1-First, pat the chuck roast dry and season it with salt and pepper. Heat the butter and oil in a large skillet over medium-high, then sear the roast on all sides for 2-3 minutes each to get that perfect brown crust. Once done, set it aside on a plate.

2-Next, if you like, toss in the onions and sauté them for 3-4 minutes until they’re just softened. For the slow cooker method, layer half the onions in the pot, add the garlic, beef broth, Worcestershire sauce, apple cider vinegar, onion powder, dried thyme, bay leaf, celery seeds, sugar, and the seared roast. Top with the rest of the onions, cover, and cook on low for 6-8 hours until it’s fall-apart tender.

3-Oven Method Details: If you’re going the oven route, preheat to 275°F and pop the roast back into the Dutch oven with the sautéed onions and all the other goodies. Add enough broth to cover half the roast, cover it up, and braise for about 1 hour 15 minutes. Then check it and keep going for another 1 to 1.5 hours until it’s fork-tender.

4-Don’t forget the gravy! For the slow cooker, mix 2 tablespoons cornstarch with 1/3 cup water to make a slurry, stir it in, and cook on high for 5-7 minutes to thicken. For the oven version, simmer the liquid in the Dutch oven and whisk in the slurry until it’s just right. This recipe takes about 10 minutes to prep and cooks for 6-8 hours in a slow cooker or 2-2.75 hours in the oven, giving you around 8 hours 25 minutes total for slow cooker prep. Oh, and here’s a handy internal link to another cozy recipe: turkey carcass soup for using up leftovers creatively.