Crock Pot Italian Beef

The past two weeks have been a bit busy for us. I flew solo with the kids to Chicago, Kevin flew in later, we drove to Indianapolis for a wedding, came back to Chicago, Kevin flies out for a work trip, I fly solo with the kids back to Seattle. It was so fun and wonderful to see family and friends but it was definitely busy travelling with two young kids while 20+ weeks pregnant. Then we came home and immediately dove into potty training Lleyton. Given all of that, I have been making some easy dinners! I usually prepare dinner during naptime, but I love a good crock pot meal that I can set up while the kids are having breakfast and not think about for the rest of the day, like this four-ingredient Italian beef.

I’ve been making this recipe for years and am just now sharing it with all of you. I actually made this exact dish a few weeks ago and completely forgot to photograph it! Thankfully it’s a dish my family loves, takes minutes to prepare, and is something I find myself turning to again and again. It would also be perfect to bring to a potluck since it requires so little effort but is such a crowd-pleaser.

Since two of the ingredients, Italian seasoning and beef broth, are staples that I always keep in the house, I simply need to add a chuck roast and a jar of pepperoncini to my grocery list to add this Italian beef to our menu for the week. I’m a bit of a baby when it comes to spicy foods, and I love this with a full jar of pepperoncini and their liquid. But if you want to take the heat down even more, drain the liquid from the pepperoncini and just use the peppers. Sub 1/2 cup extra beef broth for the remaining liquid. So easy! Especially if your kids don’t like spicy food.

Usually I serve this with a big green salad and this time of year I’m lucky enough to cut the lettuce from my own garden! It always seems to go out of control by the time June rolls around, which means salads are my go-to side for just about every meal. An easy side dish for an easy meal like this sounds like the perfect dinner to me!