My Grandma’s Old Fashioned Pot Roast

Sundays were always family day when I was just a kid. Mom would wake everyone up for Church and Sunday School in the morning. Quite often she’d get dinner ready early in the morning and put it in the oven so food would be ready when we’d return home. More often than not, she would make my grandmother’s old fashioned pot roast.

She’d sear the meat, add some water to keep it tender, place the veggies ’round the roast, then cover it and let it simmer while we went to Church. When we’d get home, the whole house smelled fabulous!  That scent always reminds me of family Sundays at home.

A benefit to this recipe is you only use one pot – a dutch oven. Peel and cut your potatoes, carrots and onions. Over medium high heat, brown the vegetables in a couple tablespoons olive oil. Next, you sear your pot roast on both sides until browned.

Deglaze the pan with wine or water, and then return the roast to the pan. Add about 4 cups of beef broth, then add the vegetables and spices. Place the lid on the dutch oven and roast in a 275 degree oven for 3 to 4 hours.

The carrots and potatoes have a wonderful beefy flavor when you take them out of the pan. You can serve the meat au jus or create a gravy from the drippings. As a kid, I preferred au jus over gravy.

Mom would slice the roast and serve it up. I would pour the juice over both the meat and vegetables.  My brother ate his with ketchup.

I don’t think I’ve ever made my grandma’s old fashioned pot roast on a day other than Sunday. Do you have a memorable Sunday meal that brings back your youth?

Old Fashioned Pot Roast

3 lb. pot roast
1 large sweet onion, peeled and quartered
1 package carrots, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces
5-6 potatoes, peeled and quartered
1 cup dry red wine or water
32 oz beef stock
3 bay leaves
1 teaspoon thyme
1 teaspoon rosemary

Preheat oven to 275 degrees. Place dutch oven over medium high heat and add 2 tablespoons olive oil. Brown the onion until soft. Remove from pan and brown the carrots. Remove the carrots and lightly brown the potatoes. Remove the potatoes and add a bit more oil, if necessary.

On high heat, sear the pot roast on both sides for a minute or two. Remove the beef from pan. Slowly add 1 cup dry red wine to deglaze the pan. Add the meat back to the dutch oven and place the vegetables around the edges of the meat.

Pour 4 cups of beef broth to the pan so meat is halfway immersed. Place lid on dutch oven and cook in 275 degree oven for 3 to 4 hours. Remove from oven and let meat set for a few minutes before slicing and serving.