No Strings Attached

In my ongoing full immersion into autumn and all things cozy and homey, it was inevitable that I was going to want pot roast at some point. I haven't had pot roast in a long, long time - we had it when I was younger but not much since then, and I've never made it. So clearly it had to happen. While I was open to doing it the old school way - big chuck roast, crock pot, Lipton's soup mix, etc - we were rapidly running out of room in our fridge, and minimizing leftovers was key. Meanwhile, somewhere along the line I had clipped a recipe I'd been meaning to try -- "individual" pot roasts. A little more effort than the traditional, sure, but SO GOOD. Kind of a hybrid of pot roast and boeuf bourguignon - not quite as complicated though. The meat was tender, not at all stringy, and flavorful, and it has been officially placed in EPF's top five dishes. Try it - it's worth the extra effort. It does take a little time, so probably more of a weekend than a weekday dish, but it reheats well.



Individual Pot Roasts w/ Thyme-Glazed Carrots
(source: The Kitchn)

1 1/2 to 2 pounds chuck roast
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Olive oil
1 large onion, diced
5 cloves garlic, smashed and roughly chopped
1 1/2 cups red wine, such as Malbec (I used what I had open, which was...I think Cab? Not Malbec, though - it was fine)
1 15-ounce can diced tomatoes, with their juices
1 whole sprig fresh rosemary
2 whole sprigs fresh thyme
1 tablespoon unsalted butter (I happened to have salted - didn't make it overly salty.)
2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves (approximately)
1 16-ounce bag baby carrots

Heat oven to 325°F. Quarter the chuck roast into 4 equally-sized chunks of meat. Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. Heat a heavy deep pan or Dutch oven over high heat. When the pan is hot, place each piece of the chuck roast in the pan. Sear for several minutes (or until the the meat releases easily) on both sides. You may need to do this in two batches; don't crowd the pan. Let the meat get quite dark, with crusty spots on both sides.

When the meat is well-browned, remove it from the pan and put on a plate. Drizzle a little olive oil into the pan and turn the heat down to medium. Add the onions and garlic, and sprinkle lightly with salt. Cook the onions and garlic for about 5 minutes, stirring until they are soft. Add the wine and scrape any remaining bits of meat up from the bottom of the pan. Pour in the tomatoes and bring the mix to a simmer, then turn off the heat.

Add the meat back into the pan. Place the rosemary sprig and whole thyme sprigs in the pot. Cover with a tight-fitting lid and put in the oven. Cook for 1 1/2 hours, or until the meat is very tender.

In the last 30 minutes of cooking, heat a heavy saucepan over medium heat and add the butter. Melt, then add the thyme leaves and carrots. Cook, stirring, until the carrots are glazed with the thyme. Season generously with salt and pepper. Add to the pot roast in the oven and cover. Leave the carrots in the pot for the last 30 minutes of cooking the pot roasts (or until tender). (The timing is a little confusing there - the carrots ought to be with the meat for 30 minutes to get fully tender, so you probably want to start this process in the last 40 minutes to accomplish that. Mine were crunchier than I would have liked.)

Remove from the oven and let rest for 10 to 15 minutes, plate it, pour a glass of the remaining wine, and enjoy!