Best Basic Pot Roast Recipes

BASIC POT ROAST

Steps:

• Season the flour with the salt and pepper and pound the mixture into the meat with the edge of a plate. Brown meat on all sides in the hot fat or oil. Add the onions, cover and cook over low heat 10 minutes. Add the carrots, herbs, seasonings and liquid. Cover tightly and simmer 3 1/2 - 5 hours, until meat is fork tender. Add desired vegetables during the last 20 or 30 minutes.
• Pot Roast Variations
• 1. For part of the liquid, use a 10-ounce can (1 1/3 cups) of puréed tomatoes. For seasoning, add 1 tablespoon minced parsley or dill. When the meat has been removed from the pan, add 1 cup sour cream to the sauce.
• 2. For the liquid, use 3/4 cup dry white wine, 2 tablespoons brandy or rum, and 1 tablespoon chili sauce. For seasoning, add 4-6 coriander seeds and 12 peppercorns.
• 3. For the liquid, use 1/2 cup syrup from canned fruit, 2 tablespoons vinegar, 1/2 cup water, 1 beef bouillon cube. For seasoning, add a pinch of powdered fennel and a teaspoon of minced dill.
• 4. For the liquid, use half dry vermouth, half chicken bouillon.

BASIC POT ROAST

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325°.
• Salt& pepper roast.
• Heat ovenproof Dutch oven over high flame about 3 minutes.
• Add olive oil.
• Brown roast well, about 4 minutes on each side.
• Remove roast.
• Add chopped onions, stir, scraping up brown bits from bottom of pot.
• Add beef broth and stir.
• Return roast to pot.
• Add parsley& bay leaves.
• Cover.
• Put in 325° oven for 30 minutes.
• Reduce heat to 300° and cook for 1 ½ hour until fork tender.

BASIC POT ROAST

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Heat the oil in a heavy three-quart casserole, add the beef and brown it on all sides. Remove the meat from the casserole and add the onions, carrots and celery and cook over medium-low heat until tender and lightly browned. Stir in the garlic, then add the stock.
• Bring to a simmer, scraping the bottom of the pan. Stir in salt and pepper to taste, the thyme and the bay leaf. Return the meat to the casserole.
• Cover the casserole and place in the oven. Bake for about two hours, until the meat is tender.
• To serve at once, remove the meat from the casserole and set aside. Strain the cooking liquid and puree the vegetables in a food processor or a blender. Return the cooking liquid to the casserole and stir in the pureed vegetables and the tomato paste. Bring to a boil and cook for about five minutes until the sauce has thickened slightly. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
• Slice the meat and arrange on a platter. Spoon some of the hot sauce over the slices and pass the rest alongside.
• Alternatively, the meat can be refrigerated overnight in the cooking liquid and the next day steps 5 through 7 of this recipe can be followed. Doing this will improve both the flavor and texture of the meat and will also allow the layer of chilled fat on the surface of the liquid to be removed and discarded.

BASIC POT ROAST

Steps:

• Pat roast dry and season with salt and pepper. In a Dutch oven, heat the vegetable oil over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking. Add the roast and brown on all sides, about 15 minutes total. Transfer the roast to a plate and pour out all but 1 tablespoon of fat from the pan. Add the onions, carrots, and celery to the pan and cook over moderate heat, stirring until golden. Place the roast back in the pan along with the bay leaves, thyme, and enough of the beef stock to come up 2/3 of the way up the beef. Bring the pot roast to a simmer on top of the stove, skim, cover tightly, and set in the lower third of a 350 degree preheated oven. Regulate heat so that the liquid remains at a gentle simmer for 2 1/2 to 3 hours, until the beef is tender. Turn the roast over several times during its braising.
• Transfer roast to a cutting board and let stand 10 minutes, covered with aluminum foil to keep warm. Skim off any fat from the surface of the liquid. Strain the liquid. To thicken the sauce slightly, bring the liquid to a boil. For each cup of liquid, stir together 1 tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon flour. Whisk the butter mixture into the liquid. Simmer, stirring constantly, until thickened. Slice the pot roast and serve with the sauce and boiled new potatoes.