Pot roast is one of the great southern Sunday dinners. Add a little
fresh snap beans, maybe some mustard greens and some good dinner rolls
or even cornbread and you've got a meal fit for a King.
Ingredients:
1 - 4 lb. roast
3 med. onions chopped
2 stalks celery chopped
1 bell pepper chopped
2 tsp. Creole Seasoning
1 tsp. chopped garlic
5 - 6 cloves of garlic (to stuff the roast)
All purpose flour (to sprinkle on roast)
1/4 cup cooking oil
Salt and Black Pepper to taste
Pot roasting is fairly easy and starts with rinsing and patting it dry
with paper towels. Coat the roast with cooking oil then stuff it with
garlic and your choice of pepper.
This
is a pork roast. When I stuff it I use several cloves of garlic, a one
inch piece of bacon, a little creole seasoning, and, a plug. A PLUG,
what's that? The plug is just a slice of meat off any portion of the
roast about the size (in diameter) that would fit in the stuffing hole I
made. I cut it in about 1/2 inch long pieces and seal the hole. Hey, I
don't want the good stuff escaping!
Seasoning the roast is next and a little flour is sprinkled on it, then,
it's seared (not just browned) dark brown on all sides in a black iron
pot with a little cooking oil. (check
this out). This makes a small gravy.
The roast is removed then the onions go in and are browned, this makes
part of the gravy (if you like
onion gravy).
You can also cook the onions on the side as shown here if you're pressed
for time. You can always add brown gravy mix at the end in case you need
more gravy.
After the onions are done throw in celery, bell pepper and some minced
garlic and cook that for a while. Put the roast back in, add a little
water, lower the fire, stir it around, put the lid on it and it's on the
way. Turn it over every 15 minutes or so and add a little water if
needed so it doesn't dry out.
Sometimes I'll make a little extra gravy and put some field peas right
in the with the roast. I also like to chop some bell pepper and onion in
large (1''x1") pieces near the end and cook them until just wilted.
That's me, do your thing.
In general I allow one hour per pound of meat on a low fire.
I'm
not sure what other folks do but an old favorite that my dear
mother-in-law used to do was to pot roast a beef and pork roast together
(pic to the left).... mmmm... that's good!
To finish it up, when it's done, turn the fire off and let it set for
about 15 minutes. Doing this allows the roast to absorb the juices. Take
it out and slice it and return it to the gravy.
Take out the leftovers the next day and add potatoes, carrots, corn and
whatever else... voila, you've got beef stew!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Let's talk about beef roasts for a minute since that's what most people
do. I'm sure you know there are different types of roasts. Sirloin,
Rump, Shoulder, and Chuck are the most popular found in the grocery
store. Also available are the Tenderloin, Rib, Eye of Round, Round Tip,
and Arm roasts. The more tender cuts come from the loin area (the back,
not the legs as the word "loin" suggests). If you want to cook a roast
that just falls all to pieces choose the chuck roast. If you want one
that slices well choose the rump. My favorite is the Shoulder Roast. The
bottom line is that the more marbled fat a piece of beef has, the more
tender and flavorful it will be. Whatever kind of roast you use the
cooking method determines the time and final outcome but you must be
aware that the tougher the meat the longer you must cook it. Remember,
cook to an internal temperature of at least 160ºF.