Monthly Archives: October 2013

For many families, having a roast on Sunday is something of a tradition. I can remember having the meal as a child either at my parents’ home or at my grandparents’ home fairly regularly. Unfortunately, really good cuts of beef for roasts have gotten very expensive, making the roast something that does not happen very often. Even just getting a cut like an eye round or top sirloin can be quite expensive unless it happens to be on a good sale. The chuck eye roast is not one I typically buy because it is quite fatty. it’s fine if you are going to cube it up for a beef stew or even use it to grind for your own hamburgers, but it can be tough to turn a quality roast dinner into this cut of beef. That is why when I saw this recipe in the latest issue of Cook’s Country magazine, it intrigued me enough to want to give it a try. They take the chuck roast and transform it into a tender roast fit for a Sunday meal.

Slow-Roasted Chuck Roast

1 (5- to 6-pound) center-cut boneless beef chuck-eye roast

5 teaspoons kosher salt

2 teaspoons pepper

2 teaspoons onion powder

2 teaspoons granulated garlic

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup red wine

1 1/2 cups beef broth

1 1/2 cups chicken broth

1/2 cup heavy cream

1/2 cup sour cream

1/3 cup prepared horseradish, drained

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1 garlic clove, minced

1/2 teaspoon pepper

Pat the roast dry with paper towels. Separate the roast into two pieces along the natural seam of the roast and trim the fat to 1/4-inch thickness. Tie kitchen twine around the larger roast at 1-inch intervals. Cut the smaller roast into 1-inch cubes. Combine the salt, pepper, onion powder, and granulated garlic in a bowl. Rub the surface of the tied roast evenly with half of the spice mixture and wrap it in plastic wrap. Transfer the beef cubes to a 1-gallon zipper-lock bag; add the remaining spice mixture to the bag, seal, and toss to coat the beef cubes. Refrigerate the tied roast and the beef cubes for at least 6 hours and up to 24 hours.

Adjust an oven rack to the lower-middle position and heat the oven to 300 degrees. Heat 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat until just smoking. Brown the tied roast on all sides, about 10 to 12 minutes total; transfer to a plate.

Return the now-empty skillet to medium-high heat, add the remaining 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil and heat until just smoking. Add the cubed beef and brown on all sides, about 10 to 12 minutes. Sprinkle the flour over the meat and cook, stirring constantly, until the beef is evenly coated, about 1 minute. Add the wine and cook until the pan is dry, about 1 minute. Add the beef and chicken broths and bring to a boil, scraping up any browned bits. Cover, transfer the skillet to the oven and cook for 1 hour.

Uncover the skillet and place the browned roast on top of the cubed meat. Return the skillet to the oven and continue to cook, uncovered, until the cubed meat is fork tender and the roast registers about 150 degrees, about 1 hour longer. Transfer the roast to a carving board, tent loosely with aluminum foil and allow to rest for 20 to 30 minutes.

Using a potato masher, mash the cubed meat until it is shredded into rough 1/2-inch pieces. Transfer the shredded and gravy to a separate dish to cool completely and use for another meal.

While the roast is resting, make the horseradish sauce. Whisk together the heavy cream, sour cream, horseradish, Dijon mustard, garlic and pepper until it is smooth.

Remove the twine from the roast and slice thin. Serve the roast with the horseradish sauce.

There are a couple of things about this recipe. The cubed meat and gravy can be used for another recipe that I plan to make tomorrow that is included with this recipe in Cook’s Country. It is for roast beef po’boys and is simple to make. I did save 4 tablespoons of the drippings and also used that to make a side dish of Yorkshire pudding, the recipe I will post tomorrow. Even at rest at 150 degrees, the roast when sliced was still pink in the center and juicy and flavorful. While this is a little bit hotter temperature than usual for a medium-rare, with this cut of beef it does help to make the beef flavorful and not chewy. The twine does help to hold it together for slicing nice roast slices instead of it falling apart.It is a nice Sunday recipe to try with an inexpensive cut of beef to help save you some money and you do get extra meals out of it as well. I served this with a braised cauliflower, roasted potatoes and the Yorkshire pudding. I’ll be posting the recipes for the cauliflower and Yorkshire pudding tomorrow.

That’s all I have for today. Sadly, I forgot to take a picture of the roast after I took it out and sliced it, so I don’t have one of it to show. I apologize for that. Check back next time for the other recipes from this meal. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!