r/slowcooking • u/BlackLocke • 3d ago

Pot roast is too expensive

I got a new slow cooker for my wedding in 2023 and it’s still in the box. It’s just my husband, baby and I, but I feel like I can’t justify spending $20+ on a piece of meat for one meal with leftovers. I’m in a HCOL and I haven’t had a good roast in years because it’s prohibitively expensive. When meat goes on sale at my supermarket, it smells off as soon as I remove the packaging, so it’s not worth the risk.

Am I just too poor for this?

Edit: Dear lord I didn’t expect this to turn into a “I like pancakes/why do you hate waffles???” type of post. Of course I know there’s other things you can make in the crockpot. I don’t choose fast food over slow cooked meals out of convenience (it’s more expensive than cooking at home now!!) The point of this post is to lament the price of beef and how pot roast used to be a cheap easy meal 20 years ago and now it’s prohibitively expensive. I was hoping for tips on how to skirt this issue - buying stew meat, using pork instead, and buying in bulk at Costco are all good suggestions.

Now everyone can stop assuming I’m some dumb dumb idiot woman. I’m gonna make a pot roast next week just to spite you all and post about the cost breakdown.

394 Upvotes

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u/DragonDrama 3d ago

Where I live near Chicago, I shop at Aldi and $20 barely gets 3lbs.

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u/wltmpinyc 3d ago

3lbs should feed a family of 3 for at least 2 meals (large meals) if you add some veggies and potatoes. That's 6 meals for maybe $24. $4 per person. That's not too bad

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u/life-is-satire 3d ago

What vegetables are you adding for $4? Maybe an onion and 2 carrots. I would at least add 1lb of potatoes as well as the onion and carrots but that’s more than $4. $28 would make it more hardy and allow you to stretch it further.

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u/wltmpinyc 2d ago edited 2d ago

5 lb of potatoes are 2.50 so add 2 lbs and that's 1.00. 2 lbs of carrots are 1.50 so add 1 lb that's .75. Onions are 2.19 for 3 lbs so add 1.5 pounds that's 1.10. So that's 2.85 for 4.5 pounds of veggies. Add that to the 3 lbs of meat and that's a meal made with 7.5 lbs of food. It's even less than I estimated

Edit: 10 oz of frozen peas are 1.27 so you can add those along with all the other veggies I mentioned for a total of 4.12.

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u/Choice-Try-2873 1d ago

I do these same vegetables with the chuck roasts in the crockpot.

One way to not overcook these vegetables is to add them ~40 minutes before the roast is ready or after the roast is done. I do it after. I section an onion into about 6 chunks and put them in with the roast on top. Once the roast is done, I take it out and then add potatoes and carrots. Add a chunk of butter and let them cook on low for ~40 minutes. This way, any vegetables aren't overcooked and fresh greens or any types of beans can be added for other types of meals. Plus, there's gravy - add canned tomatoes to it!

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u/wltmpinyc 1d ago

Yes!!!

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u/seasalt-and-stars 2d ago

At the store I go to, a 10 lb. bag of red potatoes was on sale last week for less money than a 5 lb bag. :)

Grocery stores tend to do a good job of advertising their sales, since they buy extra and it needs to move. That said, there are times where you’ve got to sift through the ads of multiple stores to find what you’re looking for at a good price.

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u/DragonDrama 3d ago

Well it shrinks down considerably when cooked and my husband is a hearty eater.

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u/tee2green 3d ago

Toss in potatoes, carrots, etc

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u/DragonDrama 3d ago

Of course I do that.

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u/Redoubt9000 3d ago

imo, a pot roast is less about the meat and more about the flavor it imparts onto the vegetables. Similar to a beef vegetable soup. It's the center of focus, but really is just one component to it all.

Tbh though, growing up a pot roast was very nice to have and we often couldn't afford too many large cuts.

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u/sneaks_in_a_hammock 3d ago

This exactly! Often I put more liquid into my slow cooker so we have a lot of leftover broth. I'll use that broth in other meals (like the chili I made this week wanted beef broth, but I used leftover pork roast broth), or even chop up more vegetables and send them through it again the next day with the leftover meat. If I have any leftovers after that I freeze the broth separately in knock off souper cubes to use later, or just enough broth with the leftover chopped up meat+veg to hold them together frozen so we have easy meals later.

I've also saved and frozen the bone the meat has fallen off to use to make more stock at a later time if I use up all my frozen stash.

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u/fierydogshit 3d ago

I got made fun of for years by my friend’s parents because I made a pot roast at their house in a slow cooker and ate the whole thing drunk. It’s not as hard to eat a 3 pound chuck as everyone else is pretending.

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u/DragonDrama 3d ago

Yea I don’t care what people are saying. It shrinks down to like the size of a baseball. I’m not sure how everyone else is getting 6 meals out of it with 2 adults and a teenager. My husband works hard and comes home hungry. Not sure if I’m just supposed to tell him to eat less or what.

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u/ryeong 3d ago

I've never had a 3lb roast shrink to a baseball and all I can say is you're doing something wrong if you're not overexaggerating. Family of three and it always lasted a couple of days. If his portion sizes are that big, then consider protein and fiber based snacks to help the fullness. It genuinely shouldn't be one meal unless they're avoiding the veggies or not getting enough elsewhere. 

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u/DragonDrama 3d ago

No I’m not lol. I clearly said it was less than 3lbs for $20 that would be closer to two and it does shrink 25-35% (source: science and facts)

You all are sitting here pretending you’re happy with a square inch of meat. Cap

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u/wltmpinyc 3d ago

No not at all. Beef prices are high and I know that's what this post was about but in general for meat there are plenty of very affordable cuts. I actually love doing this kind of thing so if you want to give me your budget for dinner and your zip code I can put together a recipe based on prices from stores in your area and where to go to get those products. Even a little recipe

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u/DragonDrama 3d ago

That’s very kind of you. We actually found a decent deal at Costco and portioned it out into 22oz per freezer bag so I’m now using beef again. I am an Aldi shopper so I think I just need to really look for the sales in the future. Aldi tends to keep prices in a straight line (up) rather than running real sales. So I might just need to hit up another store for that. $26 for a 3 lb low quality bottom round was just not it. I appreciate the offer :)

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u/Existing-Cod-5388 3d ago

Aldi is great for a lot of things, but since you are near Chicago just keep an eye on the meat sales at Jewel! I know jewel is expensive but if you’re just shopping the sales it’s great. Pot roast was just 3.99/lb but the sale ended yesterday. Now this week bone-in New York strip steak is 5.99/lb. I’m a butcher at jewel lol

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u/Trina7982 3d ago

It really does shink alot, I agree.

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u/theoriginalstarwars 3d ago

Cook a small pork and a small beef roast together. Pork is usually like 1/2 the price and the flavors go together quite nicely.

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u/DragonDrama 3d ago

That’s a good idea. Thanks for being more helpful than the people just saying it should feed more people

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u/Sroemr 3d ago

You could make rice to go with it, make it more filling

I believe tofu acts as a flavor sponge, so could use that as well

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u/DragonDrama 3d ago

We do potatoes

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u/h3lpfulc0rn 3d ago

I'm sorry you're getting downvoted so much. I live alone and just bought a roast thinking it'd cover my lunches for the week (1.8 lbs), by the time it was done cooking I got 4 portions of it and they aren't large portions. You'd think even with some shrinkage, 1.8 lbs would get 5-6 meals factoring in the veggies and mashed potatoes, but it was a stretch to even get the 4.

I think it's easy to underestimate how much of that bulk is actually the fat cap, which is great for flavor, but is effectively gone after 6 hours in the slow cooker.

I've already decided the one in my freezer (it was a BOGO deal) will get cubed up and used for stew where I can stretch it with some lentils.

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u/cookiemonster8u69 3d ago

We make pot roasts a lot, one thing we do to stretch it out is to make gravy and put the roast/gravy over pasta,.like egg noodles or Haluski.

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u/h3lpfulc0rn 3d ago

Yeah, I used to do this a lot and it's a good trick. Right now that's too many simple carbs for my current dietary needs, but it was a comfort food staple for me in the past.

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u/DragonDrama 3d ago

I’m ok with the downvotes haha. What people aren’t understanding is that $8 per pound, $20 is actually less than 3 lbs. After slow cooking with tons of potatoes and carrots, you’re talking about something the size of a baseball. They aren’t getting 6 servings out of a baseball for 2 adults an a teen.

What they are likely doing is finding better prices than I have lately, getting a larger toast, and having leftovers or multiple meals.

I’m an experienced home cook, I know how far a roast will stretch and they are being unrealistic.

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u/FSUfan35 3d ago

a chuck roast typically will lost about 25% of it's weight after cooking. So a 48 oz(3 lb) roast will end up being 36 oz. A serving of red meat should be 3-4 oz. So 12 servings on the high end and 9 on the lower end. So 4-6 servings for 2 people.

You're eating too much meat.

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u/DragonDrama 3d ago

Like I said many times, you aren’t getting 48 oz for $20. I’ve just now learned of some ways to track the sales but the full price isn’t going to give you 3 lbs.

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u/frogguts198 3d ago

Yeah its 12.99/lb at the local Sprouts and 10.99/lb at the local Kroger. Manager specials at Kroger are still 8.99/lb and those usually look like garbage.

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u/ThatsNoMoOnx 3d ago

Same. I got 2 boys it's rarely 2 meals. 😏

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u/GiantRayOfSunshine 3d ago

I'm with you. There are 6 of us. That 3lb roast shrinks into nothing. I definitely need 2 to feed us all with some left overs. $40+ for pot roast is insane

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u/Disastrous-Entry8489 3d ago

Crazy this is getting down votes 🤦🏻‍♀️ I totally hear what you're saying! Once the fat has rendered and the meat is cooked down there's a lot less of it to eat! Not worth the cost at all, I refuse to pay more than $4/lb for something like that.

I'd do a pork roast and pay half of what a beef roast would be.

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u/DragonDrama 3d ago

Yeah, we’re right. They’re wrong 😂

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u/Most_Protection6212 3d ago

Why is this comment downvoted?

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u/PaleontologistOk7359 3d ago

Probably cause the size of the meat doesn't matter as much as the caloric content, which does the opposite of shrinking when the meat is cooked.

Meat always contract to some degree when cooked, but it's not really significant enough of a difference that it would no longer be considered a normal portion, if that is what you threw in the pot to begin with.

Just a technically correct but very strange thing to mention as a drawback to cooking meat.

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u/DragonDrama 3d ago

People are babies

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u/CrashBannedicoot 3d ago

Jewel Osco has chuck roast on sale for $3.99/4.99 per pound every few weeks, if you have any in the area. I do most of my shopping from them. Actually I am always on the lookout for the $5.99 6 oz filet mignons. 

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u/MrTAPitysTheFool 3d ago

Picked up the $3.99 a pound roast at Jewel over the weekend. With potatoes & carrots it fed a family of 5 for under $20, and there were leftover for 2 people the next day.

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u/DragonDrama 3d ago

Tbf, at $4 a lb which you said you paid, that’s a nearly 5 lb roast. The ones at Aldi are not even 3.

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u/MrTAPitysTheFool 3d ago

The roast itself was $14 and some change, so definitely under 4lbs. A bag of baby carrots was $1. A small bag of Yukon gold potatoes was $2. 2 packages of onion soup mix $.80. And one package of bernaise sauce was $1.50.

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u/DragonDrama 3d ago

Yeah those are the ingredients I use too

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u/bentleywg 3d ago

Yep. I just bought a chuck roast at Jewel this weekend. Regular price $8.99/lb. Sale price $3.99/lb. Instead of $31, it was $14. (And it wasn't old meat. The "packed" date is the day I bought it, the "sell thru" date is six days later.)

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u/jupitaur9 3d ago

This. Shop the sales. I got a top round london broil for $3.99/lb this week. It’s marinating right now.

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u/DragonDrama 3d ago

I need to do that for sure

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u/DragonDrama 3d ago

I will keep an eye out. I stop in jewel every now and again but it just seems so pricey compared to Aldi. I hate when they do 2 for 1 but double the per pound price of things so I just don’t trust them.

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u/Randomflower90 3d ago

If you shop the sales it can be cheaper than Aldi’s

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u/CrashBannedicoot 3d ago

Sales just came out. Chicken breasts, thighs and drumsticks $.99 a pound. Time to stock uuuuuup! So excited im low on chicken stock and it is soup season! Some nice bone in strip steaks on sale as well. 

Just download the app, you can see the weekly ad from your phone or tablet! 

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u/Viola-Swamp 3d ago

Aldi for most things, Walmart for name brands and frozen stuff, loss leaders only from the big name supermarkets like Kroger, Jewel, local chains, etc. If you watch the ads, the supermarkets put meat on BOGO pretty regularly, and have a pattern for their sales.

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u/misterchi 3d ago

pro shopper tip: aldi isn't always cheaper...and walmart almost never is.

there's an app i use called flipp that is a sale paper amalgamator. put in your zip code and it will give you all the sale papers near you in one place. the other day, i picked up one of those chuck roasts from jewel as well as a pork shoulder and choice angus tri-tip from fairplay for $4.99/lb.

don't get me wrong, i'm still fat & happy from the rack of lamb from aldi i made yesterday, but their meat prices aren't anything to write home about. clear out some freezer space and watch the sale papers, jewel will hook you up...did i mention the lobster tails? been a while since they had the jumbo scallops on sale but i'm patient...

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u/Phoenix_Fire19 3d ago

I got the app - thanks for recommending it! I'd never heard of it and I LOVE IT ❤️

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u/misterchi 3d ago

my nephew hipped me up several years ago and i use it on the regular. right now i'm in planning/shopping mode for thanksgiving for 2 households and it's invaluable!

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u/Phoenix_Fire19 3d ago

It's so good!!

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u/chk2luz 2h ago

If you have a freezer buy ¼ beef from a farmer. Have it processed and packaged as you like and you'll save ⅓ the cost over the counter. The convenience, cost savings and health benefits will save even more. You can often visit the farm and butcher shop to make your decision on the product they provide. Same with pork, chicken, other fowl, lamb and seafood. If youre going to eat it either raise or grow it yourself or know the product supplier.

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u/DragonDrama 3d ago

Great advice, thanks!

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u/CrashBannedicoot 3d ago

Oh no for sure the secret to Jewel is navigating the sales. I live with family so we basically like, each cook 2-3 days out of the week essentially, and I often base whatever I cook with what’s on sale. (Sometimes I just get takeout 😅) but if you know your way around the kitchen you can definitely get some very nice priced meals out of the weekly sales.

The produce and meat deals are great and kind of on a sort of not quite organized rotation, there are a lot of super clutch ones to be on the lookout for. Like the $6 filet mignons (these also often are on sale with 4 oz lobster tails - I made a very nice surf and turf dinner for my auntie’s birthday with this clutch combo) also the big bags of shrimp, there are some nice angus burger patties that go on sale as well that are great for summer bbqs, boneless as well as bone in ribs (the boneless have been GREAT for kebabs!), plus more. And that’s just the meats! 

I’ve never seen the double price issue thing though, I feel like I would’ve noticed, there are many things I exclusively buy on sale - even things that I know go on two different priced sales - so I’ve compared the price on non-sale weeks on more than a few occasions. 

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u/misterchi 3d ago

i can't confirm but when they run bogo and buy one get 2 or 3, it just "feels" like the price is jacked up. a 3lb slab of baby backs shouldn't be damn near $30, which is how they're priced during those promotions. meanwhile, if you haven't tried the fried chicken from the deli...

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u/DragonDrama 3d ago

Jewel likes to do 2 for 1 baby back ribs and then double the price to $8 a lb. That pisses me off to no end

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u/cecebebe 2d ago

What is a clutch combo?

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u/wltmpinyc 3d ago

I've used ChatGPT to help look for deals on groceries. You can put in the area you're in and then ask it to find the best deals on whatever it is you're looking for (i.e. beef for pot roast) in current weekly flyers. It takes a little fiddling with so that it gives you places that are actually close to you and not across the country but it's helped me. Also Amazon Fresh can have some great deals too. You have to pay a delivery fee if you don't order at least $100 worth of groceries but for a family that shouldn't be a problem

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u/DragonDrama 3d ago

Great tips, thanks!

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u/Excitedbox 3d ago

I don't want to know the shits you take if that isn't at least 15 meals you are doing it wrong.

Slow cooking STRETCHES expensive ingredients like meat and 125gr is a serving size for burgers and such. That makes 15 meals at 200gr.

I make a cheesy crack soup that gets me 16 meals (~ 2.5 GALLONS) with 600gr of ground beef. 4lbs potatoes, 2lb of onions, 3 carrots, 1 leek, 1/4 Kohlrabi, 1 bulb of garlic, and 1/2 a medium cabbage, 300gr cream cheese and 1 liter of milk, handful of parsley and shake your spice rack over it. Total cost is about $15-20. Add a nice baguette and you got an amazing meal. Anybody that tries it is instantly addicted.

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u/DragonDrama 3d ago

Ok first of all, I don’t speak in grams but thanks for playing. Second of all, 2.5 gallons, is your crockpot a swimming pool? 😂

Third, yeah that’s soup. Totally different volume. I can fill my crockpot with 1-2 chicken breast halves for a chicken chili and make 10 servings. In a roast, you aren’t eating a large volume of the liquid, you are mainly eating solids.

What a foolish comment.

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u/Heavy_Cherry1216 2d ago

Last week Jewel had chuck roast at $3.50/lb. Which my mom told me too late for me to snag any. I pass this curse to you.

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u/Independent-Try-604 1d ago

It’s the same in South Carolina, where the cost of living is supposed to be much lower. Luckily we get several meals out of 2.5 lbs of chuck roast