Pot Roast with Polenta

Merry belated Christmas! Sorry for the break in posts. On December 23, Jamie and I decided we'd exchange our presents and have a special dinner. (He's quite the wrapping enthusiast as you can see above - aren't I lucky?) 

He is not wont to making dinner requests, but I implored him. His request was pot roast. I've never made pot roast before, but it follows the same formula as short ribs, lamb shanks, etc. (Anything you cook for 2+ hours with wine and lots of veggies is always melt-in-your-mouth delicious, so I obliged.) I followed Ina Garten's recipe, but added a little Balsamic vinegar - a trick I learned to give amazing flavor and a touch of sweetness from another slow braise recipe.

The pot roast was delicious, and a lot like a beef stew. It made plenty, so I threw a few tupperwear containers in the freezer with the leftovers to make a simple, warming winter meal for the next few weeks. It's rich and has a great, deep flavor but it seemed lighter than short ribs because the meat is less fatty. The polenta is a great accompaniment, however next time I would serve the pot roast and liquid on top of the polenta instead of alongside it. Give yourself about 3 and a half hours from start to finish for this.

Serves 8

Ingredients:

1 4lb prime boneless beef chuck roast

Kosher salt and fresh black pepper

All-purpose flour

Olive Oil

4 carrots, peeled and chopped

2 yellow onions, peeled and chopped

4 stalks of celery, sliced

2 large leeks, cleaned and chopped

5 large garlic cloves, peeled and crushed

2 cups good red wine, such as Burgundy

2 tablespoons Cognac or Whiskey

1 28oz can whole plum tomatoes in puree, squished with your hands or chopped

1 cup chicken stock

2 tbsp Balsamic vinegar

1 chicken bouillon cube

3 branches fresh thyme

1 tbsp unsalted butter (optional)

Polenta

5 cups water

Olive Oil

1 cup polenta

salt and pepper

2 tbsp butter

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325. Pat the beef dry and season with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Dredge the meat in flour. In a large pot, heat 2 tbsp of olive oil and sear the roast until nicely browned all over, about 4-5 minutes per side. Remove to a plate or cutting board.

Add 2 tbsp olive oil back to the pan and add carrots, onions, celery, leeks, garlic, 1 tbsp salt, and 1 1/2 tbsp pepper and cook about 10-15 minutes over medium, stirring occasionally, until soft but not brown. Add the wine and Cognac or Whiskey and bring to a boil.

(I used this delicious, caramel scented Whiskey my awesome friend Rob - real estate broker extraordinaire - gave to Jamie for his birthday and Charles Smith - a Cabernet Sauvignon that Jamie and I love.)

Then add the tomatoes, chicken stock, bouillon cube, 2 teaspoons salt, 1 teaspoon pepper, and 2 tablespoons Balsamic along with the thyme. Return the meat to the pot and bring to a boil.

Cover and put into the oven for 2 1/2 hours. After an hour, reduce the heat to 250 degrees. The whole kitchen (or apartment if you live in a little West Village flat like I do) will smell amazing and at the end, when you take it out of the oven, it turns a deep, caramelized burgundy/brown.

Take out the beef and place on a cutting board. Skim off any fat from the sauce. 

Take half of the sauce and vegetables and puree in a food processor, then return to the pan.

Return the pot to a simmer over low heat and let it cook down a bit to thicken up. (Here you can add a mix of flour and room temperature butter mashed together to really thicken it.) 

Meanwhile, make the polenta. (Boil 5 cups of water with 1 tbsp olive oil and 1 1/4 tsp salt. Once it boils, add 1 cup slow cooking polenta, slowly. Stir and keep on very low for about 15 minutes, continuously stirring. Right before serving, add 2 tbsp of butter and mix well.)

Taste the sauce for seasoning. Slice the meat. Spread some polenta in a circle on the plate and top with slices of meat and a liberal serving of sauce.