Pot roast
Ingredients:
3 Ib beef roast (chuck, top round, or sirloin tip)
1.5 Ib fingerling potatoes
1 Ib carrots
3 stalks celery
12 oz pearl onions (fresh or frozen)
3 C beef stock
1 C red wine
3 Tbsp cornstarch
6 Tbsp olive oil
4 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp fresh garlic
0.5 oz fresh rosemary
0.5 oz fresh thyme
2 Tbsp kosher salt
1 Tbsp coarse black pepper
Optional: 1 can small sweet peas
Directions:
Pat roast dry with paper towel. Coat with 1 Tbsp kosher salt. Dust with corn starch and let stand 15-30 mins.
Prepare vegetables:
Cut fingerling potatoes in half lengthwise
Peel and chop carrots into thirds (larger chunks of carrots should also be cut in half lengthwise)
Peel pearl onions. Slice larger onions in half lengthwise
Chop celery and garlic
Strip herbs (reserve 2 sprigs each rosemary and thyme)
In a large mixing bowl, add stripped herbs, vegetables, 2 Tbsp olive oil, 1 Tbsp kosher salt, and 1 Tbsp course black pepper. Set aside.
Prepare roast:
Sear roast in Dutch oven with 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium-high heat. Make sure to brown all sides and edges. CRUCIAL: Do not flip the roast too soon, or force it. It will naturally release from the pan on its own when it’s properly seared. Once seared, remove from Dutch oven and set aside.
Add contents of mixing bowl to the Dutch oven, sautéing over medium-high heat until celery and carrots are slightly tender. For best results, sauté in small batches - this allows the vegetables to properly “sweat” out their own moisture, so they can absorb the butter and red wine in the oven later. Remove each small batch and set aside.
Once all vegetables are sautéed, and set aside, reduce the heat to medium and deglaze the Dutch oven with 1 cup dry red wine. Once the wine has reduced to about half its volume, add three cups of beef stock. Bring to a simmer. Remove from heat.
Pour the liquid over the prepared vegetables. Put the roast back into the Dutch oven. Pour the vegetables over the roast, nestling them to the sides of the roast with a spoon. Add 4 tablespoons butter to the top of the roast, and two sprigs each thyme and rosemary.
Put the lid on, and roast at 350 F for 2 ½ hours, or until vegetables are tender and caramelized.
Once the roast is done, let rest 15 minutes. Remove herb sprigs, slice, and serve.