These pulled beef sliders are cooked low and slow with a homemade garlic mayo and caramelized onions. It’s an easy, budget friendly way to feed a crowd. This is packed with flavor and needs just 10 minutes of prep. Don’t limit these to parties. They’re a great family dinner too.
Don’t skip caramelizing the onions. Sure, you could throw them in the slow cooker with the meat, but taking the time to cook them slowly in a pan brings out their natural sweetness. It’s an extra step, makes all the difference.
Table of Contents
What You’ll Need
Chuck roast is not a fancy cut, but with slow cooking, all those tough, chewy parts become tender and juicy meat that falls apart with just a fork. The secret isn’t in special ingredients or complicated techniques… it’s simply patience. You can’t make this go faster!
You can make your own slider buns by shaping this burger bun recipe smaller or find them in the bakery section of your grocery store.
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This makes 6 servings or 12 slider buns from a 3 pound roast. If you have a large slow cooker you can get a larger roast and adjust the recipe amounts in the recipe card below.
Equipment
- Slow cooker
- Dutch oven or heavy pan
Ingredients
- 1 boneless beef chuck pot roast (3 pound)
- 1 ¼ teaspoon salt divided
- 1 ⅛ teaspoon pepper divided
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 packet Au Jus Gravy seasoning mix (1 ounce) like the McCormick brand
- 1 ½ cups water
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 2 garlic cloves peeled and minced
- 2 large yellow onions peeled and thinly sliced
- ¼ cup butter
- 12 slider buns
How to Make Pulled Beef Sliders
Step One: Rub Meat
Mix 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder. Rub it all over your 3-pound chuck roast and put it in the crockpot.
Step Two: Add Gravy
Mix the Au Jus packet with 1½ cups water and pour it over the roast.
Cook on high for 5 hours or low for 8-10 hours.
Step Three: Make Garlic Mayo
Mix mayo, minced garlic, ¼ teaspoon salt, and ⅛ teaspoon pepper. Put it in the fridge.
Step Four: Cook Onions
An hour before the roast is done, melt butter in a heavy pan over medium-low heat. Add the sliced onions and cook for 45 minutes, stirring every so often. They’ll turn golden and shrink down.
Step Five: Shred Meat
Take the roast out and shred it with two forks. Toss any fat pieces. Put the shredded meat back in the crockpot.
Step Six: Build Sliders
Put the meat on the bottom bun, add onions, and spread the garlic mayo on the top bun. Close it up and eat right away before the buns get soggy.
Serving & Storing
Serve these sliders with potato salad, coleslaw, and your favorite chips for a satisfying meal.
Don’t leave cooked beef at room temperature for over 2 hours. Store the caramelized onions and garlic mayo separately in the fridge.
Store leftover beef in an airtight container with some of the cooking juices in the fridge for 3-4 days. You can also freeze it for 2-3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge. Reheat in the oven at 250°F with a bit of extra liquid or on the stovetop over low heat. You can also microwave it, adding a splash of liquid to prevent drying.
Questions and Troubleshooting
You can use a combination of beef broth and a bit of beef bouillon or dry onion soup mix instead. It’ll give your pulled beef a similar flavor.
While a chuck roast is perfect for its marbling and flavor, you can use a round or blade roast in a pinch. Just keep in mind that they might be slightly less tender and flavorful.
The caramelized onions taste even better the next day, so feel free to make them a day or two in advance and store them in the fridge.
You can skip the garlic mayo or substitute it with a simple barbecue sauce or your favorite dipping sauce.
More Slow Cooker Recipes
- You’ll love this moist pork roast with herbs and lemon zest.
- Ready in under 3 hours, your picky eaters will love this beef and macaroni recipe.
- Make this sweet pork for tacos or burritos or meal prep – you’ll get a lot of meat and it freezes great.
- Chicken cacciatore is filling and warm and budget friendly!
Printable Recipe
Pulled Beef Sliders
Equipment
- Slow cooker
- Dutch oven or heavy pan
Ingredients
- 1 boneless beef chuck pot roast (3 pound)
- 1 ¼ teaspoon salt divided
- 1 ⅛ teaspoon pepper divided
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 packet Au Jus Gravy seasoning mix (1 ounce) like the McCormick brand
- 1 ½ cups water
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 2 garlic cloves peeled and minced
- 2 large yellow onions peeled and thinly sliced
- ¼ cup butter
- 12 slider buns
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Instructions
- Rub beef. In a small bowl, mix 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder. Rub the mixture onto all sides of the beef roast and place it in a 6-8 quart crockpot.
- Make gravy. In a small bowl, whisk together the water and Au Jus Gravy mix.
- Slow cook. Pour the gravy over the roast and cook on high heat for 5 hours or on low for 8-10 hours.
- Make mayonnaise mixture. While the roast cooks, mix mayonnaise, minced garlic, ¼ teaspoon salt, and ⅛ teaspoon pepper in a small bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until serving time.
- Caramelize onions. About an hour before the roast is done cooking, melt the butter over medium-low heat in a heavy pan or Dutch oven and add the onions. Cook the onions for 45 minutes on medium-low heat, stirring periodically to prevent burning. The onions will slowly brown, caramelize, and reduce in size. Turn off the heat and place in a serving bowl. Refrigerate if needed before the roast is done cooking.
- Shred meat. Carefully remove the roast from the slow cooker and place it on a cutting board. It should be very tender and may break into chunks when removing it from the slow cooker. Using two forks, shred the beef into bite-size pieces. Remove and discard any fatty pieces. Return the shredded beef to the crockpot and serve immediately or keep warm until time to serve.
- Serve. To serve, using a slotted spoon or tongs, remove the desired amount of meat and place it on a slider bun. Top with a tablespoon or two of caramelized onions and spread the garlic mayonnaise on the underside of the top bun. Place the top bun over the beef and onions and serve immediately before the juices from the beef cause the slider bun to get too soggy.
Notes
Nutrition
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