This is another one of those AWESOME recipes from the Pioneer Woman (go buy her cookbook! Runrunrun!!) that takes something you think you already know how to make pretty well -- in this case, pot roast -- and shakes it up just enough to make it the best version of pot roast you have ever made. All the usual players are here in this recipe -- the beef roast, the carrots, the onions, etc. This version does not cook the usual potatoes in with the roast, but calls for serving the pot roast with mashed potatoes on the side. As far as I am concerned, anything tastes better with mashed potatoes on the side, so I was good with that.
But that's not the game-changer here. The two things that put this pot roast over the top for me were first that you cook it with just enough fresh herbs (fresh thyme and rosemary) to infuse it with a gorgeous, herby flavor. About one hour into this my kitchen smelled like...I don't know how to describe it. I could have bottled and sold that aroma. Eau du Pot Roast With Herbs -- it was crazy.
The second thing was the shredding. The meat comes out of the pot so tender that it almost falls apart anyway, but I took it to the next step and shredded it, and then dunked the shredded meat back into the pot roast juices until it was thoroughly soaked through with the herb-infused liquid. On to the plate with some of the carrots it cooked with on one side, some mashed potatoes on the other. Oh my. You know you have hit a pot roast home run when the dinner table is completely quiet because any talking would interfere with the EATING.
From now on, I think I will shred everything we eat.
SHREDDED POT ROAST, adapted from The Pioneer Woman
1. Generously salt and pepper the chuck roast.
2. Heat a large pot or Dutch oven over medium high heat and add the olive oil. When it is very hot, add the onions and brown them on both sides. Remove to plate. Add the carrots and toss them around for a minute until they are browned, and then remove.
3. Place the meat in the pan, adding more oil if needed, and sear on all sides until brown, about a minute per side. Remove the roast.
4. With the heat still on high, add the red wine and deglaze the pan, scraping the bottom to get all the browned bits off. Place the roast back in the pan, add enough beef stock to cover the meat halfway and add the carrots and the onions. Toss in the fresh herbs, tucking them around the meat.
5. Put the lid on the pot and put in 275 oven for one hour per pound -- so 5 hours for a 5 pound roast, 3 hours for a three pound roast, etc.
6. When the roast is fork-tender, remove it from the pan and shred it with two forks. Dunk the shreds back in the pan juice until they are soaked through, and then put on plate with carrots, onions, and mashed potatoes.
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 5 pound chuck roast
- 2 onions, peeled and halved
- 6 carrots, peeled and cut into 2 inch chunks
- Salt and pepper
- 1 cup red wine
- 2-3 cups beef broth
- 3 sprigs fresh thyme
- 3 sprigs fresh rosemary
1. Generously salt and pepper the chuck roast.
2. Heat a large pot or Dutch oven over medium high heat and add the olive oil. When it is very hot, add the onions and brown them on both sides. Remove to plate. Add the carrots and toss them around for a minute until they are browned, and then remove.
3. Place the meat in the pan, adding more oil if needed, and sear on all sides until brown, about a minute per side. Remove the roast.
4. With the heat still on high, add the red wine and deglaze the pan, scraping the bottom to get all the browned bits off. Place the roast back in the pan, add enough beef stock to cover the meat halfway and add the carrots and the onions. Toss in the fresh herbs, tucking them around the meat.
5. Put the lid on the pot and put in 275 oven for one hour per pound -- so 5 hours for a 5 pound roast, 3 hours for a three pound roast, etc.
6. When the roast is fork-tender, remove it from the pan and shred it with two forks. Dunk the shreds back in the pan juice until they are soaked through, and then put on plate with carrots, onions, and mashed potatoes.
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