A few weeks ago, The Hubby and I visited Son A in the desert Southwestern state of AZ. Taking a cooking class at Sur La Table was one of our many outings. The dish we made was pan-seared beef tenderloin with a red wine reduction and sides. This recipe isn’t the same as what we cooked at Sur La Table, but one of the techniques is the same–searing meat in a hot oiled pan.
Searing is a technique used with meat to enhance the overall flavor and appearance of it. Start with room temperature meat that’s been patted dry. Surface moisture creates a steamed effect, which we don’t want. The meat is cooked in a heated pan (preferably cast iron) with oil. Butter and olive oil work well together, but opt for a fat with a high-smoke point temperature. Cook the meat on each side until golden brown. Browning the meat creates a visual effect making it look more appetizing to our eyes, as well as concentrating the flavor around a crispier crust. The contrast between a browned crust and the inner juicier center is amazing!
For this Slow-Cooked Savory Pot Roast recipe, you’ll sear a 3-1/2 to 4 pound pot roast in equal parts olive oil and butter. The roast is removed and a combination of veggies and herbs are added. Once these are tender, add the roast back to the Dutch oven and pour over beef stock. Cover and cook for about 4 hours. Carrots can be added towards the end of the cook time. An unctuous gravy made from beef stock and A.P. flour finishes off the dish. Serve with creamy mashed potatoes and your favorite green veggie. Enjoy!
Slow-Cooked Savory Pot Roast
Slow and steady wins the race with this savory, tender pot roast recipe. Chuck roast makes the best choice due its higher fat content. Cooking the roast in a combination of veggies and herbs after it’s shredded add to the unctuousness of the dish. Serve with your favorite supper sides like creamy mashed potatoes or green vegetables.
- Total Time: About 4 Hours
- Yield: Serves 4-6 1x
Ingredients
One 3–1/2 to 4-pound chuck roast, at room temperature and patted dry
1 T. each of olive oil and unsalted butter
1 medium-sized onion, diced
1 stalks celery, sliced
2 bay leaves
2–3 cloves garlic, minced
20–25 whole black peppercorns
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
1/2 tsp. dried parsley
2 c. beef stock or broth
1 tsp. salt (table, sea or kosher)
2 large carrots, peeled and sliced
2 c. beef stock or broth
1/3 c. all-purpose flour
Salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. In a large oven-safe pot or a Dutch oven, heat the olive oil and butter over medium heat. Sear chuck roast on each side until a deep golden brown crust develops, about 3-5 minutes. Remove roast from pot. Add onion, celery, bay leaves, garlic, peppercorns, thyme and parsley to pot. Stir and cook until onion is almost translucent. Be careful to not burn garlic.
Add roast back to pan on vegetables. Pour beef stock over the roast and season meat with salt. Cover the pot with a tight fitting lid and put in preheated oven to cook for about 4 hours. Check meat periodically and baste with pan juices.
When meat is tender to shred, use two forks to tear meat into bite-size chunks. Continue to baste with juices to avoid drying out meat. Add carrots to pot. Cover and cook for another 45 minutes. When carrots are tender, remove pot from oven. Strain extra pan juices from meat.
To make gravy, combine extra juices with additional 2 cups of beef stock. (Add additional water to create about 3 cups of liquid.) Bring to a boil in a medium saucepan. Whisk in all-purpose flour, making a smooth gravy. Pour over shredded pot roast. Season with additional salt and pepper. Serve with mashed or roasted potatoes.
Notes
This can also be cooked in a slow-cooker. Sear the meat in a pan on the stovetop, but remove to a slow-cooker. Cook vegetable mixture according to the recipe above in the same pan, but pour over meat in the cooker. Continue to cook and serve according to recipe above.
IMNPB
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