Pot Roast

One of my favorite things about crockpot cooking (I know I've had a lot of crockpot posts, but seriously, for the busy student worker I am, it makes tasty meals with less work, so who can pass that up?), is that I can put something in there, go to work or school, come back home, the house smells absolutely amazing, and there's dinner just waiting for me to plate it. Seriously, with the fast paced world that we live in now, I don't know how I would survive without one of these contraptions! And pot roast is definitely a staple meal of the crockpot. The cold weather, crockpot, and pot roast are just a match made in food heaven.


Ingredients:

2 & 1/2 lb. pot roast (I used a chuck roast)
4 cloves garlic, minced
3 onions, chopped
1 bunch of celery, chopped
4 carrots, peeled and chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons flour
1 bay leaf
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
pinch of sugar
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
15 oz. can of chopped tomatoes
6 oz. can of tomato paste
3/4 cup red wine (I used a cabernet sauvignon)
2 tablespoons olive oil

Heat your crockpot up on the "high" setting.

Heat up a large skillet under medium heat and add olive oil. When shimmering, add pot roast and brown on both sides, maybe 3-5 minutes per side. Place pot roast in crockpot.

In same skillet, add onions, garlic, and green pepper. Cook until translucent and soft, about 5 minutes. Sprinkle the vegetables with flour and stir continuously for 1 minute. The flour will create a subtle added starchiness and help to thicken the sauce.

Add the canned tomatoes, tomato paste, bay leaf, thyme, sugar, parsley, and red wine. Stir until tomato paste is well incorporated throughout. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil, then simmer for about 3-5 minutes to allow to slightly thicken.

Carefully add vegetable mixture to pot roast in crockpot. Cover and let sit at high for about 1 hour. Then turn to low and can leave for up to 8 hours. I let mine sit a working day, so about 8 hours.

About 30 minutes before you're ready to serve, add the carrots and celery. You could add these add the beginning if you wanted to, but they would be a little mushy. I like my carrots and celery to be slightly crunchy but still somewhat tender. When carrots and celery are to your liking, serve pot roast and vegetables with white rice, mashed potatoes, or just by itself!

I loved this dish. I brought leftovers into work the next day and the pharmacist I was working with even ate it cold. You know something is tasty when you don't even have to heat it up! He also said that the dish brought back a "normalcy" and comfort when he was eating it. I think I should pat myself on the back then because those are some pretty great compliments! Enjoy!