Braised Pot Roast with Vegetables

Photo from Melissa's
Southern Style Kitchen

My dad loved pot roast. In fact, it was his birthday dinner every single year. The funny part? He'd request it... and then he'd make it himself. Nobody complained because the man made one heck of a pot roast.

I've spent years trying to recreate it. I've made some really good roasts along the way, but they were never Dad's pot roast. There was always something missing.

Until tonight.

I found this recipe and made a couple of little tweaks—plus I accidentally left out two ingredients. Sometimes my cooking adventures are less "following a recipe" and more "let's see what happens."

My intentional change was adding baby potatoes. I know... cue the dramatic gasps. But I had a bag that needed to be used, and honestly, who makes pot roast without potatoes? They belong in the pot. End of discussion.

The unintentional change? I completely forgot to add the bay leaf and thyme. They were sitting on the counter the whole time, patiently waiting for their moment that never came. Oops.

You know what? I don't think it mattered one bit.

This roast was everything I want pot roast to be—fork tender, rich, comforting, and packed with flavor. It instantly brought back memories of Dad's birthday dinners. Is it exactly his recipe? Probably not. But it's the closest I've ever come, and that's a pretty big deal.

So, without any hesitation, this recipe is getting the coveted "Favorite" label. It'll be tucked safely into my "make again and again" file because this one is absolutely staying in the rotation.

Thanks, Dad, for setting the pot roast bar so incredibly high. It only took me years, but I think I finally found one that would have made you smile.

Braised Pot Roast with Vegetables

Recipe from Melissa's Southern Style Kitchen

Serves 10

• 4 lb beef chuck roast
• 3 tablespoon seasoning i.e. Meat Magic or Montreal steak seasoning
• 1 tablespoon Olive oil
• 2 tablespoon butter
• 1 lb carrots peeled and diced
• 3 ribs celery sliced
• 1 large Vidalia or sweet onion cut into thin wedges
• 3 garlic cloves minced
• 1 teaspoon garlic salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 3 sprigs fresh thyme
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 2 cup low sodium beef broth
• 1 tablespoon Kitchen Bouquet Browning Sauce
• 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 1/4 water or milk

Preheat the oven to 300°F. Rinse and pat dry the chuck roast with paper towels. Season liberally on all sides with Meat magic seasoning or similar.

In a 6 quart Dutch oven or oven safe heavy pot heat a few drizzles of olive oil with 2 Tbsp butter. Brown the roast for 2-3 minutes on every side. Remove to a platter.

Place the sliced carrots, celery and onion into the pan Season with 1 tsp garlic salt and 1 tsp black pepper. Cook over medium-high heat until they begin to soften and brown. Add the minced garlic, thyme and bay leaf.

Pour the beef broth over the vegetables and scrape the bottom of the pot to release any brown bits. Rest the roast on top and sprinkle with the Worcestershire sauce.

Cover the pot and place into the oven. Braise in the oven for 3 hours or until fork tender.

To thicken the braising liquid remove the roast and vegetables from the Dutch oven with a slotted spoon. Cover and keep warm.

Skim any visible fat from the top of the liquid then bring to a boil. Make a flour slurry by dissolving the flour in cold water or milk depending on your preference.

Add the Kitchen Bouquet browning sauce to the liquid and whisk in the flour slurry. Cook for 5 minutes until thickened. Drizzle over the roast just before serving.