Smoked Pulled Beef Chuck Roast
On December 14, 2020 (Updated August 27, 2024)
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moked Pulled Beef Chuck Roast is like best Sunday pot roast you’ve ever had with an extra kiss of smoked flavor you never knew you wanted. Tender, melt in your mouth, full of beefy flavor.
Smoked Chuck Roast
Chuck roasts are well marbled pieces of beef with some really tight connective tissue. They tend to be a tougher cut of meat, but some TLC from the smoker can make them ultra tasty. By smoking a chuck roast low and slow, you allow that fat to slowly render and the low heat to break down and soften that connective tissue that can make chuck roasts chewy.
Chuck roasts are popular for making pot roast, and while many folks are familiar with cooking these in a slow cooker or oven, smoking them is the way to go, IMHO.
You also can’t go wrong with this recipe! It’s beyond easy to make with only 4 INGREDIENTS. Yes. You heard me. Four. Chuck roast, onion, beef stock, and some nummy beef seasoning are all that stand between you and dinner.
How to Smoke a Chuck Roast for Pulled Beef
I season my chuck roasts liberally with my Signature Beef Seasoning, but you can also use equal parts salt, pepper, and garlic powder to add flavor without masking or covering up the beef. From there, the chuck roast hits the smoker at 225 degrees F. I use oak wood for this recipe, because I feel like oak can really stand up and support that rich beef flavor. While the chuck roast smokes during this first step, I like to spritz with beef stock every hour to keep things moist.
Next step is to increase the heat on the smoker to 250 degrees F. Add the smoked chuck roast to a pan of beef stock and onions and return to the smoker to keep on cooking! You’re shooting for an internal temperature of 165 degrees F before you cover the whole pan tightly with foil and let that chuck roast finish cooking.
Internal Temperature for Smoked Chuck Roast
My recommended internal temperature for chuck roast is at least 200 degrees F. At that temperature, the connective tissues in the chuck will have broken down and gelatinized so they just melt in your mouth. Since we also covered the roast and braised in liquid, the roast will be incredibly juicy and tender as well.
If you don’t already own one, I really recommending getting a high quality instant read thermometer. I’ve used Thermoworks products for years and love their quality.
Tips for Smoking Pulled Beef
Hold up, meat lover! Before you dive into this tasty recipe, check out these tips for getting the most out of your meat:
- Grab some claws. Snag some meat shredders to make quick work of shredded the meat.
- Cook to tenderness, not time or temperature. Getting your roast up above 200 degrees is where you’ll start to see the roast get tender. Some chuck roasts need to hit 210 before they are ready to shred. Keep checking for tenderness and meat that easily pulls apart.
- Add your favorite flavors! Beef broth and onions are classic flavors. You could also add in herbs, red wine, potatoes, carrots, or mushrooms to braise with the beef.
More Pulled Meat Recipes
Whether you’re a fan of pulled beef, chicken, or pork, Hey Grill Hey has all the recipe to keep your meat tooth satisfied! Check out more tasty recipes below!
Smoked Chuck Roast Recipe
Chicken Rub
$12.99
Beef Rub
$12.99 – $25.99
Smoked Chuck Roast (for pulled beef)
Video
Equipment
- Smoker I highly recommend this one!
Ingredients
- 1 chuck roast 3-4 pounds
- 1 yellow or white onion sliced
- 3 cups beef stock divided use
- 3 Tablespoons Hey Grill Hey Beef Seasoning or equal parts salt, pepper, and garlic powder.
Instructions
- Preheat the smoker. When ready to cook, start your smoker going at 225 degrees F and preheat with the lid closed, for 10 to 15 minutes.
- Season the chuck roast. Season the roast liberally with the Beef Seasoning (or equal parts salt, pepper, and garlic powder), using your hands to press the rub into every surface of the meat. (Optional, rub your meat the night before smoking and refrigerate).1 chuck roast, 3 Tablespoons Hey Grill Hey Beef Seasoning
- Smoke the roast. Put the roast directly on your grill grate, fat-side up, and cook for 3 hours, spraying with 1 cup of the beef stock every hour (reserve the other 2 cups of stock).3 cups beef stock
- Add the broth and onions. Place the sliced onions in the bottom of a large disposable aluminum foil pan and pour the remaining 2 cups of stock in the bottom of the pan. Transfer the roast into the pan on top of the onions and set the pan in the grill.3 cups beef stock, 1 yellow or white onion
- Finish smoking. Increase your grill temperature to 250 degrees F, and cook until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F (about 3 more hours). If you're watching a thermometer, you'll notice the temperature will stay between 155 and 165 degrees for quite a while. This is called the stall period and is totally normal.
- Cover with foil. Once your roast hits 165, cover the pan tightly with aluminum foil and continue cooking until an instant-read meat thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the meat registers at least 200 degrees, up to 202 degrees F (this step can take another 3 hours). Every roast will be done at a slightly different temperature, so look for your probe to slide into the meat like it is sliding into softened butter.
- Rest, shred, and enjoy. Remove the pan from the smoker and let rest for 15 minutes. Separate the roast from the cooking liquid. Shred the roast and separate the fat from the cooking liquid. Moisten the roast with the remaining cooking liquid, or make it into au jus for dipping, or turn it into gravy.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
**This post was originally published in March 2018. We recently updated it with more information and helpful tips. The recipe remains the same.
Something I just caught as I prep to do this cook. The ingredients call for a chuck roast 3-4 pounds. The notes at the end of the recipe say when cooking a smaller 3-4 pound chuck roast one can expect short cook times. Is the recipe based on a 3-4 as it states or a larger one?
It’s based on 3-4lbs. What that means is if your roast is around 3lbs instead of 3.5-4lbs the cook time will be a little shorter. Make sure you’re always cooking to temperature instead of time though!
I have 3x1kg beef briskets i want to smoke in either my gas bbq or my offset smoker. Will this recipe work the same for the briskets? I have a huge bbq in 2 weeks and want to make this one of the main dishes.
It will work but probably not quite as well as a chuck. Brisket flats tend to be leaner.
I actually butterflied the roast so I had more smoking surface. Seasoned as you mentioned after each hr I spritzed
With broth on both sides and flipped, after 3 hrs put in tin pan with rest of broth open and continued to flip every hr for 3 hrs and finished in crockpot after 2 hrs. Felt the broth was smoky as well, from the meat or the grill. The meat was so tender, used misquote wood pellets, first time smoking great flavor next I’ll try oak.
Used recipe/approach today. Turned out fantastic. It was a 2.85 pound chuck roast. Smoked on Pit Boss pellet grill. Used time (7 hours) and probe test not temp. Temp measured 217 for the last two hours. At 5 hours, when first 217, probe test had resistance so kept cooking. Slight variation on broth. Wanted some sweet so 1 cup apple juice and 1 cup beef broth (heated before adding to pan). Let it rest for 1 hour before pulling apart.
How about adding whole carrots and quartered potatoes to the pan? Will it change the cooking time at all?
Thanks
Sounds great! It shouldn’t change the cooking time too much if at all.
I made this last weekend and it is so easy I couldn’t believe it would be be this awesome! I put the spices on my roast the evening before and was a bit worried about all that salt, but I used it all. I put it on my small Rec Tec at 8 a,m, . . neighbors came over asking what’s cooking around noon. I didn’t have a very large pan for the broth and onion and the roast kind of sat in an inch of the broth in step 6, but it worked fine. There are only two of us in the house right now and we have enjoyed this on our crusty ciabatta rolls for several days. Absolutely awesome! Thanks so much for posting the easy, fantastic recipe!
I needed to use some roasts to make room in my freezer for our annual side of beef, so I went online to find something interesting. This was a huge hit! I did four 2 1/2 lb roasts, and doubled up on the onions and broth so we would have plenty of au jus. When I put the roasts into the pan, the broth had a cooling effect on the beef which stretched out the cooking time a bit. No worries. I’ll preheat the broth next time. And there will definitely be a next time! Thank you!
This was absolutely delicious. I’m new to smoking and have loved reading through your recipes and enjoyed the videos I have seen so far. You truly make this whole smoking adventure so much easier! Thank you!
I did this in my electric smoker! I missed a step by accident but the results were amazing!!! I smoked it for about 3 1/2 hours, then was rushing to get to work and put it in my liquid with onions and covered it(forgot to cook uncovered in liquid). Any ways I came home and pulled it off the smoker to check the temp after 6 hours and it was the perfect temp and falling apart. I had trouble taking it out the pan because it was so tender!!! Amazing flavor!! Topped with my tangy bbq sauce and some slaw!!!
I tried this and its awesome! heres pro tip instead of using a probe to see if its soft like butter stick a fork in it and twist if its not done the fork will resist