Now that it’s officially October, you need a supper that is decidedly festive and fall themed. Something warm, hearty and delicious enough to make your toes curl. This one pot dinner is inexpensive for the culinary oomph it offers your stomach in a few hours.
What you’ll need:
- 1 whole (4 - 5 pounds) chuck roast
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 whole onions
- 6 carrots (up to 8 carrots)
- salt to taste
- pepper to taste
- 1 cup red wine
- 2 cups to 3 cups beef stock
- 3 sprigs fresh thyme, or more to taste
- 3 sprigs fresh rosemary, or more to taste
What you’ll do:
This pot roast starts at the grocery store. When you’re picking your meat, choose a chuck roast that’s well marbled, a.k.a. a roast that has a moderate amount of fat threading through it. We 21st century folk have been trained to reject fat as the source of all that is good and delicious, but ignore your social conditioning just this once. All of that beautiful fat will turn your pot roast into a beautiful, glorious thing.
Once you get home with your pretty slab of beef, salt and pepper it liberally. Heat a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat, then add your olive oil. Cut the onions in half and slice your carrots into two-inch slices. Don’t peel them first. This is what we call a “rustic” pot roast. Gordon Ramsey would approve.
Once the oil in the pot is hot (but not smoking, because burnt oil is bad), add in the onions. Sear both sides until they’re a nice golden brown, then move them to a separate plate. Do the same thing to the carrots. This is an equal opportunity recipe. Now that the veggies are delicious, place the meat in the pan and sear it for about a minute on all sides until it’s nice and brown. Once you’ve seared it, move the roast to a plate.
With the burner still on high, use either red wine or beef broth (about one cup) to deglaze the pan. Make sure to scrape the bottom with a whisk; that brown stuff stuck to the bottom is the good stuff. When the bottom of the pan is clear, place the roast back into the pan and add enough beef stock to half cover the beef. Add the onion, carrots, rosemary and thyme. If you can’t find fresh thyme and rosemary feel free to use a tablespoon or so of the dried version.
Put the lid on your pot and roast your scrumptious future supper in a 275F oven for as many hours as the roast is heavy in pounds. So, roast a three pound roast for three hours, a four pound roast for four hours. Serve with a side of mashed potatoes to loved ones or people you want to impress.
