french style pot roast

Hopefully I am not alone in this — though I can’t say I will get much sympathy from vegetarians and I’m sure carnivores will look at me with condemning eyes and pass the judgment to renounce my carnivore status — but I don’t understand why people go crazy for steak. I usually find it flavorless — except for the distinct flavor of meat — and it is always accompanied with steamed vegetables or potatoes that have more going for them in regards to texture and flavor. At a restaurant I might be swayed through pure peer pressure on the topic by simple argument that nothing tastes bad after being brushed with herbed butter or served underneath a savory red wine and mushroom pan sauce, and I come away convinced to order the steak because even I know that those things can completely transform a slab of meat into something flavorful and divine that does not taste simply like meat. But outside of the restaurant and the flame-grill they conveniently own and use to perfectly cross-hatch their butter basted meats — you can forget it. There is no argument, no perfect braise convincing or foreman grill persuading that can be done. To me it all comes out like shoe leather or tastes only of meat — surely we can make it more flavorful at home can’t we? If there was no hope then we should start satisfying our meat cravings with flavorful meatballs or crunchy baked pork chops.

But I do have hope — or an intense passion to not settle, or perhaps the constant nagging in my head that I really need to get around to fixing it, because I want to have my carnivore status re-instated. Right now I would love to tell you that I have found the missing link, I have discovered the key to creating perfectly tender, insanely flavored steak that is worth the home-making experience, but I have not even started. Right now the battle strategies are still being formulated, but I did start the attack on pot roast — a meat I also consider to be in the same category under which I have labeled steak. Pot roasts are slightly different because they are always served with fork-tender potatoes and carrots that practically dissolve in your mouth because they are so soft. Heck, I can’t even complain about the smooth, non-chewiness of the meat which is a definite step above steak, but they both have the same problem — flavor. Unless you are willing to shove a spoonful of the broth/marinade/sauce it was braised in right after a fork-full of roast then all you are eating is a very tender bland piece of meat — can I say meatballs and pork chops anyone?

Cooks Illustrated promised much more than the standard boring meat flavor which caused a woman, famished with hunger (read: me) to agree that it was time to give pot roast another chance. I’ve always had pot roasts from a crock pot, and the crock pot never seems to fail as far as texture is concerned; always producing a fork-tender fall apart in your mouth meat and I guess that is the whole point, but CI used a dutch oven for their pot roast needs and I gave a big sigh of relief. The food placed in my crock pot always ends charred and burned –  which means I totally fail in crock pot cookery and seriously, who fails in throwing raw ingredients into a pot, turning it on and coming back to a warm meal at the end of the day?

Not only a change-up in cooking method but CI also promised to use a whole bottle of wine, which always makes me weak in the knees and guaranteed (because if anyone can, it’s them) that the roast will have intensified flavors and softness, and who can say no to intensified flavor when it comes to meat (plus they used bacon).

It took a solid three hours to get the roast to perfection, being braised with onions and carrots and the wine/broth reduction coating butter softened pearl onions and mushrooms draped over the whole ensemble. It was mind changing. The sauce clung to the meat not only keeping it tender and juicy but flavorful and delicious. It is the first pot roast I will gladly pile onto my plate, knowing I will get all aspects of what meat is supposed to be — tender and flavorful. Now I need to figure out how to fix my crock pot because I hear they are lifesavers…

French-Style Pot Roast
Adapted just barely from America’s Test Kitchen Cooking for Two

Though the cookbook is for two people this easily serves 6.

ATK Note: A $7 to $10 bottle of medium-bodied red table wine, such as a Cotes du Rhone, which is made from a blend of grapes, will work well here. Serve this dish with boiled potatoes, buttered noodles, or rice.

Stew:
1 (3 1/2 – 4 pound) boneless chuck-eye roast
Salt and pepper
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
4 slices bacon, cut into 1/4-inch pieces
1 onion, chopped medium
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 tablespoon unbleached all-purpose flour
1 (750-ml) bottle dry red wine (see note)
2/3 cup low-sodium chicken broth
2/3 cup low-sodium beef broth
2 bay leaves
2 – 4 carrots, peeled and sliced 1 1/2-inches thick (about 1 cup)*

Garnish:
2 cups frozen pearl onions (8 ounces)
1/2 cup water
1 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
10 ounces white mushrooms, stems trimmed, halved if small or quartered if large*

Stew: Adjust an oven rack to the lower-middle position and heat the oven to 300 degrees. Pat the roast dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Tie several pieces of kitchen twine around the meat to keep it from falling apart. Here is a good video of how to tie a roast.

Heat the oil in a large dutch oven over medium-high heat until just smoking. Carefully lay the roast in the pot and cook until well browned on all sides, about 10 minutes, turning as needed and reducing the heat if the pot begins to scorch. Transfer the roast to a plate.

Pour off all of the fat left in the pot, add the bacon, and cook over medium-low heat until browned and crisp, about 10 minutes. Stir in the onion and 1/4 teaspoon salt and cook until softened, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in the garlic and thyme and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in the flour and cook until incorporated, about 1 minute. Slowly whisk in the wine, scraping up any browned bits, and simmer until thickened slightly and reduce to about 2 1/2 cups, about 15 minutes.

Stir in the broths and bay leaves and bring to a simmer. Nestle the meat along with any accumulated juice, into the pot and return to a simmer. Cover, transfer the pot to the oven, and cook for 2 hours, flipping the meat halfway through cooking. Stir in carrots and continue to cook in the oven, covered, until the meat is very tender and a fork inserted into the center meets little resistance, 1 to 1 1/2 hours longer, flipping the meat again halfway through cooking.

Garnish: Meanwhile, combine the frozen pearl onion, water, butter, sugar and salt in a 12-inch nonstick skillet. Cover and cook over medium-high heat, stirring often, until the onions are fully thawed and tender, about 10 minutes. Uncover, and cook until all the liquid evaporates, about 4 minutes. Stir in the mushrooms and continue to cook ,stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are dark brown and well glazed, 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside.

Remove the pot from the oven. Transfer the meat to a carving board and tent loosely with foil while finishing the sauce. Transfer the carrots to a bowl and set aside. Using a wide spoon, skim off any fat that rises to the surface of the sauce. Bring the sauce to a simmer over medium-high heat and cook until thickened and reduce to about 3 cups, 15 to 20 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Remove the twine, cut the meat against the grain into 1/4-inch thick slices, and transfer to a serving platter. Stir the carrots and the mushroom garnish into the sauce and rewarm over medium-low heat. Spoon the sauce and vegetables over the meat and serve.

* I personally would add another half a cup of diced carrots, there were hardly enough in my opinion. I would also increase the mushrooms, but that is because I am an addict.