Perfectly Tender Pot Roast

There is nothing like a good pot roast, to make you feel all cozy inside on a cold winter's night!

 But what if, after all your hard work-that old pot roast comes out as tough as shoe leather, and has your family racing to the refrigerator for the bottle of ketchup?

What's that you say?  Oh, so this has never happened to you?  Well, that's wonderful-you really are truly blessed.

Because it used to happen to me.  In fact-anytime I told my family that we were having pot roast for dinner-they gave me that 'deer in the headlights' look, and asked if we could order pizza instead!

I won't lie.  I was utterly and completely devastated every time I served a pot roast that required a saw to cut it, instead of a fork.

But you know me-I'm not one to give up easily.

  I kept searching-and I kept trying, every new recipe I could find-but sadly, the end result was always the same....BEEF JERKY!

So what's a gal to do when she's trying to impress her new husband with her culinary skills, and wants to avoid having him chip a tooth on her pot roast?

Well she goes to her mother in law...that's what!

Thankfully, Mom L was very sympathetic,(and generous), and shared her recipe.  Like many pot roast recipes-Mom L's was cooked in a crock pot-which, for me, is a HUGE bonus.

Since then-I have made a few 'minor' adjustments to the recipe, and sometimes I like to bake my pot roast in my dutch oven- but the end result is always the same....

Moist, juicy-melt in your mouth deliciousness!


Here is how I do it...............

First- I take my roast out of the refrigerator-and let it sit for about 20 minutes.  (Note-this was a hard lesson for me to learn because I've been told all my life to NEVER leave meat out on the counter-but allowing the meat to 'warm' a bit-helps absorb all the wonderful seasonings and flavor we're going to add!)

While the roast is 'hanging out' on the counter-I chop up some onion and carrots-and throw them into my dutch oven (which I've added two tablespoons of olive oil to)and let them saute for about 5 minutes. I'm not interested in getting them cooked at this point-just browning them a bit.  Once they are-I remove them from the pot.

Now it's time to add some flavor to that pot roast!  You can use just plain old salt and pepper if you want.  But I like to spice it up a bit-so I use Emeril's Essence.  I use this amazing meat rub on everything from pork to chicken-and yes, beef.  Simply rub this magical mix onto both sides of the roast-and it's ready to go.....

into the dutch oven.  (Note-you may need to add another tablespoon or so of olive oil).  After the roast has been seared on all sides-I take it out.

At this point-I add some beef broth to the pot(just enough to cover the bottom of the pot), and scrape up all those yummy bits from the beef, onion, and carrots.

Then it's time to add the carrots, onion and pot roast back into the pot-along with 2 cups of beef broth. (You could also add potatoes-but I prefer mashed potatoes with my pot roast-so I don't.)  Now, for most recipes-the next step would be to put the roast in the oven-but not Mom L's recipe.

The roast doesn't go in, until you smother it with a can of cream of mushroom soup!!!!

I wish I could find the words to describe how INCREDIBLE our house smelled the other night when I cooked up this roast!

But I will say, hubby noticed it the second he walked in the door, and he was pretty impatient for dinner.

The best part is-he didn't reach for the ketchup bottle, or even a knife!!!!  And I caught him going back for seconds-and then later- thirds!!!!

Thanks Mom L- I owe you!!!

Blessings,

Christine



Perfectly Tender Pot Roast

Ingredients:

1 3-4 lb beef roast
3 carrots (you can use more if you like)
1 medium onion
2 Tablespoons olive oil
2 Tablespoons Emeril Essence meat rub (or your choice of seasoning)
2 1/2 cups beef broth
1 can of cream of mushroom soup
pepper to taste.
Directions:

**Note-you can use this recipe with a crock pot-cooking it on low for 4-6 hours or in the oven at 275-for 3 hours.

Preheat oven to 275.  Place roast on a platter-and let sit on the counter for twenty minutes. Cut up onion into quarters and carrots into thick slices (about 2 inches).  Add olive oil to a dutch oven or large pot.  When oil has heated-add onion and carrots.  Saute for 5 minutes.  Remove from pot, and set aside.  Season roast with Emeril Essence (or whatever seasoning you like).  While the pot is still hot-add roast. (you may need to add more oil)  Sear roast on all sides.  Remove roast and set aside.  Add 1/2 cup of beef broth to pot-and deglaze.  Add back roast, carrots, and onion.  Pour in 2 cups of beef broth.  Cover the roast with can of cream of mushroom soup.  Bake in oven for 3 hours.