Pot Roast

As my true love and I began to emerge from our respective illnesses, our appetites began to return as well, and her impending return to the U.K. began to creep up on us.  I wanted to make something special, but didn’t have the energy to spend all day in the kitchen and neither of us were in a position to appreciate anything groundbreaking.  I needed something big and friendly that didn’t require a ton of work.  Something like a pot roast.

I love braising as a technique.  The long application of moist heat is a great way to cook beef, pork, chicken, and root vegetables and  short ribs, pulled pork, and chicken tangines are all part of my regular repertoire. The key to a good braised dish is building as much flavor as possible in the cooking liquid and then letting the ingredients and the heat do their thing.  It’s possible to oversimplify and have a tough, flavorless meat accompanied by a boring sauce but it’s quite easy to have a moist, delicious roast swimming in a deep, complex gravy.

For a pot roast, you’ll want a chuck roast (or some other inexpensive roast) and step one addresses the meat itself.  Every braised meat benefits from searing before starting the braising process. It’s not true that searing seals in the juices, but the dark, crispy seared edges add an intense flavor to the meat and the fat and juices released during the searing process help add a complexity to the onions (and whatever else you are using) as a flavor base.  It also helps to liberally add salt and pepper to the meat before searing.

Heat a little oil in a Dutch oven to medium high and then cook each side of the roast just enough to develop a little crust.  Set the meat aside and back the heat down to medium low. The next step is to establish the flavor base.  My advice is to take whatever your favorite cookbook recipe suggests for aromatics and double it. In this case, this means one large or two medium chopped onions, two diced celery ribs, and two diced carrots.  Cook them in the oil and beef fat/juices for ten minutes until the onions are translucent and the carrots are beginning to soften.

While that’s going on, assemble a bouquet garni by wrapping up a couple of bay leaves, a half-dozen springs of thyme or tarragon, and 2-3 smashed cloves of garlic in cheesecloth.  When you’re ready, add the meat and the bouquet garni to the pot and now you’re ready for the liquid.  Here you’ll find nearly every cook has their own favorite but red wine and/or beef stock but I don’t use either.  I use beer – preferably a big flavored stout or ale.  One bottle is usually enough, although that’s usually less than most recipes call for.  If you use extra aromatics, they’re going to release their own liquid and the whole will be enough.  Bring the pot to a simmer and then cover and pop into a pre-heated 350° oven for 90 minutes.

You can now relax for a bit and concentrate on something else.  Sooner or later though, you’ll need to start on the side vegetables.  On Sunday, I just wanted simple potatoes and carrots so I peeled some of both and cut them into serving pieces.  You could also add chunks of onions, turnips, parsnips, or celeriac.  After the 90 minutes was up, I checked the pot (yep! everything’s OK) and then just sprinkled the vegetables over the top, put the cover on and put the pot back in the oven for another 45 minutes.  The steam from the cooking liquid with cook the veggies perfectly.

After the 45 minutes, check to see if the veggies are done.  If they’re not, keep cooking for a while – you can’t possibly overcook the meat.  Once you’re happy with how everything is cooked, remove the veggies with a slotted spoon to a serving platter and cover to keep warm.  Remove the meat and set aside, keeping it warm as well.  Then run what’s left through a food mill to puree and after pureeing, skim the fat.  You could use a blender but that will make it harder to skim the fat afterwards (as the fat will be better mixed into the gravy).  If you want, you could add a tablespoon or two of flour to make a more traditional gravy but the extra veggies and reduced liquid should make it plenty thick on its own.

Now you’re ready to slice the meat, cover with gravy, and serve with the veggies and some bread for gravy sopping.  Delicious and not a whole lot of work – you just have to think of it at least three hours before you want to eat.

Recipe – Pot roast

Ingredients

2-3 lb chuck roast

1 tbl vegetable oil

1 large or 2 medium onions, chopped

2 celery ribs, diced

2 carrots, diced

3 garlic cloves, smashed

2 bay leaves

6 springs thyme or tarragon

1 bottle full flavored beer

2 russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2″ chunks

3 large carrots, peeled and cut into 1″ chunks

salt and pepper

Directions

Pre-heat oven to 350°

Liberally sprinkle roast with salt and pepper.  Heat oil in a dutch oven to medium high and sear the roast on all sides.  Set aside.

Reduce heat to medium low and add onions, celery, and diced carrots.  Cook for 10 minutes, stirring frequently.  Add garlic, bay leaves, and herbs tied in a bouquet garni.  Add roast and cover with beer.  Bring to a simmer, cover, and place in the oven for 90 minutes.

Take the pot out of the oven and check liquid level. Add water (or more beer) if necessary.  Sprinkle potatoes and carrots over the top, cover, and place back in the oven for an additional 45 minutes.  Check for doneness – vegetables should be soft and roast should be able to be pulled apart with a fork.

When done, remove the carrots and potatoes with a slotted spoon to a serving platter.  Keep warm.

Remove roast and set aside. Remove bouquet garni and discard.

Run cooking liquid and what remains of onions, carrots, and celery through a food mill on a fine/medium disk.  Skim the fat and set aside.  Slice the meat, cover with the gravy, and serve with the vegetables and bread.