Playing catch up: Classic Beef Pot Roast (for 300 calories!)

What month is it? Hmm.... April. Yeah.

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.