Untested Pot Roast Recipes

No, I have not tried any of these recipes, yet. There are two reasons for that: 
1. The Mr. always takes charge in the kitchen when there is any kind of meat to be roasted. I'm perfectly capable at cooking a roast (Or really anything in the oven for that matter, especially baked goods...grilling is a totally different story - I don't even know how to turn on or light a grill. But I digress.) so I don't know why he insists on me taking the back seat when it comes to a roast. Maybe it's the manliness of a 3.5 lb slab of meat? Regardless, he does a terrific job. I just don't know what exactly he does.
And 2. I just stumbled upon these recipes (which have been ripped out of the Dec 11/Jan 12 issue of Ladies Home Journal in an article called "Try a Little Tenderness") a few minutes ago while doing some office work here at the farm. I haven't had time to lock the Mr. out of the house while I test one out.

So without further ado here are some pot roast recipes for us all to try. If you get a change to test any of them out, please let us all know what you think. I'll do the same!

Beef Roast with Potatoes and Carrots

 

You'll need a rib or sirloin cut -- a splurge, but perfect for a special meal.
1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F. (or 425 degrees F. for tenderloin or sirloin). Tie a 5-pound rib roast with kitchen twine if boneless or not compact. Rub roast with 1 tablespoon light brown sugar, 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme, 2 cloves minced garlic, 2 teaspoons kosher salt and 2 teaspoons pepper; place on a rack in a roasting pan. Add cut potatoes and carrots tossed in olive oil to the pan.
2. Roast until meat thermometer registers 5 to 10 degrees below desired doneness (140 degrees F. for medium rare), about 2 1/2 hours (45 minutes for tenderloin or sirloin). Allow to rest 15 minutes before serving.
Serves 4 to 6

Chipotle Pot Roast with Sweet Potatoes

Use a chuck or round roast for our slightly spicy take on the traditional recipe.
1. Heat oven to 325 degrees F. Tie a 3- to 3-1/2-pound chuck or round roast with kitchen twine if boneless or not compact. Heat 1 tablespoon canola oil in a Dutch oven and sear beef on all sides until dark brown. Season with salt and pepper.
2. Add 3 peeled and cut sweet potatoes and 1 onion cut into wedges to pan. Stir together 1 minced chipotle pepper, 1 tablespoon adobo from chipotle in adobo, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 2 tablespoons honey or maple syrup, and 3/4 cup beef broth and pour over meat and vegetables. Cover and roast in oven until beef is fork-tender, 3 to 3 1/2 hours.
Serves 4 to 6
A covered heavy-bottom Dutch oven is ideal for pot roast.

Classic Pot Roast with Vegetables

 

Like your mom used to make on Sundays, only more tender.
1. Heat oven to 325 degrees F. Tie a 3- to 3-1/2-pound chuck or round roast with kitchen twine if boneless or not compact. Heat 1 tablespoon canola oil in a Dutch oven and sear beef on all sides until dark brown. Season with salt and pepper.
2. Add 6 small quartered potatoes, 2 ribs cut celery, 3 cut carrots, 1 large onion diced, 2 bay leaves, 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce, and 1/2 cup beef broth to the pan. Cover and roast in oven until beef is fork-tender, 3 to 3 1/2 hours.
Serves 4 to 6
For a smaller roast, you can also use a covered heavy-bottom casserole.

Pot Roast with Tomatoes and Chickpeas

 

Use a chuck or round roast for this Mediterranean-flavored meal.
1. Heat oven to 325 degrees F. Tie a 3- to 3-1/2-pound chuck or round roast with kitchen twine if boneless or not compact. Heat 1 tablespoon canola oil in a Dutch oven and sear beef on all sides until dark brown. Season with salt and pepper.
2. Stir together one 28-ounce can whole tomatoes with juice, one 15.5-ounce can drained chickpeas, 3 cloves minced garlic, 1 diced onion, 1 tablespoon ground cumin, 2 teaspoons ground coriander, and zest of 1/2 an orange. Add to Dutch oven with meat. Cover and roast in oven until beef is fork-tender, about 3 to 3 1/2 hours.
Serves 4 to 6
If you use a roasting pan for pot roast, make sure you cover it tightly with foil.

Tips and Tricks:

Sear Delight

Browning your meat before you braise it not only makes the finished dish more beautiful, it's also essential for adding texture and more intense flavor (chefs call this the Maillard reaction). Well-browned beef should be a rich mahogany color. Here's how to do it right.
1. Pat the meat dry with paper towels (oil and moisture don't like each other), then season with salt. (Add pepper and spices after browning because they can burn.)
2. Get a pan very hot (you can sear the meat in the Dutch oven you'll braise it in or use a separate skillet), then add a little oil and the meat.
3. Don't move the meat until it's well browned on that side, about 2 or 3 minutes. It will move easily when you pick it up with tongs; turn it over and repeat.
4. Be sure to brown the edges, even if it means holding the meat with tongs while it cooks.

Two Ways to Cook a Roast

Braising
Also called pot-roasting, this moist-heat cooking method is best for less tender cuts of beef like chuck and round.
1. Pat beef dry and brown it on all sides in a small amount of canola oil over medium-high heat. Pour off the drippings.
2. Season beef with salt, pepper, and other flavors. Add vegetables and liquid and cover.
3. Cook at 325 degrees F. until beef is fork-tender, about 3 hours, and allow to rest 10 to 15 minutes before serving.
Roasting
With this dry-heat method you don't add liquid or cover the pan. Use it for tender cuts like rib, sirloin, or tenderloin.
1. Pat roast dry and season with salt and other flavors. Place on a rack in a shallow roasting pan.
2. Toss vegetables in a little olive oil and salt and arrange in pan around the roast.
3. Roast, uncovered, at 350 degrees F. for about 2 hours (425 degrees F. for about 45 minutes for tenderloin), until 5 to 10 degrees below desired doneness (140 degrees F. for medium rare).
4. Let roast stand, tented with foil, for 15 minutes before serving, allowing the meat to reach final temperature.

Slow Cooker Turkey Legs

Okay, I have to admit that I was fairly apprehensive about preparing turkey legs. They are the item most requested to be omitted from the CSA shares by a long shot. I figured that without careful preparation and slowly confitting for a full 24 hours they would be tough and dry. Boy was I wrong. This meal couldn't have been easier or tastier, or sleep inducing. Thanks tryptophan!

Fall off the bones amazingness right there.

I did some research aka Googling and checking Pinterest for recipes. I decided to follow this recipe and the comments on it as a guide. 
Start by rinsing and drying off your turkey legs. This is a good time to look for any feather roots that might be lingering around if you plan on eating the skin. And I highly suggest eating the skin. Rub the legs with extra virgin olive oil (or butter, or duck fat, or coconut oil, etc.) and season generously with salt, pepper, and whatever fresh or dried herbs you want. I used poultry herbs (rosemary, sage, and thyme) and 2 cloves of garlic. Don't just put the seasonings on top, make sure that legs are coated. Place in your slow-cooker of choice and drizzle with some more olive oil - I used 2-3 tablespoons for the two legs.

Oiled up pre herb-rubbed turkey.

Dice up some veggies or potatoes if you want and add to the crock pot. I used 3 carrots, 2 celery stalks, and 7 boiler onions but you can use whatever you like with turkey or just cook the turkey by itself.

The turkey and veggies all snuggled up for a "nap".

If you are adding veggies to the slow cooker add whatever takes the longest to cook first and so on. I put my carrots in first, then the celery, and the onions on top of the turkey so they would cook down less.

Turkey with a blanket of onions.

Turn on your crock pot to low heat or put your turkey legs in a low heat oven, 200ish degrees and go about your day.

After an hour of cooking.

I took a shower and got ready for work and took this^ picture before heading out. I started cooking the turkey legs at 6:30am with plans to have dinner around 6:30pm.

11.5 hours later.

If I had had more time to put into this meal I would have either put the veggies in much later in the cooking process or cooked more vegetables separately because I like my cooked veggies way more al dente. They tasted amazing, but all that slow cooking and olive oil did make them super tender, almost like a chunky vegetable gravy. The other thing that ended up super tender and moist were turkey legs. Seriously, the bones just slid right out.  

Dinner is served. 

Since the veggies were stewed down so much we decided to serve them and the tender turkey legs over mashed cauliflower to sop up some of the juices. I'm trying to be a little healthier so I figured the carrots were plenty enough starch; potatoes would have been great too though. If you want me to post my mashed cauliflower recipe let me know. They're amazing. I swear you won't miss the potatoes.
 

Please note the white tendons in the turkey legs in the very center of the picture. 

If you look closely at this picture, you'll see a few white tendons running parallel to the bone. They are a product of the happy lives our turkeys live on the farm that Alec mentioned in the last post. Unfortunately, no amount of brining or slow cooking is going to soften them up. Just take care to pull them out as you eat. The turkey legs will be so tender from the slow and low love they got all day that this won't be difficult or time consuming. I promise that this very easy recipe will make pulling those tendons out worth it. Be prepared for Thanksgiving-like drowsiness after. I forgot to turn my crock-pot off for 3 nights after... The house smelled amazing all weekend!

Good luck with your turkey legs and wings!
-Nina, the master of none



 

Turkey Tips

 

Hi Everyone,

I sent out the remainder of the Turkey legs and some wings this week. I realize this is not always the most popular meat product we produce but in that it’s a CSA and we have a need for no waste as well as the fact that when prepared well the turkey extremities are amazing I shipped them out anyway.

Our birds are heritage breeds and they fly and roam and perch the old fashioned way, as such the meat is tough if thrown onto the grill.

Here are some tips for turkey legs and wings. First off go slow. A braise of white wine or chicken stock at 285 degrees for three hours will melt away most of your troubles.

Take some olive oil and cook down half an onion sliced coarsely in a 6 inch deep pot/pan. Salt and pepper the wings, and place them over the softened onions. Pour cheap dry white wine or stock two inches deep. Let this simmer in the oven at 285 for three hours. You can crisp the skin in a skillet when finished if you like or take them out of the braise and set them on a cookie sheet in a hot broiler for a minute or so. Add whatever accouterments you prefer and serve.

You can also make an on the fly confit. This takes a day to prepare but it is so delicious. Cover the turkey legs in salt and sugar and then place them in a large, shallow pan. Take another pan the same size and place it on top of the legs. Then take your favorite unabridged dictionary and place three volumes on top of that pan the press the legs for 12 hours or so. Remove the legs from under the books and wrap them up in thinly sliced unsalted pork fat (need some? I’ll pass it on to you) or buy some duck fat and smother the legs in it. Then wrap the legs in foil and bake at 200 for four hours, crisp the skin before serving and enjoy, this is an amazing, easy dish.

-Alec

PS: Nina prepared some turkey legs last week which she said were equally easy to prepare as they were delicious to eat. She is going to post her recipe and photos soon.