Pot Roast
Pot Roast with Polenta
This recipe uses the “low and slow” cooking philosophy. While I make it in a dutch oven I am sure you could also do this in the crock pot. The important thing for the taste is to let the meat cool in the cooking liquid for an hour before you make the sauce and reheat the roast. I know it adds a bit of complexity to the recipe but the outcome on the meat is really very good.
- 2 pound boneless chuck roast
- 1 carrot, in large dice
- 1 celery stalk, in large dice
- 1/2 red onion, in large dice
- 2 cloves of garlic, smashed
- 6 to 8 cocktail olives cut in half
- 2 bay leaves if fresh, one if dried
- 1 large sprig of fresh rosemary
- 1 14.5 ouce can of diced tomatoes in tomato juice, or 1 1/2 cups of tomato juice
- 1 1/2 cups chicken broth
- 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
- vegetable oil for browning the meat
- 2 teaspoons or less of kosher salt
- freshly ground black pepper
Preheat the oven to 250 degrees.
In a dutch oven or large sauté pan, add just enough cooking oil to cover the bottom of the pan. I do not recommend olive oil for this purpose due to the low smoke point on olive oil. Heat the pan to medium high heat.
Thoroughly pat down the roast with paper towels to remove any surface liquids. Add some salt and pepper to the roast. Place the roast in the hot oil and brown on each side. I find that 2 or 3 minutes per side is plenty of time. Remove the roast to a plate.
Roast Before the Oven
Reduce the heat to medium and add the celery, onion, carrot, and bay leaves. Sauté until they begin to brown, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté until fragrant, about 2 more minutes. Add the tomatoes, the balsamic vinegar and the chicken stock. Heat to a simmer. Add the roast back into the pot, making sure the roast is at least submerged half way in the cooking liquid. Add more chicken stock if you need to submerge the roast more. Add the sprig of rosemary to the top of the pot. Cover the pot and place in the oven for 2 ½ to 3 hours. When done the roast should be a very dark chocolate color on top and the roast should almost be falling apart.
Roast After the Oven
Remove the covered pot from the oven and allow to cool for 1 hour. Remove the roast from the pot. Pour all of the liquid into a fat strainer with a lid that will catch all the large chunks of vegetables. Allow the liquid to cool for about 30 minutes to allow the fat to rise to the top. Pour the strained liquid back into the pot. Add some of the vegetables to the pot and using an immersion blender puree the vegetables. Add some of the olive pieces back into the sauce. Add the roast back into the pot and reheat in the sauce for about 10 minutes.
Straining the Liquid
If you are talented you can try to carve the roast. I just break it into large chunks. Serve with the sauce. This should serve about 4 people.
Ready for Carving