Tuesday, October 11, 2011

Pot Roast

I usually cook my pot roast in slow cooker for the sheer convenience. However, if you have the time to do this recipe in a Dutch oven, it is well worth the time, effort and investment.

My favorite cut of meat for pot roast is the chuck roast because it has beautiful marbling throughout the meat and it ends up being tender and melt-in-your-mouth delicious. The most important thing to remember for any pot roast recipe is patience. If you can find the patience (to resist the irresistible aromas wafting through the kitchen as it cooks), you won’t be disappointed. I promise.

Pot Roast
Serves 10

Ingredients
1 whole (4 to 5 pounds) chuck roast
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 whole onions
6 whole carrots (up to 8 carrots)
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste
1 cup red wine (optional, you can use beef broth instead)
2 cups to 3 cups beef stock
3 sprigs fresh thyme, or more to taste
3 sprigs fresh rosemary, or more to taste

Directions
First and foremost, choose a nicely marbled piece of meat. This will enhance the flavor of your pot roast like nothing else. Generously salt and pepper your chuck roast.

Heat a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Then add 2 to 3 tablespoons of olive oil (or you can do a butter/olive oil split).

Cut two onions in half and cut 6 to 8 carrots into 2-inch slices (you can peel them, but you don’t have to). When the oil in the pot is very hot (but not smoking), add in the halved onions, browning them on one side and then the other. Remove the onions to a plate.

Throw the carrots into the same very hot pan and toss them around a bit until slightly browned, about a minute or so.

If needed, add a bit more olive oil to the very hot pan. Place the meat in the pan and sear it for about a minute on all sides until it is nice and brown all over. Remove the roast to a plate.

With the burner still on high, use either red wine or beef broth (about 1 cup) to deglaze the pan, scraping the bottom with a whisk to get that entire wonderful flavor up.

When the bottom of the pan is sufficiently deglazed, place the roast back into the pan and add enough beef stock to cover the meat halfway (about 2 to 3 cups). Add in the onion and the carrots, as well as 3 or 4 sprigs of fresh rosemary and about 3 sprigs of fresh thyme.

Put the lid on, and then roast in a 275F oven for 3 hours (for a 3-pound roast). For a 4 to 5-pound roast, plan on 4 hours.

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