Pot Roast
For those not frightened by the recent Mad Cow scare, I came across a good Pot Roast recipe in the October 2001 issue of Martha Stewart’s Living. I will attempt to describe it.
(a good approximation)
Preheat Oven to 450
Cut up 3 or 4 large peeled and washed potatoes (mix in a few turnips if you wish) until they are quartered, then in a bowl, put a couple Tblsp. of Olive oil and some salt, then mix the Taters around until they are covered. Then into the oven with them (on a baking sheet) for 30 to 40 minutes or until golden brown. When these guys are done cooking, reduce oven temp to 350, and set the taters aside. Cut and peel a few carrots, and get your roast out. Martha suggests a 3lb chuck roast. She says expensive meat is not good for pot roast. Then coat the roast with flour and salt and pepper, then get your pan hot, with another tblsp of Olive oil, but not smoking. Toss the roast into the pot and sear it (about 2 minutes a side) the take it out and remove. at this point, you will need some red wine (1/2 cup) and some Beef Stock(6 cups) (low sodium if available.) After you sear the roast, remove it from the pan and set aside. Cut up a couple onions, a couple cloves of garlic (some leeks if you have any) and toss them into the pan with some oil. After they cook for a while, add the wine and maybe two cups of stock, and scrape any bits of the bottom of the pan (deglazing). When the alchohol has evaporated a bit, add the rest of the stock. Then put the roast in the stock, cover, and into the oven for 30 minutes. Turn the roast over, then cook another 30. Do this two more times, flipping the roast every 30 minutes for 2 hrs. After 2 hours, add the potatoes and carrots, then cook for another hour with the top on, then, for the final 30/ 45 minutes, remove the cover to let some liquid evaporate. The final result is an amazing flavor! Martha’s recipe has a few extra bells and whistles but this is the basic concept!