Pioneer Woman's Perfect Pot Roast

This recipe is from my Pioneer Woman Cooks Cookbook.

Perfect Pot Roast pg. 120

You can see PW's post of this recipe on her blog with delicious photos!

Ingredients

1 whole (4 To 5 Pounds) Chuck Roast

2 Tablespoons Olive Oil

2 whole Onions

6 whole Carrots (Up To 8 Carrots) - I cheated and used baby carrots

Salt To Taste

Pepper To Taste

1 cup Red Wine (optional, You Can Use Beef Broth Instead) - I didn't use wine

2 cups To 3 Cups Beef Stock

3 sprigs Fresh Thyme, or more to taste

3 sprigs Fresh Rosemary, or more to taste

Preparation Instructions

(check out the bargain for this roast... Original price 12.24, I paid 5.11... Lucked out on mark down day!)

First and foremost, choose a nicely marbled piece of meat. This will enhance the flavor of your pot roast like nothing else. Generously salt and pepper your chuck roast.

Heat a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Then add 2 to 3 tablespoons of olive oil (or you can do a butter/olive oil split).

Cut two onions in half and cut 6 to 8 carrots into 2-inch slices (I cheated and used baby carrots!). When the oil in the pot is very hot (but not smoking), add in the halved onions, browning them on one side and then the other. Remove the onions to a plate.

Throw the carrots into the same very hot pan and toss them around a bit until slightly browned, about a minute or so.

If needed, add a bit more olive oil to the very hot pan. Place the meat in the pan and sear it for about a minute on all sides until it is nice and brown all over. Remove the roast to a plate.

With the burner still on high, use either red wine or beef broth (about 1 cup) to deglaze the pan, scraping the bottom with a whisk to get all of that wonderful flavor up. (I used broth and didn't use wine)

When the bottom of the pan is sufficiently deglazed, place the roast back into the pan and add enough beef stock to cover the meat halfway (about 2 to 3 cups). Add in the onion and the carrots, as well as 3 or 4 sprigs of fresh rosemary and about 3 sprigs of fresh thyme.

Put the lid on, then roast in a 275F oven for 3 hours (for a 3-pound roast). For a 4 to 5-pound roast, plan on 4 hours.

Here is my roast before going into the oven (above) and when it came out of the oven (below). 

The roast just fell to pieces (above), this is what was left in the pot once I pulled out the roast (below) my first thought was the leftovers will make great soup!

This roast was so good!!! I also made PW's Creamy Mashed potatoes to go with the roast. (see previous post)