Roast Post Part II

The last time I made pot roast was on a snow day in February. Well Sunday, when I decided to make a roast again, was a decidedly different kind of day. It was 80 degrees and sunny, which doesn't sound like a roast kind of day. Despite that, this meal turned out better!

My new America's Test Kitchen Cooking for Two cookbook (which I'm super excited about) has a chapter called "One Big Roast, Three Great Meals." It gives you a roast recipe and three suggested recipes to use the leftovers. My roast ended up being on the small side so I was only able to get two meals out of it, but I definitely want to repeat this because it was tough to choose between the three suggested recipes for leftovers.

Classic Pot Roast with Root Vegetables
Ingredients:
1 (3 1/2 to 4 lb.) boneless beef chuck-eye roast, cut into two roasts and trimmed
Salt and pepper
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 onion, chopped medium
1 celery rib, chopped medium
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon fresh thyme, minced
1 cup chicken broth
1 cup beef broth
1 cup water
8 oz. red potatoes, cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
2 carrots, peeled and cut into 3- to 4-inch lengths
2 parsnips, cut into 3- to 4-inch lengths
1/3 cup dry red wine

Directions:
Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 300 degrees. Tie 3 pieces of butcher's twine around each piece of beef to prevent them from falling apart (I skipped this step and suffered no disintegrating beef). Pat beef dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Brown both roasts on all sides, 7 to 10 minutes; transfer to plate.

Add remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil, onion, and celery to pot and cook over medium heat until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in garlic, sugar, and thyme and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in chicken broth, beef broth, and water, scraping up any browned bits.

Add browned roasts with any accumulated juice to pot and bring to simmer. Cover, transfer pot to oven, and cook for 2 hours, turning roasts over halfway through.

Nestle potatoes, carrots, and parsnips in pot around meat. Continue to cook, covered, until meat and vegetables are very tender, 1 to 1 1/2 hours longer.

Remove pot from oven. Transfer vegetables to bowl, season with salt and pepper to taste, and cover to keep warm. Transfer roasts to carving board, tent loosely with foil, and let rest while finishing sauce.

Strain braising liquid through fine-mesh strainer into fat separator (I don't have a fat separator, so I just strained); discard aromatics. Let jus settle for 5 minutes, then pour defatted jus back into pot. Stir in wine and simmer over medium heat until sauce measures 1 cup, 8 to 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Remove twine from roasts, cut meat against grain into 1/4-inch thick slices, and serve with vegetables and sauce.


Pick 'n Save didn't have the type of roast I wanted, so I was forced to settle for a rump roast. That leaner cut doesn't have as much flavor and is less moist, so it didn't yield a superior roast but it was still good. The meat literally fell apart, which is just how I like pot roast (vs. sliced). The veggies were awesome ... so awesome that Bill declared he loves parsnips, which I never thought I'd hear!

I made chili with the leftovers, so be on the lookout for that post.