Question about cooking a potroast

[SpecialK]

I always use a chuck roast for pot roast. Season with salt and pepper and brown. Add beef broth, cover and bake at 250 for four to five hours.

I've done stove top, oven and crockpot and had the best results with the oven method.

 

[lowie]

mine seems very different from all the others so far. i use a beef brisket, browned on both sides. put in a crock pot or stove top, pour in a large can or bottle of tomato juice. top with garlic powder, onion powder. put in an onion sliced into thick wedges. cook for hours, about 6-8 if you want it to fall apart. in the last hour add potatoes or serve over wide egg noodles.
the juice will be the gravy

i made this for my entire office and they flipped. so far half of them have made it for their families.

 

[JVL1018]

I buy bottom round, you can make it in a crockpot(add in some water and Liptons onions soup mix). I usually don't though.

I pour some oil in a big pot, brown the meat (usually about 3 lbs)on all sides, put in enough water to almost cover the meat, put in an envelope of Lipton's onion soup mix and simmer for 3 hours.

I don't put vegetables in mine, because DH's mom always made mashed potatoes, gravy and a side veg, and once I had it that way, there was no going back. Delicious!
It is everyone's #1 favorite meal here.

My MIL used to make this gravy that was out of this world and of course never wrote it down, so now I just make regular brown gravy. Hers had vinegar in it and that's all I know.

 

[barkley]

have not read all the posts-but as a 'seasoned' pot roast cooker i will offer up the following-

if you want the type that 'slivers' cook it in a covered casserole in the oven with lots of liquid or in a crock pot.

if you want the type that is crusty brown on the exterior, do a light browning in fying pan to sear the exterior then put it into a covered container and get it semi close to done, remove the cover and let it finish 'crusting'.

if you desire a 'french dip sandwich" type of roast-go to a grocery store with a butcher-ask him to thin slice and bind the meat. you can ccok this for a very limited period of time and pull out the rare cuts some like-and put the rest nto the oven for their favored 'well done' cuts.

if you wish some information on selecting/cooking a pot roast for bbq, italian,stew or utilization in a mexican style meal-pm me.

 

[JennyMominRI]

mine seems very different from all the others so far. i use a beef brisket, browned on both sides. put in a crock pot or stove top, pour in a large can or bottle of tomato juice. top with garlic powder, onion powder. put in an onion sliced into thick wedges. cook for hours, about 6-8 if you want it to fall apart. in the last hour add potatoes or serve over wide egg noodles.
the juice will be the gravy

i made this for my entire office and they flipped. so far half of them have made it for their families.

I make Brisket too..Yummy

 

[Planogirl]

I learned to make the crumbly kind of roast from MIL. The main thing is to cook it covered in the oven or on top of the stove at a very low temperature for at least 3 hours. I keep adding water and season the liquid with beef bouillon, onion and spices. Once done you can thicken up the liquid with either cornstarch or flour mixed in cold water.

 

[N.Bailey]

I buy chuck roast, too. It really gives you the best flavor and it's probably one of the cheapest. I always buy Angus (it's more tender) beef though. A local grocery store always runs them buy 1 get 1 free, so it's like $12-$14 for 2. I think this cut of meat is fine after being frozen, too. I can't say that about all meat though.

I never buy bouillon cubes. Instead I buy a base. I use beef for roasts and chicken for chicken, etc....

I used to brown my meat, but I've found that's not really necessary. I just put the roast in a pan on the stove (no slow cooker here), toss in 1 minced onion (run thru food processor) and add the soup base to get the desired flavor. I bring it all to a boil, cover and reduce to a simmer afterward that. I let it cook for roughly 3 hours. An hour or so before it's done, I add potatoes and carrots. Keep in mind, if you want a gravy (and I don't make gravy if I have potatoes and carrots on the pot), the carrots will overpower the broth and your gravy will be nasty. If you want to make gravy, add more water to the pot initially, then take out the amount you need for gravy prior to adding the veggies.

Now, if you want a fall apart roast. IMO, you're not going to get it from a crock pot OR on the stove. You need a pressure cooker. You will not be able to add the veggies to the cooker though, so make this when you want mashed potatoes and gravy. Your roast will literally melt in your mouth. When cooking in the pressure canner, I again add water, base, onion, and of course the roast (only chuck here) and it'll cook like an hour to an hour and a half. Depending on when you want it to be done.

Here is a link to the base I buy, but there are many types. The one I've been buying requires refrigeration after opening, but there are many out there that do not. I can guarantee this one has one heck of a flavor. We have an Amish run store and I don't know the brand they sell (they package it in a way that you can't tell), but it's every bit as good and it's cheap!

http://www.superiortouch.com/btb.htm

 

[N.Bailey]

I'd also add to the above post, those nasty carrots for some reason give a much better flavor in a pot roast than those baby carrots do. We always have baby carrots here, so at times it's all I have, so I'll use them, but the flavor doesn't even come close to those regular carrots that I've never found any other use for.

 

[Allison]

After reading this thread this morning I went out and got a roast and we just had it for dinner. It was delicious. I got a bottom round, put it in my dutch oven, baked it in the oven for 5 hours at 250. Yummy!!

 

[Cool-Beans]

Also, can you cook a potroast in the crockpot?

Not at Disney World, unless you want WWIII on your hands!

 

[JennyMominRI]

Not at Disney World, unless you want WWIII on your hands!

Well, there goes my plan for December

 

[Cool-Beans]

Well, there goes my plans for December

Don't worry, you can still pool hop to refill your mug!

(sorry bout the OT, returning you to your thread...)

 

[ntburns22]

I just learned something new. I will have to try the other cuts of meat. I have always just bought a London Broil. I am so clueless when it comes to cooking.

 

[marybet]

I have tried other cuts but the most tender is the bottom or rump roast. I buy the beef broth base at Sam's and use about a tablespoon mixed in hot water. I use a 5 quart pot and fill it just a little less than half, add the roast and some bay leafs. If I have frozen the roast first I put it in the microwave for 10 minutes on defrost and then cook it at 350 for at least 4.5 hours. If it is fresh I'll cook it for 3.5 to 4 hours, just depends. We don't like carrots, so I just use potatoes. If I use the canned ones I will put them in at the start, if I peel them I cook them for 2 hours.

I just made one on Wed. and it was soooooooo tender, falling apart. Makes great sandwiches too.

 

[kpk89]

I have been looking at the thread title for quite a few minutes trying to figure out what a potroast is! I was reading it like po-tro-ast. What is a po-tro-ast?

And, can I come over for dinner? Because I am clearly too dense to feed myself!

 

[piratesmate]

I've tried a pot roast in the crockpot once but it just didn't work. Is there a problem with the grease/oils from the meat getting into the vegetables in a crockpot? If you cook it on the stove, do you skim it off?

If you don't mind me asking....what do you mean it didn't work? In our family, this is the only way we've made roast in the past 30+ years. I can't ever remember having a roast that was "crusty brown" as barkley mentioned. :confused Is that desirable in a pot roast?

I buy meat without a lot of fat on it. If there's too much fat on the bottom I'll slice it off before putting it in the crock....but that's because fatty beef gives me indigestion. I think the fat does give the carrots a slightly different flavor, but I wouldn't call it objectionable. :confused DH actually prefers it with more fat.

<snip> I'm not fond of the crock pot because the potatoes don't really get brown.

That's why I like using the Kitchen Bouquet. I think Gravy Master is the other brand. Whatever that stuff is, it makes the potatoes brown as well as the outside of the roast. It also adds a nice flavor.

 

[mickeysgal]

If you don't mind me asking....what do you mean it didn't work? In our family, this is the only way we've made roast in the past 30+ years. I can't ever remember having a roast that was "crusty brown" as barkley mentioned. :confused Is that desirable in a pot roast?

I buy meat without a lot of fat on it. If there's too much fat on the bottom I'll slice it off before putting it in the crock....but that's because fatty beef gives me indigestion. I think the fat does give the carrots a slightly different flavor, but I wouldn't call it objectionable. :confused DH actually prefers it with more fat.

I had bought a bottom round roast, if I remember correctly. Even after cooking all day in a crock pot, it wasn't that fall apart, tender pot roast that I was shooting for. I also felt there was a lot of fat/grease on the top of the juices in the crock pot. I did brown the roast first in a pan before putting it in the crock pot. Actually, I was following the Liberty Tree Tavern pot roast recipe. I don't know what I did wrong. Then again, I am the FIRST to admit, that I'm not the greatest cook in the world. The veggies didn't turn out tasty and to me, there was too much fat on the top of the liquids.

I'm ready to try it again. I did buy a chuck roast at Cosco today so I'm ready to follow the advice here and give it another whirl.

 

[karebear1]

I'd also add to the above post, those nasty carrots for some reason give a much better flavor in a pot roast than those baby carrots do. We always have baby carrots here, so at times it's all I have, so I'll use them, but the flavor doesn't even come close to those regular carrots that I've never found any other use for.

Funny you should say that! DH and I were just saying the same thing. The whole carrots are superior to the baby carrots in flavor!

 

[N.Bailey]

I had bought a bottom round roast, if I remember correctly. Even after cooking all day in a crock pot, it wasn't that fall apart, tender pot roast that I was shooting for. I also felt there was a lot of fat/grease on the top of the juices in the crock pot. I did brown the roast first in a pan before putting it in the crock pot. Actually, I was following the Liberty Tree Tavern pot roast recipe. I don't know what I did wrong. Then again, I am the FIRST to admit, that I'm not the greatest cook in the world. The veggies didn't turn out tasty and to me, there was too much fat on the top of the liquids.

I'm ready to try it again. I did buy a chuck roast at Cosco today so I'm ready to follow the advice here and give it another whirl.

I do get tender roasts on the stove, but if it's falling apart, melting in your mouth that you're looking for, get yourself a pressure cooker. I am 100% serious, there is no comparison. The bad part is, you can't make your veggies in a pressure cooker as they'd be total mush by the time the roast was done. You could cook the roast ahead of time, then add the broth to your veggies and cook them later, but you won't have as much liquid from the pressure canner as you would from the stove, oven, or crock pot. That's where the base comes in handy that I linked to in my earlier response. I only use the broth for gravy (mashed potatoes when I cook the roast this way, but it's certainly not the only option you'd have).

I'd also suggest only buying Angus as it really does make a HUGE difference. I honestly believe chuck is your most flavorful cut of meat (for a roast). It might not be the most tender however, but if you buy Angus beef, you can overcome that.

Another thing you can do to lower the fat content. Let the roast cool in the fridge and you can then remove all the fat once it makes a film on the top of the broth (fats lighter, so it rises).

I also never brown my meat anymore. My MIL taught me to cook and she always browns hers. One time I just made one without browning my roast and I got the exact same effect. IMO, it's a waste of time.

For leftovers, you can use the roast for hot beef sandwiches (bread, roast, gravy, bread, gravy) with mashed potatoes and gravy, and/or we love making grilled cheese and adding a bit of the roast to the sandwich. They're really good!

 

[N.Bailey]

Funny you should say that! DH and I were just saying the same thing. The whole carrots are superior to the baby carrots in flavor!

Any suggestions on what I can do with the other half dozen carrots I always toss? I do love em in the roast, but they're certainly not worth munching raw.