Email to Lee       

French Pot Roast

Source of Recipe

Lee's Kitchen


List of Ingredients

FRENCH POT ROAST
1 4 LB CHUCK OR BOTTOM ROUND BEEF ROAST (trim excess fat on chuck if needed)
4 large cloves garlic sliced
Salt & pepper to taste
2 large carrots scrubbed & chopped
3 ribs celery scrubbed & chopped
1 large yellow onion, chopped
1 bouquet garni with celery leaves 1 bay leaf, parsley, 1 sprig fresh rosemary and 3 sprigs fresh thyme. (Tie herbs into a clean piece of cheesecloth)
1 750 ml bottle dry red wine (red zinfandel is nice)
Cut slits all over roast and stuff sliced garlic pieces into roast. Rub roast all over with salt and pepper. Put roast into large Ziploc bag or stainless steel bowl and add above ingredients. Cover if using bowl or if using Ziploc bag, seal and place bag inside of a bowl to prevent any leaks in the refrigerator. Marinate overnight, turning roast from time to time to evenly distribute marinade on roast.
The next day remove the roast from the refrigerator and allow to come to room temp. Remove roast fro marinade and pat dry with paper towels. Strain marinade, reserving vegetables, liquid and bouquet garni.
4 cups beef broth
2 Tbl canola oil
1 Tbl “Better Than Bouillon” brand beef base
3 Tbl brandy
2 Tbl tomato paste
1 Tbl anchovy paste
2 packets (1 box) dried onion soup (Pamda bran is good in this)
Turn oven on to 350 degrees.
Pour marinade liquid into a medium saucepan along with the beef base and bring to a boil and reduce liquid to ½. Add beef broth and bring back to a boil. Once it has boiled, remove from heat and reserve for later use.
Spray a 5 quart Dutch oven with vegetable spray. In a heavy skillet heat 2 Tbl canola oil over medium-high heat and add roast. Brown well on all sides and transfer roast to the Dutch oven. Pour off the oil in the skillet if using non-stick skillet. Add drained marinade vegetables to skillet and cook over medium high heat until vegetables are fairly tender (about 10 minutes). Add ½ cup of the marinade and beef broth mixture, reserved boquet garni, tomato paste, brandy and anchovy paste to skillet and cook over medium-high heat for a few minutes, stirring from time to time. While this is cooking sprinkle both packets of dried onion soup onto the roast. Transfer vegetable mixture to the Dutch oven distributing the vegetables around the meat. Add remaining beef broth wine mixture to Dutch oven and cover tightly. (Use aluminum foil and then a lid on top of the foil if the lid to the Dutch oven is not tight fitting. Place on center rack in oven and let cook undisturbed for 2 ½ to 3 hours or until meat is fork tender. When done remove roast from Dutch oven and tent to keep warm while making gravy. Strain cooking liquid and return strained liquid to Dutch oven. Bring to a boil and boil to reduce and thicken sauce. A little cornstarch mixed into cold water can be used to help thicken gravy if needed. If using the cornstarch mixture boil and stir gravy until it has thickened. A pat of butter can be stirred into the gravy at the end of cooking to help flavor and texture.
This will be better if refrigerated overnight and reheated the next day. Serve with boiled noodles, rice or mashed potatoes.



Recipe