Growing up, whenever the weather would turn cool, my dad would celebrate the season by making pot roast. To be honest, I didn't like pot roast until I was out of college. Now, I do the same as my dad when the temperature drops. There's nothing quite like comfort in a bowl, than pot roast with mashed potatoes. My dad made his with red wine, a lot of garlic and bay leaves.
If you are new here, I lost my dad almost two months ago to be exact. Cooking has been one of the things helping me grieve. I've been making a lot of his favorite dishes lately to help me feel connected to him. As I was cooking this dish, I was thinking back to all the times I called him when I was making one of his favorite meals. How long do I cook this? When do I know when it's done? How do I reheat it? My mom and dad taught me how to cook pretty much everything. It was such a big part of my growing up.
This pot roast is perfect to make on a Sunday and then have for leftovers the next day, and maybe even the day after. Most of it is cooked in the oven, so you can sit back and relax while it does the work for you.
Serves 6
Ingredients:
For the Pot Roast-
- 3 tbsp of olive oil
- 3 lbs of Chuck Roast cut into 3 inch pieces & sprinkled with salt + pepper
- 1 small container of pancetta pre chopped (optional)
- 1 large onion chopped
- 3 large carrots chopped
- 2 celery stalks chopped
- 1 container of baby portobello mushrooms sliced
- 4 garlic cloves chopped
- 3 tbsp of tomato paste
- 1 bottle of red wine (cabernet or another that you like)
- 3 bay leaves
- 1 small bundle of thyme, oregano and rosemary tied with kitchen twine
For the Mashed Potatoes:
- 2-3 lbs of yukon gold potatoes chopped in half
- 1/2 cup of whole milk
- 2 tbsp of butter
- sea salt
- garlic powder
- cracked black pepper
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. In a large dutch oven heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Brown the meat in batches on all sides. When all the meat is brown, remove from the dutch oven and set aside.
Add the pancetta and cook until crispy, then add all of the veggies. After the veggies are softened, add in the garlic cloves + tomato paste. Add the meat back into pot and pour in wine. Bring the wine to a boil and put the bay leaves + herb bundle on top. Cover and place in the oven for three hours. Periodically, check the roast and stir occasionally.
After three hours, remove from the oven and stir. Serve over mashed potatoes. Recipe below.
For the mashed potatoes, place the potatoes in a large pot and cover with cold water. Add about a teaspoon of salt. Cover with a lid and boil. When the water comes to a boil, reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for about 20 minutes until the potatoes are soft when you pierce them with a fork. Remove from the heat, and drain the water. In the same pot, add the milk, butter, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Blend with a hand mixer. Add a little bit more butter and salt at the end.
