Pot Roast with wine and honey

I just have to start this post by bragging that hubby said "This is the best pot roast I have EVER had!" Ok, now that's out of the way...... :)

Pot Roast

The reason I finally made my first pot roast was that I finally got my French oven in! I had been patiently waiting for the one I wanted to come back in stock and last week it arrived! Happy day!

You could also use a crock pot but mine is very tiny and would not have been big enough.

So let's get started!

Pot Roast

3 1/2 lbs boneless chuck roast, excess fat removed

Salt and pepper

2 T olive oil

3 small yellow onions, peeled and quartered into wedges

6 small carrots, cleaned and chopped (I did not peel mine)

3 celery stocks and leaves, cleaned and chopped

3 cloves garlic, chopped

1 tsp honey

1/2 C dry red wine*

1 32oz box beef stock (probably won't use whole thing)

3 sprigs fresh thyme

1 sprig fresh rosemary

2 bay leaves

Place the rack in the lowest position of the oven and preheat to 300 degrees. Dry the roast really well with paper towels and generously salt and pepper it. Pour oil in French oven and heat to medium-high heat. Once the pot is hot but not smoking, add the roast and sear on all sides, about 1 minute on each side. Transfer to a large plate and set it aside. Reduce the heat slightly and add in the vegetables, stirring about 5 minutes or until brown. Add in the garlic and honey and stir. Add in wine and let reduce while scraping all the bits off the bottom of the pot with a wooden or non-metal spoon. Once the wine is reduced, add the roast back in the pot and pour in beef stock. Only add enough stock to go half way up the sides of the roast. Add in the thyme, rosemary and bay leaves. Bring the liquid to a simmer, put the lid on and place pot in the oven. 

Cook for 3 1/2 - 4 hours, turning roast over every 30 minutes. (Mine cooked for 3:45). Transfer roast to a cutting or carving board and tent with foil to keep warm.

Allow the liquid in the pot to settle about 5 minutes, then use a spoon to skim the excess fat off the top of the surface. Take out thyme sprigs. Bring the liquid to a boil until the juices reduce a little more, to about 1-2 cups. Cut (or pull apart) meat, transfer to plate and pour vegetables and juices over the top. YUM!

While the meat melted in our mouths, the vegetables were actually my favorite part of the meal. The celery leaves and the wine gave the dish so much flavor and I could not have been happier with the way it turned out!

You may have noticed that my potatoes were browned on the outsides and that's because I did not cook them with the roast. I think potatoes get a little grimy when cooked this way, and I like them with a little bite, but that's my opinion. I sautéed them with a little olive oil, salt, pepper and chopped rosemary. They were a great side.

*The red wine is optional but Chris said he thinks that is what really enhanced the flavor of the meat. Again, this was my first time cooking a roast, but I read somewhere that you can substitute the wine for beef broth, not stock. I honestly did not know the difference between the two, so I decided to look it up. For those of you who don't know, stock is made of the bones of the animal, water and vegetables. Broth is made similarly but with the meat of the animal, water and vegetables. Now you know. :)