What's your favorite pot roast recipe?

The recent cold, damp weather has put me in the mood for some good, fork tender pot roast. I have been looking for recipes, but haven't yet found anything that jumps out at me. The following url, http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/recipe_views/views/20096, links to epicurious.com and is a classic 1960s recipe that has received very positive reviews on that site. As the name says, though, it is a "basic" recipe, leading me to wonder if it is too bland or uninspired. Anyway, does anyone out there have experience making this recipe? What did you think? Alternately, do you have a good pot roast recipe that you're willing to share? Any suggestions will be appreciated.

My first experience learning to cook came from watching the late Frugal Gourmet, Jeff Smith. Many of his recipes were horrible failures, but I always have loved his Yankee Pot Roast with Garlic Thyme and Salt Pork.

After I render the fat out of the salt pork, I like to rest the cubes of salt pork on top of the roast as it simmers.

You can find the recipe at this link:

http://www.angelfire.com/ca2/twarda/rec ... Roast.html

Thanks for the recipe. I have enjoyed several Jeff Smith recipes over the years, so I'll probably give this one a shot. Never would have thought to use pork fat in a pot roast.

hello everyone, my first post

here's a roast i made last saturday, made some garlic mashed potatos (perfect side dish for this BTW!!!) - it was so good!
this recipe is originally for slow cooker but i modified a bit....my comments are in blue

Herbed Beef Roast

3-pound beef boneless tip roast
1 teaspoon salt (sea salt recommended for better flavor)
1 teaspoon mixed dried herb leaves (I used Italian Seasonings blend)
1/2 teaspoon pepper (fresh-ground for better flavor)
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped (ok to use the garlic in the little jars that is already chopped. 1 teaspoon equals 2 cloves) <-- i prefer minced garlic in olive oil if you are going with the jar stuff, mind you i do not care for garlic in the jar, prefer fresh; but this kind is the closest to fresh minced garlic. it has a good flavor! not strong but good
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar + 1/2 cup water
brown gravy packet

1. Spray 12-inch skillet with cooking spray; heat over medium-high heat. Lightly flour beef on all sides, then cook beef in skillet about 5 minutes until brown on all sides. Sprinkle with salt, herbs and pepper.
2. Place garlic in 4- to 5-quart slow cooker. Place beef on garlic. Pour vinegar and water over beef. Stir in gravy packet.
okay, i actually modified 1 & 2 steps. i mixed the balsamic vinegar, water & brown gravy packet...poured over the meat, THEN sprinkled the roast with the herbs, and rubbed the garlic on the top.
3. Cover and cook on low heat setting 6 to 8 hours or until beef is tender (I cook mine 6 hours, then put the setting on "keep warm") A little more basamic vinegar can be added at this point for extra "kick". (i don't have a slow cooker so i covered it and cooked it in the oven. 375 degrees for about an hour and a half (depending how much you want it cooked) for it to come out medium
4. Any leftover beef can be placed in the refrigerator or freezer along with the juices (the juices were an excellent gravy) for Philly beef sandwiches. Cover and refrigerate for up to 4 days or freeze for up to 4 months. To thaw frozen beef, place container in refrigerator for about 8 hours. ENJOY!

I'll try to paraphrase my mom's recipe here:

-Salt and pepper the meat, then sear the meat on all sides.
-Remove it from the pan and deglaze w/ 1/2 a beer, or depending on how large the roast, a whole beer.
-Let that cook down then add tomato paste, and beef broth until you have enough to come up to abt halfway up the sides of the roast. If it is too salty w. the broth you can use some water.
-Put the meat back in w/ the liquid and add:
..cut up carrots
..cut up potatoes
..cut up onions
-braise for a few hours. Let it rest a bit before you slice it. The veggies should be very tender, and the onions melt-y.

This is pretty simple but I love it. Tomatoey, and very comforting. Serve w/ good crusty bread for soaking up the "gravy."

Well, I ended up doing something kind of similar to what messy cook suggests, although with some variations. My wife rejected the idea of using the salt pork....

Anyway, I briefly sauteed some celery, carrots, onions, thyme and garlic in a heavy stock pot, and set them aside. I then seasoned a 3 lb. chuck roast with salt and pepper, and seared it on all sides in the same pot. Next, I deglazed with some red wine and added a couple cups of rich, homemade beef stock (I generally use something close to the recipe from the New Basics, although I reduce it a bit more.), some more red wine, some crushed San Marzano tomatoes (with puree), a bay leaf, a bit of dried rosemary, and the chopped vegetables and thyme. I covered the pot and braised for a few hours. When the meat felt close to falling apart, I added some sauteed crimini mushrooms, adjusted the salt and pepper levels, and braised for another 45 minutes. After 45 minutes, I prepared a roux to thicken some of the braising liquid and produced a nice gravy, which I served over the meat with some garlic mashed potatoes. Overall, this was a very nice recipe, which benefited immensely from the homemade beef stock, which helped produce a very rich, flavorful, "beefy" pot roast indeed. The next day I used the leftovers to make a great sandwich with some fresh tomatoes, an avocado, horseradish and a good crusty bread. Yummy.

Hi,

I bought a pot roast last weekend and put it directly to the freezer.

Today I decided to make the pot roast. Based on my earlier experience this week making a steak from the freezer, I browned the pot roast fresh from the freezer. After it browned, I removed the meat to allow room to saute onions and leftover mushroom stems. I added water plus some soy sauce and a few leftover anchovies. In my desire to throw in the kitchen sink, I threw in a tangerine peel from breakfast.

I have made plenty of pot roasts from the freezer. It was great to now brown it at the frozen stage. It never occurred to me to do so.

Regards,
Cathy2