
Five Pot Roast Recipes to Try By Nolechek's
Pot roasts are easy to make and they taste great. They are also known for being cheap, gaining more flavor the longer you cook them.
So what is a pot roast?
Pot Roast Recipe Definition: Pot Roast or Brown Pot Roast is a cut of beef that has been slow cooked in liquid, such as water, broth or wine. The meat becomes incredibly tender after it's long cooking time. Another added bonus — no vegetables need to be added during the cooking process because they get so soft when cooked slowly (no potatoes needed!).
The history behind pot roasts dates back hundreds of years to when our ancestors were butchers who sold meat from large animals like cows, pigs and goats. These butchers knew that the best cuts of meat from these animals were found in the shoulder and neck areas, where there was plenty of connective tissue that would turn to gelatin during a long cooking time. These butchers sold portions from this area for cheap because they knew that when slow cooked, these pot roasts would be tender and full of flavor.
What makes a good pot roast? There are many variables involved with creating a good pot roast recipe, such as choosing your cut of meat from Nolechek's and how much water or broth you add to cook it. Here are five types of beef you can use for making pot roast:
Chuck Roast - Chuck roasts come from the top part of the front shoulder blade section on an animal (like cows). They produce large, well-marbled muscles that are tender and full of flavor. Chuck roasts are ideal for slow cooking because they make excellent pot roast recipes.
Boiled Beef - Boiled beef is a cut from the top round or inside round, located in the hind leg section of an animal (like cows). These cuts contain very little fat and connective tissue, so they have to be boiled slowly to break down their muscle fibers. This makes them great for pot roast recipe ingredients because they're so tender.
Rump Roast - Rump roasts come from the lower hip area of an animal (like cows). They are lower in fat and connective tissue than other cuts found on animals, but still retain plenty of flavor when cooked properly.
Rib Roast - Rib roasts come from the rib section of an animal (like cows). They are pretty lean and usually contain a fair amount of fat. They also have very little connective tissue, so they're not as good for making pot roast recipes . However, if you remove some or all of the excess fat before cooking your meat, they will become tender and full flavored after slow cooking for several hours.
Roast Beef - While this seems like an oxymoron to our ancestors who knew that all beef was boiled, modern day roast beef is another option for pot roast recipe ingredients. It's taken from the large muscles found in the back and shoulder areas of an animal (like cows) where there's plenty of connective tissue and fat. Cooking these cuts slowly will break down their muscle fibers, so they taste great in pot roast recipes . Because they're higher in fat than other cuts of beef, it's important to remove some or all of the excess fat before adding them to your slow cooker.
That being said, here are 5 different ways to make pot roast that will taste incredible!
Pot Roast Recipe #1: Easy Pot Roast Slow Cooker Stew
This recipe is perfect for cooking a large portion of meat because there isn't any pre-seasoning involved. It has just enough flavor from the vegetables (like onions and carrots) that get added later in the process. When choosing which cut of meat you want to use for this recipe, choose a cut that will be tender after slow cooking for several hours.
Of course this pot roast recipe will make more than just one serving (depending on how large your cut of meat is); however you can adjust the amounts of ingredients according to how many servings you want.
Ingredients:
1 yellow onion
2 carrots, sliced into rounds
3 pounds beef chuck roast
1/4 cup water or broth
Directions: Adjust the ingredients according to how many servings you want and where you're going to serve them (at home or at work). Place all ingredients into an electric slow cooker. Turn it on low, cover and cook for 6-8 hours until it's cooked through. Remove from slow cooker with tongs and serve.
1/2 cup beef gravy (or 1/3 cup brown gravy) (optional) To serve your pot roast: spoon 2-4 servings onto a plate, if you want to add extra flavor top with some beef gravy.
Pot Roast Recipe #2: Pot Roast in the Pressure Cooker
If you don't have slow cooker, no worries! You can still make this delicious pot roast recipe in a pressure cooker. It's just as easy to prepare and tastes phenomenal! This recipe requires that you pre-season your meat before cooking it, so it will be a little more involved than making one of our other recipes where seasoning occurs later in the process. Again, choose a cut of meat that will be tender after slow cooking, but this time pre-season your meat before putting it into the pressure cooker.
Ingredients: 1/3 cup red wine or beef broth
Directions: Adjust ingredients according to how many servings you want and where you're going to serve them (at home or at work). Place all ingredients into a pressure cooker. Close the lid and bring it up to 15 PSI over high heat until it reaches that temperature and then add 10 minutes of cook time. After 10 minutes of cook time, turn off the heat with natural release and let the steam escape for 4-5 minutes before opening lid. Remove from pressure cooker with tongs and serve.
1/4 cup beef gravy (or 1/2 cup brown gravy) (optional) To serve your pot roast: spoon 2-4 servings onto a plate, if you want to add extra flavor top with some beef gravy.
Pot Roast Recipe #3: 3 Hour Pot Roast
Another fantastic way to cook pot roasts is by using the oven at 275 degrees F. The meat will be full of flavor and tender from slow cooking all day while it's in the oven. This recipe requires that you pre-season your meat before cooking it, so it will be a little more involved than making one of our other recipes where seasoning occurs later in the process. Again, choose a cut of meat that will be tender after slow cooking for several hours at low temperature, but this time don't forget to season your meat before putting it into the oven!
Ingredients: 2-3 pounds beef chuck roast, cut into 3-4 pieces
1/2 cup water or broth
Directions: Adjust ingredients according to how many servings you want and where you're going to serve them (at home or at work). Preheat oven to 275 degrees F. Place all ingredients in a roasting pan and place uncovered in the center of the oven. Cook for 3 hours until cooked through. Remove from oven with tongs and serve. 1/2 cup beef gravy (or 1/3 cup brown gravy) (optional) To serve your pot roast: spoon 2-4 servings onto a plate, if you want to add extra flavor top with some beef gravy.
Pot Roast Recipe #4: Pot Roast in 30 Minutes or Less
This is for all the folks who don't have a lot of time to spare, but still want to make a delicious pot roast dinner. It's not possible to cook pot roasts in less than 30 minutes, but if you have the meat cooked beforehand (either by cooking it yourself or buying it already cooked at your local grocery store) then this recipe will take about 15-20 minutes from start to finish when we add gravy and veggies. This recipe requires that you pre-season your meat before cooking it, so it will be a little more involved than making one of our other recipes where seasoning occurs later in the process. Again, choose a cut of meat that will be tender after slow cooking for several hours, but this time don't forget to season your meat before putting it into the oven! Ingredients: 3-4 servings (3 lbs) cooked beef chuck roast
1/2 cup water or broth
Directions: Adjust ingredients according to how many servings you want and where you're going to serve them (at home or at work). Preheat oven to 275 degrees F. Place all ingredients in a roasting pan and place uncovered in the center of the oven. Cook for 30 minutes until cooked through. Remove from oven with tongs and serve. 1/2 cup beef gravy (or 1/3 cup brown gravy) (optional) To serve your pot roast: spoon 3-4 servings onto a plate, if you want to add extra flavor top with some beef gravy.
Pot Roast Recipe #5: Deep Fried Pot Roast in Gravy
This recipe may be the most involved of all since it takes 3 different pots or oven dishes (a deep pot for frying, a roasting dish and a saucepan), but it's also one of the tastiest! This recipe requires that you take your pot roast out of the oven about 5 minutes before it's done cooking to let it rest under aluminum foil while you fry up your vegetables. Choose a cut of meat that will be tender after slow cooking for several hours at low temperature, but again don't forget to season your meat before putting it into the oven! Ingredients: 3-4 servings (3 lbs) cooked beef chuck roast
1 cup water or broth
5 large potatoes, peeled and sliced into 1/2 inch thick slices
Directions: Adjust ingredients according to how many servings you want and where you're going to serve them (at home or at work). Preheat oven to 275 degrees F. Place all ingredients in a roasting pan and place uncovered in the center of the oven. Cook for 4 hours until vegetables are tender. Remove from oven with tongs and let rest under aluminum foil for about 5 minutes while frying up your potatoes. Fry potatoes over medium heat in peanut oil using low salt cooking spray for about 6 minutes or until golden brown. In a saucepan on low heat simmer your pot roast sauce for about 6 minutes or until thickened. Remove from heat and slice potatoes into 1/2 inch cubes putting them into a deep pot with hot peanut oil (around 350 degrees). Deep fry potatoes for 5-6 minutes, stirring occasionally until cooked through. Place Pot Roast back in oven uncovered for another 10-15 minutes to let the sauce thicken and meat become more tender. Spoon Pot Roast onto plate, top with fried potatoes and gravy, add any other veggies you like as well as soy sauce if desired.
1/3 cup brown gravy
We hope you enjoyed this post on 5 pot roast recipes to try by Nolechek's. Order your meats today to make yours!