Pot roast is never difficult, but what makes this pot roast recipe so easy is that there’s really no recipe. There’s a method. I hope novices or anyone else who has hesitated to try cooking without recipes will give this a try, using ingredients you like and herbs to your taste, but following the method.
I don’t think I’ve ever made pot roast the same way twice, but my method doesn’t change. I always begin by browning the meat, then sauteeing onion and garlic and returning the meat and any accumulated juices to the pot. After that, whatever’s on hand or the mood I’m in decide the rest, but I am always in the mood for root vegetables in pot roast, especially carrots. I think they’re essential but you might not. And that’s perfectly fine.
The only other invariable is that I cook the post roast very slowly, usually in the oven but sometimes in a slow cooker, and I have instructions for both methods here. The browning and caramelization in the first part of the method, coupled with a long, controlled simmer produce a tender, flavorful pot roast every time. Here’s’ how to do it, along with tips and a pick-and-mix chart.
A few tips: I always, always season in layers when I’m cooking. That means I season a little bit at a time as I go along so, for instance, I give no amounts for salt and pepper. I season both sides of the beef, I sprinkle a little more on the onion, add a little more to the liquids and check for seasoning before serving. Use a light hand as you go along because you can always make up for it at the end. And if you’ve never cooked with coarse, kosher salt — added with your fingers — you might be surprised by how much less you need than regular table salt to achieve the same taste, but cleaner.
The amount of liquid always varies. I like a lot of sauce to sop up with crusty bread so I add enough liquid to come just to the top of the meat when I oven simmer it, but only half way if using a slow cooker, which doesn’t need more. When I want the sauce more gravy-like, I use slightly less liquid and thicken the sauce with corn starch while the meat rests. Whichever way you like it is best for you. Either way, I don’t use all beef broth; I find it’s too strong when cooked this long.
You’ll see I listed celery with its leaves in the chart. The leaves add a lot of flavor — I always include them in stuffing too — but if you’ve got the trimmed celery hearts, the world will not end. I always use a bay leaf too. I prefer new potatoes, but if russets are all I have, that’s what I use. Save Yukon Golds for mashing. I do find adding the root vegetables in the final 30 – 60 minutes, depending on their size and how many I’m using, cooks them through without destroying them or their flavors.
Cooking’s not difficult but doing it well requires using all your senses, not just the sense of sight to read a recipe. Trust your instincts. Once you’re used to relying on your senses and your experience, you’ll have the best recipe of all: the abiity to cook well without a recipe.
Ella’s Easy Pot Roast Your Way
1 to 2 TB olive oil
2 to 3 pounds beef chuck, underblade, brisket or round
coarse salt and fresh-ground pepper
1 small to medium onion, diced
2 to 3 cloves garlic, minced or put through a press
remaining ingredients as you like from the chart below
Method: Heat 1 TB of oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over low-medium heat. Seasoning as you go along, add the beef and brown well on both sides, adding a bit more oil as needed. Transfer the meat to a plate, add the onion to the pot and scrape up any fond (the brown stuff, it’s full of flavor) on the bottom of the pot as the onion gives off its liquid. Cook for a few minutes until golden but not brown. Add the garlic (and celery, if using) and cook 1 to 2 minutes, until fragrant.
To continue from here, choose your means of cooking.
Return the meat and any accumulated juices to the pot. Add seasonings of your choice and, if using, a 14.5-ounce can of diced tomatoes and their juices. Stir well and add as much liquid(s) as needed.
Set a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 325F/165C/Gas 3.
On the stovetop, slowly bring the pot to a simmer — you don’t want to boil the meat or it will toughen. Once it’s gently simmering, cover the pot tightly, transfer to the oven and cook for 2 1/2 – 3 hours, depending on the size of the meat. Check the pot after 90 minutes to see if it’s simmering too strongly (you don’t want a vigorous simmer). If so, reduce the heat to 300F/150C/Gas 2. If the meat looks and feels dry on top, turn it over.
Add the root vegetables to the pot and reduce the heat now to 300F/150C/Gas 2. if you did not do so earlier.
Let cook another 45 – 60 minutes, until vegetables are tender and meat is fork tender.
Adjust seasoning, remove fresh thyme sprigs if used and bay leaf, transfer meat and vegetables to a serving plate, tent with foil and let rest 10 minutes. Defat sauce if needed and serve with the roast and vegetables.
Return the meat and any accumulated juices to the pot. Add seasonings of your choice and, if using, a 14.5-ounce can of diced tomatoes and their juices.
Transfer the contents of the pot to the slow cooker and add as much liquid(s) as needed. Cook on High for 45 minutes, then on Low for 5 hours.
Add the root vegetables and let cook another 45 – 60 minutes, until vegetables are tender and meat is fork tender.
Adjust seasoning, remove fresh thyme sprigs if used and bay leaf, transfer meat and vegetables to a serving plate, tent with foil and let rest 10 minutes. Defat sauce if needed and serve with the roast and vegetables.
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{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
Hallelujah! A kindred spirit! I love that you are presenting a method and not a recipe; I think recipes ultimately hinder us as cooks, because we feel like we HAVE TO follow the directions to the letter. Once you understand basic cooking methods and techniques, you can pretty much just use the recipes as “idea generators!’
PS Pot roast is one of my favorites, too:)
Jenni’s last blog post..Sunday Suppers: Curried Tomato Soup, or Soft Food for the Toothless, Part Dos
Hi, Jenni – Certainly we’re kindred souls when it comes to pastry and baking, so I was delighted to add you to my blogroll. (welcome, btw)
I agree with you about cooking but I also remember, quite vividly, when I had so little cooking experience — and therefore confidence — that I needed a recipe for everything. I mean everything. I hope I never forget those insecurities and limited abilities because if I do, I’ll end up writing recipes that take the “oh, everybody knows how to do this” route. There’s always somebody doing something, trying something for the first time. Sometimes that somebody is me.
But yes, an imagination and sound technique are an unbeatable combination, especially when money is tight.