Pot Roast Western Food

Pot roast was a standard growing up, and still continues to be in my parent’s household. It requires slow cooking over low heat to ensure tender, flavorful meat.

Pot roasts  typically use the tougher cuts of beef – a chuck roast or shoulder roast – which have the most flavor. The slow cooking at low heat is what melts the tough connective tissue between the muscle fibers, leaving you with tender meat that flakes apart with your fork. This is my mother’s tried and true recipe for pot roast. She only adds a half cup of liquid to the pot because she’s able to keep the heat very low and her pot has a tight cover.

• 3 1/2 lb of beef shoulder or boneless chuck roast (look for a piece that is well marbled with fat for best results)
• 2 Tbsp olive or grapeseed oil
• Salt, pepper, italian seasoning to taste
• 2 large yellow onions, thickly sliced, lengthwise (root to tip), about 4 cups sliced onion
• 4 cloves of garlic, peeled
• 1/2 cup of red wine
• 1 bay leaf
• Several carrots, peeled and cut lengthwise

Use a thick-bottomed covered pot (oven-proof if you intend to cook in oven), such as a dutch oven, just large enough to hold roast and vegetables. Heat 2 Tbsp of oil on medium high heat (hot enough to sear the meat).

Pat the roast dry with paper towels. Sprinkle and rub salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning all over the meat. Brown roast in pot, all over, several minutes on each side. Don't move the roast while a side is browning, or it won't brown well.

When roast is browned, remove from pan and set on a plate. Add the onions to the pan and cook for about 5 to 10 minutes, until they begin to brown. Add the garlic and carrots to sit on top of the onions. Set the roast on top of the onions, garlic and carrots.

Add 1/2 cup of red wine. Add the bay leaf. Cover. Bring to simmer and then adjust the heat down to the lowest heat possible to maintain a low simmer when covered (we cook our roast on the warm setting of our electric range)*. If cooking in the oven, bring to a simmer first on the stovetop, then put in the oven, start the temp at 300°F for 15 minutes, then drop it to 225°F.