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I'll never roast a pot roast again...

faithful_servant said:
I do mine in a french oven (like a dutch oven but with a domed lid instead of a flat one). 3 hours for a pot roast isn't very long, IMO. When I do one, I cook it for about 5 hours at 300. Studded with garlic and rosemary (sliver of garlic, 3-4 leaves of rosemary every 2"), seasoned VERY well with salt and pepper (seriously lay that stuff on), sear it off in the french oven and then add enough beef broth to cover it to about 1/3 and lay it on a bed of coarsely chopped onions. .
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Leave it to the French to have to one-up everybody. :2razz:
 
faithful_servant said:
I think that every American citizen over the age of 40 has owned one of those.
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they were and are very popular, for sure. the reason is that you can throw in everything in the morning, put the unit on low, and come home to a fully cooked dinner. or you can prepare everything, come home, put it on high, and dinner is ready in two hours with very little hands on. it's competitive with the microwave where convenience is concerned.
 
radcen said:
Leave it to the French to have to one-up everybody. :2razz:
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And they have to take credit for it, too.

FRENCH bread. FRENCH toast. FRENCH fries. FRENCH onion. Etc.

I've never seen a country so obsessed with putting their name on foods.
 
MaggieD said:
So yesterday, I made a pot roast in the oven with carrots, quartered onions and celery. I baked it tightly sealed with a pot roast seasoning gravy for three hours at 300 degrees. It was still tough, although the veggies were perfect. So I sadly put it in the fridge...

TODAY, I took the pot roast only and threw it in the crockpot with some of the juice. Three hours on low and you can cut it with a fork.

im sick of that pot roast!!

From now on? Crock pot.

How do you cook a pot roast?
Click to expand...

I always braise my pot roast, so I put it in with water. I also put in onions or shallots, garlic, lots of carrots (I'm thinking about trying parsnips), and celery. Sometimes wine or beer. Towards the end, I put in some herbs (usually two or three from the list of fresh parsley, thyme, rosemary, and scallions). I always thicken with flour slurry, and I prefer to eat it with mashed potatoes. I've recently come to love mashed rutabagas (well, rutabagas in general), and pot roast gravy on rutabagas tastes pretty damn good, too. However, open faced pot roast sandwiches are pretty amazing, too.
 
MaggieD said:
So yesterday, I made a pot roast in the oven with carrots, quartered onions and celery. I baked it tightly sealed with a pot roast seasoning gravy for three hours at 300 degrees. It was still tough, although the veggies were perfect. So I sadly put it in the fridge...

TODAY, I took the pot roast only and threw it in the crockpot with some of the juice. Three hours on low and you can cut it with a fork.

im sick of that pot roast!!

From now on? Crock pot.

How do you cook a pot roast?
Click to expand...

I cook it by buying whichever pot roast my wife wants and staying out of her way while she cooks it...and being doggone grateful for how skillful she is, because she makes the tenderest, most savory pot roast I've ever had. She's just that good - we'll go to a restaurant and when our orders are served to us, it's fairly common for me to look at her and say, "You know, you can do this better than they can" and she'll reply, "I know." Thing is, she's not being boastful or prideful by saying that - she really is very humble. She's just objectively agreeing that yes, she can cook that well...and she's right.
 
Glen Contrarian said:
I cook it by buying whichever pot roast my wife wants and staying out of her way while she cooks it...and being doggone grateful for how skillful she is, because she makes the tenderest, most savory pot roast I've ever had. She's just that good - we'll go to a restaurant and when our orders are served to us, it's fairly common for me to look at her and say, "You know, you can do this better than they can" and she'll reply, "I know." Thing is, she's not being boastful or prideful by saying that - she really is very humble. She's just objectively agreeing that yes, she can cook that well...and she's right.
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How can I Love a post instead of like. Can’t. Boooooo.

So sweet. Maybe you’ll even show it to wifey. ;)
 
MaggieD said:
So yesterday, I made a pot roast in the oven with carrots, quartered onions and celery. I baked it tightly sealed with a pot roast seasoning gravy for three hours at 300 degrees. It was still tough, although the veggies were perfect. So I sadly put it in the fridge...

TODAY, I took the pot roast only and threw it in the crockpot with some of the juice. Three hours on low and you can cut it with a fork.

im sick of that pot roast!!

From now on? Crock pot.

How do you cook a pot roast?
Click to expand...

Pressure cooker.
 
Mach said:
Sear it good then crock pot. For us it counts as an "easy meal", so we wont' do it any other way because of that. I used to do chicken instead of beef for a while because, you know why.
was always bleh. Did dark meat, not bad. Did a roast last month after years of not doing it, absolutely amazing with little effort.

I did go buy a larger crock pot, I was getting aggravated with stuffing it to the top, and having it cook down to basically 3-4 servings. I want LEFTOEVERS please!

I've seen people do steaks in the oven too, some combination of cast iron/sear then into the oven. I don't know, it just seems like a lot of work. On the grill, I have no issues with it, and grilling is kind of a thing to do, and there are no pans to clean up or cast iron smoke, etc. Some of those alternate ways I don't see being worth it.
Coffee drip vs keurig, I understand that one :)
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I used to cook my steaks on the grille, but could never get the grille hot enough to get a good sear. Now, I only cook my steaks in the iron skillet. I take my steaks out about a hour before to get them to room temp. I pat them dry and salt and pepper both sides. Draws out the moisture. After about an hour, I get my iron skillet screaming hot (has to be smoking) and put the steaks on for 2 minutes each side. Then I flip back to the first side, drop in some real butter and butter baste for a minute on each side. Perfect medium rare, with a nice char and a great flavor.
 
Superfly said:
I used to cook my steaks on the grille, but could never get the grille hot enough to get a good sear. Now, I only cook my steaks in the iron skillet. I take my steaks out about a hour before to get them to room temp. I pat them dry and salt and pepper both sides. Draws out the moisture. After about an hour, I get my iron skillet screaming hot (has to be smoking) and put the steaks on for 2 minutes each side. Then I flip back to the first side, drop in some real butter and butter baste for a minute on each side. Perfect medium rare, with a nice char and a great flavor.
Click to expand...

Yep, the only way to cook steaks in the house...
 
MaggieD said:
How can I Love a post instead of like. Can’t. Boooooo.

So sweet. Maybe you’ll even show it to wifey. ;)
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Thanks :)

And she knows - I tell her every day. She was recently overseas for about three months and we still talked on the phone at least twice and sometimes three times a day, every day (thanks to Facebook for making it almost free). My nephews get ticked when I tell them to never stop courting their wives...but my sons understand, and that makes me happy. I know it sounds sappy, but true love is real - I've got it with my Darling, and it's the realest thing I know. I just wish that everybody else had what we've had for the past 25 years!
 
Superfly said:
I used to cook my steaks on the grille, but could never get the grille hot enough to get a good sear. Now, I only cook my steaks in the iron skillet. I take my steaks out about a hour before to get them to room temp. I pat them dry and salt and pepper both sides. Draws out the moisture. After about an hour, I get my iron skillet screaming hot (has to be smoking) and put the steaks on for 2 minutes each side. Then I flip back to the first side, drop in some real butter and butter baste for a minute on each side. Perfect medium rare, with a nice char and a great flavor.
Click to expand...

Sounds like perfection to me. Yum!

And that patting dry part? Critical. Not just for steaks but for anything one is wanting to brown.
 
Superfly said:
I used to cook my steaks on the grille, but could never get the grille hot enough to get a good sear. Now, I only cook my steaks in the iron skillet. I take my steaks out about a hour before to get them to room temp. I pat them dry and salt and pepper both sides. Draws out the moisture. After about an hour, I get my iron skillet screaming hot (has to be smoking) and put the steaks on for 2 minutes each side. Then I flip back to the first side, drop in some real butter and butter baste for a minute on each side. Perfect medium rare, with a nice char and a great flavor.
Click to expand...

My step-mother used to butter the steaks like she was buttering a slice of toast before she put them in the pan.
 
FieldTheorist said:
I always braise my pot roast, so I put it in with water. I also put in onions or shallots, garlic, lots of carrots (I'm thinking about trying parsnips), and celery. Sometimes wine or beer. Towards the end, I put in some herbs (usually two or three from the list of fresh parsley, thyme, rosemary, and scallions). I always thicken with flour slurry, and I prefer to eat it with mashed potatoes. I've recently come to love mashed rutabagas (well, rutabagas in general), and pot roast gravy on rutabagas tastes pretty damn good, too. However, open faced pot roast sandwiches are pretty amazing, too.
Click to expand...

That pretty much nails it on the head. However, some additional methods to make the play. The cut of beef used can make a big difference. I order a 5-8 lb brisket (note the weight is before butcher's trim), my preferential cut, demand the butcher remove all visible fat, and then trim it more myself when in my kitchen ending up with at least a 20% weight reduction. After caramelizing two medium sized thinly sliced onions in 1 tbsp of canola oil and 1 tbsp of butter, and removing the onion for later use as a garnish for roasted root vegetables, I sear the beef in a 5 quart stainless steel pan, remove it, and do the same with two lamb shanks similarly prepared, with the bones cracked. Lamb shanks are the least fatty cuts of lamb. Prior to searing, both meats receive a rub of garlic, kosher salt, fresh ground long peppers, and cider vinegar. Both meats get the same rub, but I pierce the lamb shanks with 20-30 whole dried cloves. I then cover the meats with cleaned celery until entirely covered, add enough water to reach the top of the beef, then place the cover on the pot, and like you do, braise the meats between 4-6 hours, until tender enough to pierce with a fork and no effort. Every half hour or so I check to see if more water is needed and add accordingly, tho I allow the liquid to reduce a bit over the last hour or so.

Next I remove the pot from the burner, uncovered, allow the contents to reach an almost room temperature. I remove the beef to a platter and the lamb to a carving board. After removing the cloves and discard (if you miss some, you'll spot them when carving) I carve the lamb from the bone. The cloves will have effected the flavor of the beef giving it a brightness. After carving, I place the two meats back together, cover and refrigerate overnight. This process creates a chemical change in the meats making for a more interesting texture. I toss the celery cover in the trash, at this point it is only tasteless fiber with all the nutrients now in the meat or the broth. I add whatever juices drained from the meats on the platter and the cutting board to the broth.

I strain the broth, divide into two portions. One I put in a covered container and refrigerate as is. For the other I first prepare a roux, 2 tbsp of flour browned in 1 tbsp of butter. Slowly pour the remaining broth into the same pot, stirring as I pour. I then add about 2 tbsp of fresh grated ginger and the same of turmeric, and two ounces of chopped tarragon leaves. The roux will thicken the gravy. Again I cool to room temperature, place in a covered container in the fridge.

Next day. (What!!! Two days in the Kitchen!!!, well kids, find this same dish with variations Rôti braisé, Beef à la Mode, Stracotto di Monzo, Rostizado in better restaurants as an entrée for upwards of $50 to $100 per serving a la carte.) Using the unseasoned broth in a large covered pot, add whatever root vegetables you want, turnips, parsnips, carrots, potatoes (new halved or large cut into bite size pieces), and celery, onions, more garlic, apple slices, tart and sweet, berries, combinations thereof and anything else that pleases your fancy, and cook until near tender, or add just long enough to heat (which can happen in the dish with some items). Carve as much of the beef as you think you will serve, add some of the lamb with the beef to the pot for reheating about 20 minutes before the vegetables are tender.

continued
 
You can serve this as is with some good healthy artisanal breads, and/or serve it over wide noodles, egg noodles, buckwheat noodles, or over a bed of grains. Rice, brown or white, Wild Rice (a different grain), a mixture of wild and domestic, farro, quinoa, amaranth, millet, barley, pearl barley, bulgar, or any mixture of any combination, and a few legumes, green peas, peanuts, walnuts, almonds, pine nuts, hulled white pistachios, pecans, etc.

You are free to herb and season as you wish. My suggestions are just one path. You could add fresh lemon or lime juice while cooking the meats, pomegranate marinades, blueberry marinades, a bit of honey glazing, the alternatives are endless for this very basic comfort food.

One more thing. Don't throw away the bones. Freeze them, with leftover beef bones, chicken bones, any face food bones other than fish or seafood, which you can freeze as use separately the same way. When you have enough, use them to make a bone broth, at least 5 quarts at a time. Don't add anything else other than water. Freeze afterwards in one pint containers. You can use them as a base for soups, for making risottos, as a plain broth, making gravies (or sauces), or anything that requires liquids and isn't a cake or cookies. Anywhere your imagination will go. BTW you've just learned how high end expensive chefs in fancy restaurants turn simple dishes into an appearance of something more than they are.

Bon Appetite.
 
KevinKohler said:
And they have to take credit for it, too.

FRENCH bread. FRENCH toast. FRENCH fries. FRENCH onion. Etc.

I've never seen a country so obsessed with putting their name on foods.
Click to expand...

Except, Pomme Frites come from Belgium. :)
 
MaggieD said:
So yesterday, I made a pot roast in the oven with carrots, quartered onions and celery. I baked it tightly sealed with a pot roast seasoning gravy for three hours at 300 degrees. It was still tough, although the veggies were perfect. So I sadly put it in the fridge...

TODAY, I took the pot roast only and threw it in the crockpot with some of the juice. Three hours on low and you can cut it with a fork.

im sick of that pot roast!!

From now on? Crock pot.

How do you cook a pot roast?
Click to expand...

Either Crock Pot or Dutch Oven...

2954178.jpg

200 degrees... Start the oven in the morning, come back at dinner time.
 
MaggieD said:
So yesterday, I made a pot roast in the oven with carrots, quartered onions and celery. I baked it tightly sealed with a pot roast seasoning gravy for three hours at 300 degrees. It was still tough, although the veggies were perfect. So I sadly put it in the fridge...

TODAY, I took the pot roast only and threw it in the crockpot with some of the juice. Three hours on low and you can cut it with a fork.

im sick of that pot roast!!

From now on? Crock pot.

How do you cook a pot roast?
Click to expand...

Crock pot all the way baby! When's dinner?
 
OldFatGuy said:
That pretty much nails it on the head. However, some additional methods to make the play. The cut of beef used can make a big difference. I order a 5-8 lb brisket (note the weight is before butcher's trim), my preferential cut, demand the butcher remove all visible fat, and then trim it more myself when in my kitchen ending up with at least a 20% weight reduction. After caramelizing two medium sized thinly sliced onions in 1 tbsp of canola oil and 1 tbsp of butter, and removing the onion for later use as a garnish for roasted root vegetables, I sear the beef in a 5 quart stainless steel pan, remove it, and do the same with two lamb shanks similarly prepared, with the bones cracked. Lamb shanks are the least fatty cuts of lamb. Prior to searing, both meats receive a rub of garlic, kosher salt, fresh ground long peppers, and cider vinegar. Both meats get the same rub, but I pierce the lamb shanks with 20-30 whole dried cloves. I then cover the meats with cleaned celery until entirely covered, add enough water to reach the top of the beef, then place the cover on the pot, and like you do, braise the meats between 4-6 hours, until tender enough to pierce with a fork and no effort. Every half hour or so I check to see if more water is needed and add accordingly, tho I allow the liquid to reduce a bit over the last hour or so.

Next I remove the pot from the burner, uncovered, allow the contents to reach an almost room temperature. I remove the beef to a platter and the lamb to a carving board. After removing the cloves and discard (if you miss some, you'll spot them when carving) I carve the lamb from the bone. The cloves will have effected the flavor of the beef giving it a brightness. After carving, I place the two meats back together, cover and refrigerate overnight. This process creates a chemical change in the meats making for a more interesting texture. I toss the celery cover in the trash, at this point it is only tasteless fiber with all the nutrients now in the meat or the broth. I add whatever juices drained from the meats on the platter and the cutting board to the broth.

I strain the broth, divide into two portions. One I put in a covered container and refrigerate as is. For the other I first prepare a roux, 2 tbsp of flour browned in 1 tbsp of butter. Slowly pour the remaining broth into the same pot, stirring as I pour. I then add about 2 tbsp of fresh grated ginger and the same of turmeric, and two ounces of chopped tarragon leaves. The roux will thicken the gravy. Again I cool to room temperature, place in a covered container in the fridge.

Next day. (What!!! Two days in the Kitchen!!!, well kids, find this same dish with variations Rôti braisé, Beef à la Mode, Stracotto di Monzo, Rostizado in better restaurants as an entrée for upwards of $50 to $100 per serving a la carte.) Using the unseasoned broth in a large covered pot, add whatever root vegetables you want, turnips, parsnips, carrots, potatoes (new halved or large cut into bite size pieces), and celery, onions, more garlic, apple slices, tart and sweet, berries, combinations thereof and anything else that pleases your fancy, and cook until near tender, or add just long enough to heat (which can happen in the dish with some items). Carve as much of the beef as you think you will serve, add some of the lamb with the beef to the pot for reheating about 20 minutes before the vegetables are tender.

continued
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Yeah, this is pretty in-depth, but it looks quite good. The most intensive (and it's intensive) dish that I make is gumbo, entirely from scratch (save for the sausage). On the whole, I've kind of become a 2-pots and/or pans, 4 hours maximum kind of a cook. I can do longer things, I've just found that I prefer not to, since it sort of kills my weekends.
 
MaggieD said:
So yesterday, I made a pot roast in the oven with carrots, quartered onions and celery. I baked it tightly sealed with a pot roast seasoning gravy for three hours at 300 degrees. It was still tough, although the veggies were perfect. So I sadly put it in the fridge...

TODAY, I took the pot roast only and threw it in the crockpot with some of the juice. Three hours on low and you can cut it with a fork.

im sick of that pot roast!!

From now on? Crock pot.

How do you cook a pot roast?
Click to expand...



Low and slow on an offset smoker. Men don't cook with crock pots.
 
ReverendHellh0und said:
Low and slow on an offset smoker. Men don't cook with crock pots.
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You do realize that turkey fryers, the BBQ grill, leaf blowers, power washers and smokers were invented to get men off their behinds, dontcha’? ;)
 
MaggieD said:
So yesterday, I made a pot roast in the oven with carrots, quartered onions and celery. I baked it tightly sealed with a pot roast seasoning gravy for three hours at 300 degrees. It was still tough, although the veggies were perfect. So I sadly put it in the fridge...

TODAY, I took the pot roast only and threw it in the crockpot with some of the juice. Three hours on low and you can cut it with a fork.

im sick of that pot roast!!

From now on? Crock pot.

How do you cook a pot roast?
Click to expand...

I accidently discovered something recently with a chuck roast in the oven. The last two I baked at 250 for 4 hours turned out tough. The last one I put back in the oven for 40 minutes at 350 and it was perfect!! Don't know if this would help with pot roast.
 
Simon W. Moon said:
I put roasts on the grill on high for a bit to brown the outside for those flavors I like.
Then, it's into the crock pot.
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I like that! Brown it first on the grill. Not even a frying pan to clean. And with crockpot liners? Yay!!
 
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