Ingredients Inventory

• Purchase either a chuck or bottom round roast that's between 2 to 5 pounds, depending on the number of people you're serving. Look for low-sodium, reduced-fat cream of mushroom soup. Many recipes also call for a dry onion soup mix packet for additional flavor. Along with these two or three items, additional ingredients can include fresh or canned root vegetables, spices, herbs and red wine.

Pot Roast Prep

• Browning the roast in a sturdy skillet or stock pot in oil adds about 15 minutes to your prep time. This optional step ensures that your roast is infused with extra flavor and crispier skin. Instead of using plain water in your gravy, pour red wine into the browning pan after you've removed the roast and scrape up the flavorful beef bits. If you're using fresh vegetables, peel and cube them before adding them into the pot.

Slow Cooker Steps

• A slow cooker pot roast comes together rapidly, especially if you don't have time for the browning stage. Into the slow cooker, pour a can of cream of mushroom soup, a packet of dry onion soup mix and a cup or so of water. After whisking this blend together until it becomes a smooth liquid, set the pot roast into the cooker and scoop up some of the mushroom mix over the meat. Add canned or fresh chopped root vegetables around the sides of the roast, then cover the slow cooker and cook on Low for 8 to 10 hours.

Stovetop Stages

• When you cook pot roast on the stove, you can brown and cook the roast in the same stock pot. After the browning and optional deglazing stage, whisk together the canned mushroom soup, an equal amount of water or deglazing wine, and the ingredients of the soup mix. Pour this mixture over the roast and bring it to a boil before covering the pot and leaving the meat to simmer for about 90 minutes. At this point, turn over the roast, add your cut-up root vegetables or canned veggies and simmer the roast and vegetables in the covered pot for another 60 minutes or so.

Roasting Routine

• After you brown the roast in the skillet, set it into a foil-lined roasting pan for oven-cooking. At this stage, whisk together the can of mushroom soup, the contents of the onion soup packet, and a smaller amount of either water or wine from the deglazed pan. Place the roast onto the foil and ladle the mushroom mix over it. After covering the meat with foil, cook it in a 375-degree Fahrenheit oven for 2 hours. Next, turn it over, add the canned or fresh, chopped root vegetables, and cook the pot roast, covered, an additional hour or so.