources to help protect your remaining kidney function. I won’t explain further since I’m not a health professional myself, but here is a simplified article about the impact of nutrition on the kidneys.
https://www.cukebook.org/guides/diet/renal-diet/
Here is also one of my favorite website for other renal recipes :
https://www.myspiceitup.ca/
I hope this will be useful to you!
I used an English roast, followed the recipe as written ( added Dijon mustard as suggested). My husband said “ this is a keeper”. Best flavor! This will be my go to roast beef recipe from now on.