What are you craving these days? Fresh produce like strawberries and asparagus that are finally in season?
Yeah, sorry - this recipe is out of season. But well worth noting, because back when I made it - it was above noteworthy!
I looked up pot roast recipes over the winter, simply because I was looking for a man-pleasin', stick-to-your-ribs kind of recipe for winter. This recipe really did the trick, and also reminded me that hearty doesn't always mean... fatty.
Put simply: this was awesome. I should have known by the ratings on myrecipes.com:
I was getting lots of compliments from all of the guys I was feeding that night, but more importantly, this was the kind of recipe where I said to myself: "This really is awesome! Go me!" I kind of couldn't get over myself... and shouldn't we all feel like this when we slave over a meal?
(And now you know why I felt it necessary to post about a meal I made 4 months ago...)
So, on with the recipe :)
Classic Beef Pot Roast
From Cooking Light, October 2006.Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 1 (3-pound) boneless chuck roast, trimmed
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 2 cups coarsely chopped onion
- 1 cup dry red wine
- 4 thyme sprigs
- 3 garlic cloves, chopped
- 1 (14-ounce) can fat-free, less-sodium beef broth
- 1 bay leaf
- 4 large carrots, peeled and cut diagonally into 1-inch pieces
- 2 pounds Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces
- Fresh thyme leaves (optional)
Preparation
Preheat oven to 350º.
Heat olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Sprinkle chuck roast with salt and pepper. Add roast to pan; cook 5 minutes, turning to brown on all sides. Remove roast from pan. Add onion to pan; sauté 8 minutes or until tender.
Return browned roast to pan. Add the red wine, thyme sprigs, chopped garlic, beef broth, and bay leaf to pan; bring to a simmer. Cover pan and bake at 350° for 1 1/2 hours or until the roast is almost tender.
Add carrots and potatoes to pan. Cover and bake an additional 1 hour or until vegetables are tender. Remove thyme sprigs and bay leaf from pan; discard. Shred meat with 2 forks. Serve roast with vegetable mixture and cooking liquid. Garnish with thyme leaves, if desired.
