Delicious Roasted Pot Roast and Other Dishes

 

With Dark Red Wine and Fresh Chuck Meat!

Check your refrigerator, wine cellar and pantry for the following ingredients:

 

• One bone-in arm chuck roast, a pricier cut of beef, or short ribs
• 2 T. of your favorite seasoning blend . . . thyme, sage, basil, tarragon, paprika, etc.
• 4 T. olive or safflower oil
• 3 c. mixed celery, carrots, leeks, shallots etc.
• Whole onions (however many you wish to eat)
• Potatoes (Yukon, Red, and Idaho Russet are our favorites)
• 5 garlic cloves, sliced thin
• Allspice if you’d like a taste of Greek food
• 1 c. canned tomato puree
• 3 bay leaves
• 1 t. peppercorns
• 1-1/2 c. beef stock
• ½ c. Port Wine
• 1 c. Merlot (you may use Cab, Syrah, or Pinot if you opened it within 3 days)

Set aside a large oven-tempered roasting pan, be it glass or metal. No china or plastics, please. It is best to choose a pan with a top cover particularly if there is not enough aluminum foil available in the kitchen..

Get a skillet over high heat and add several drops of oil. Brown the meat on both sides. This is important to contain the beef’s natural juices. Don’t use a top because you need to closely watch the searing process to avoid deep blackening. Add salt unless the seniors coming to dinner are on a low sodium diet. Remove meat from the frying pan when this beef searing operation is finished. Sauté the vegetables until glassy-looking, remove and reserve for later. Don’t overcook. Add the garlic, herbs, and spices to the pan, cooking until nicely colored. Add the wines and tomato. Reduce liquids by half at a boil. Add the beef stock. You might bring it almost to a boil so the bottom of the pan does not scorch or just throw it in the oven after taking the next step.
Add vegetables to pot. Add the meat back to the pan. The top of the roast should “crown” out of the braising liquid. Place a 5-inch square of foil or the pan’s cover over the exposed meat. Place the pan in a 325-degree oven and cook for 2 hours on a slow bake.

You may double this baking time if you wish; keep forking the roast once and awhile until it is at your desired level of tenderness. This step is optional: Remove meat and vegetables from pan. Place the baking pan on the stovetop, bring liquids to a simmer, and reduce by a third to thicken. Season and serve the gravy along side with the meat and vegetables. It is all gravy!

= = = = =

This is one of many recipes contained in David A. Dailey’s cookbook:

Confessions of an Oenophile – An American Family Cookbook

Available from Barnes & Noble, Amazon, and the publisher Outskirts Press

= = = = =