Braised Italian Style Pot Roast Recipes

ITALIAN POT ROAST

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• In a large Dutch oven, heat olive oil over medium high heat.
• Pat roast dry and sprinkle on salt and pepper. Once the oil is shimmering hot, sear the meat on both ends and all the way around the outside. Total time about 15 minutes to sear the whole roast.
• Remove the roast to a plate and add the carrots, celery and onions and cook for five minutes, stirring often.
• Add the tomato paste and garlic and cook for two more minutes.
• Add wine to deglaze. Cook until the wine evaporates.
• Add the bay leaves, sundried tomatoes, crushed tomatoes, broth, thyme, oregano and basil and stir. Add the beef back in along with any liquid on the plate, cover and place in the oven for three hours, turning the beef over once about 1 ½ hours into the roasting time.
• After the full three hours, remove the meat, let it rest under a sheet of loose foil for 10 minutes.
• Remove and discard bay leaves and thyme sprigs then slice the beef and serve with the sauce.
• The string should be left on while slicing to hold the roast together. OK to cut off after sliced and plated.

CHICAGO ITALIAN BEEF (POT ROAST STYLE)

Steps:

• For the pot roast: Position a rack in the middle position and preheat the oven to 300 degrees F.
• Liberally sprinkle the entire roast with salt and pepper. Heat the vegetable oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Brown the roast on all sides until golden and caramelized; reduce the heat if the fat begins to smoke. Transfer the roast to a plate and reduce the heat to medium. Add in the onions and saute, stirring occasionally, until just beginning to brown, 8 to 10 minutes. Add the Italian seasoning and crushed red pepper and saute until fragrant, another minute. Add the garlic and saute until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Deglaze with the red wine and cook until reduced by half. Add in the stock and thyme and bring to a simmer. Adjust the seasoning of the jus. Place the roast back into the pot with any accumulated juices and place in the oven. Cook the roast, turning every 30 minutes, until very tender, 3 3 1/2 to 4 hours. Increase the oven heat to 350 degrees F.
• Transfer the roast to a cutting board and tent with foil. Strain the jus through a fine mesh strainer into a bowl and return back to the pot. Bring to a simmer and adjust the seasoning if necessary. Once cooled a bit, pull the meat into smaller chunks, return to the reduced jus and reserve until ready to build the sandwiches.
• For the sweet peppers: Toss the pepper strips with the olive oil, granulated garlic and some salt and pepper on a baking sheet. Bake, stirring halfway through, until lighter in color and soft, about 20 minutes.
• For the sandwich build: Place some beef on a roll, then some sweet peppers and then some Homemade Hot Giardiniera. Pour a small dish of reduced jus. Take the whole sandwich and quickly dunk in hot jus. Using two hands, go the hell to town.
• Day One: Combine 2 cups water and the salt in a glass or non- reactive bowl. Mix until the salt is dissolved. Add the carrots, cauliflower, serranos, garlic, celery and bell peppers to the salt water and stir to combine. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
• Day Two: Drain and rinse the vegetables. In a clean bowl, mix together the canola oil with the oregano and pepper. Add the vegetables and mix to combine. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Giardiniera will only get better with time. After 2 days at the most in the bowl, you can place in air-tight Mason jars and keep in the fridge for at least 2 to 3 weeks. Makes 3 to 4 cups.
• From Food Network Kitchens; after further testing and to ensure the best results this recipe has been altered from what was in the actual episode.

BRAISED ITALIAN-STYLE POT ROAST

Steps:

• To prepare the sacchétto di spezie:
• Combine all the ingredients in the center of a piece of cheesecloth that is large enough to hold the herb sprigs, and tie in a bundle with butcher's string.
• To prepare the pot roast:
• 1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
• 2. Season the beef with salt and pepper, then lightly dust with flour. Melt the butter in a large (6-quart) flameproof casserole set over medium-high heat. When it is foaming, add the beef and brown it on all sides, 5 minutes. Add the celery, onions, carrot, and sacchétto di spezie. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables soften slightly, about 2 minutes. Raise the heat to high and add the bottle of wine. Cook until the wine begins to boil, about 2 more minutes, skimming off any fat that rises to the surface.
• 3. Strain the porcini mushrooms through a fine-mesh sieve, reserving the liquid. Rinse the mushrooms under cold running water to remove any grit, and add them to the casserole along with the strained mushroom liquid, tomato paste, and tomatoes. The liquid should just cover the meat. If it does not, add chicken broth or water. Cover the casserole and bake it in the oven until the meat is cooked through and tender, about 2 hours. Remove the meat from the casserole to a cutting board, cover with aluminum foil, and set aside.
• 4. Strain the broth through a fine-mesh sieve and discard the vegetables and herb bag. Pour the broth back into the casserole and set it over high heat. Bring to a boil and add the arrowroot and the 1/4 cup wine. Cook to reduce and thicken the liquid, about 5 minutes. Carve the meat into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Serve immediately, spooning some of the broth over each portion.

BRAISED POT ROAST WITH VEGETABLES

Steps:

• Season all sides of the beef with a fair amount of salt and pepper. In a large Dutch oven or other heavy pot that has a tight cover; heat 2 tablespoons of the oil over moderately high heat. Brown the meat on all sides, taking the time to get a nice crust on the outside. Pour in the tomatoes and the water. Scatter the vegetables and herbs around the pot roast, season with salt and pepper; and drizzle with the remaining tablespoon of oil. Cover the pot and reduce the heat to low. Braise for about 3 hours, basting every 30 minutes with the pan juices, until the beef is fork tender.
• Slice the pot roast and arrange on platter surrounded by the vegetables. Serve with the pot juices.

BRAISED SUNDAY POT ROAST

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a casserole large enough to hold the meat, heat the butter. When foaming subsides add the onions and carrots and saute for about 10 minutes or until they take on some color. With a slotted spoon remove them and reserve for later.
• Add the oil to the casserole and heat over high heat. Add the beef and brown the meat on all sides; this should take 15 minutes to get a deep golden color. Return the vegetables to the casserole, stuffing them underneath the meat. Add the garlic, tomatoes, bouquet garni. Heat the casserole until you hear it sizzle, drape the meat loosely with aluminum foil, cover the casserole tightly and place it in the lower third of the oven.
• Cook for 1 hour, turn the meat over, lower the heat to 325 and continue to cook until the beef is tender, another 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Remove the meat to a platter. Strain cooking juices into a saucepan, pressing down hard on the vegetables to extract their liquid. Let liquid settle for a minute, then skim off surface fat. Heat the liquid and reduce slightly; adjust seasoning. Slice the roast and spoon the gravy over the top. Serve with braised carrots and boiled parslied potatoes (make extra for cold potato salad and beef salad next day).

ITALIAN BRAISED BEEF WITH ROOT VEGETABLES

Steps:

• For Yia Yia's Sunday sauce: Heat the oil in a 4-quart saucepan or large Dutch oven over medium heat. Brown the beef bones. Add the onions and cook until translucent, 2 minutes. Add the salt and garlic and cook until everything is soft but not browned, about 3 minutes. Squeeze the tomatoes one by one into the pan, pulverizing them by hand, and pour in their juice, too. Add the wine, oregano, red pepper flakes, if using, black pepper and bay leaf. Bring the sauce to a simmer, and then reduce the heat to its lowest possible setting, and continue to cook for 8 hours. The sauce should reduce by about one-third. Taste for seasoning and add more salt if necessary. Remove the bones and bay leaf. Set aside 2 cups. If not using the remaining sauce right away, let it cool, then cover and refrigerate for up to 1 week or freeze for up to 2 months. Yield: 8 cups.
• For the braised beef with root vegetables: Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Sprinkle the meat liberally with salt and pepper as much as 1 day in advance. (Cover and refrigerate it if doing so and take the meat out of the fridge 30 minutes before cooking.) Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven over high heat. When the oil is on the verge of smoking, sear the meat for about 2 minutes per side. Move the meat to the side (or remove it from the pot altogether if necessary), and add the carrots, celery root and onions. Brown the vegetables for about 3 minutes, and then add the garlic and cook for 1 to 2 minutes longer. Pour in the wine and deglaze the pot, scraping up the browned bits on the bottom. Add Yia Yia's Sunday Sauce, 1 cup water and the bay leaves (and the pot roast if you removed it). Bring the liquid to a simmer and taste for seasoning. Add more salt if necessary. Cover the pot and place it in the oven for 3 hours, basting the meat occasionally during cooking time. When almost ready to serve, make the rigatoni, if using. Boil in salted water according to package directions until al dente. Discard the bay leaves before serving. Transfer the meat to a cutting board and slice into bite-size pieces, or shred with 2 forks. Return the meat to the pot of sauce along with the drained rigatoni. Toss to coat, and serve.

ITALIAN-STYLE POT ROAST

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350ºF.
• Heat oil in ovenproof Dutch oven or large deep skillet on medium-high heat. Add meat; cook 4 min. on each side or until browned on both sides. Remove meat from pan, reserving drippings in pan. Add onions and garlic to reserved drippings; cook and stir 5 min. or until onions are crisp-tender. Remove from pan.
• Return meat to Dutch oven; top with onion mixture and 2 Tbsp. parsley. Add beans, tomatoes, carrots and olives to pan. Mix broth and steak sauce; pour over meat. Cover.
• Bake 2-1/2 hours or until meat is done (160ºF). Sprinkle with cheese and remaining parsley. Serve with polenta.

ITALIAN POT ROAST (STRACOTTO)

Steps:

• Cut the garlic into thin slivers. Pierce the meat in many places with the point of a knife and insert the garlic slivers into the holes.
• Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a heavy 3- to 4-quart heatproof casserole. Add the meat and brown it well over medium heat. Remove it from the casserole. Add the remaining oil and the onions, carrots and celery. Saute them until moderately brown.
• Stir in the wine and cook for a few minutes, scraping the casserole. Add the tomatoes, tomato paste and basil. Season the mixture with salt and pepper and return the meat to the casserole.
• Cover tightly and cook over very low heat for at least three hours, until the meat is very tender. Turn the meat a few times during cooking.
• Remove the meat from the casserole. To serve immediately, skim the fat from the surface of the sauce, then puree the sauce in a food processor and reheat. Otherwise, refrigerate the meat and sauce overnight. Remove any congealed fat from the sauce and puree the sauce in a food processor. Reheat the meat in the sauce before serving.

BRAISED FISH, POT-ROAST-STYLE

Steps:

• Put the olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. When it is hot, sprinkle the fish with salt and pepper, and add it to the pot. Cook, undisturbed, until it is well browned, 5 or 6 minutes. (If you're using halibut fillet, and it has skin, brown the nonskin side.) Transfer it to a plate, browned side up.
• Add the onion, thyme, saffron, carrots, fennel and potatoes; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally until the onion begins to soften, about 5 minutes. Add the tomato paste and smoked paprika, and cook, stirring, until the tomato paste darkens a bit, 2 or 3 minutes. Add the wine, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot, and let it bubble away until it almost disappears.
• Add the stock, bring to a boil and let it bubble vigorously until the liquid reduces by about a third, about 10 minutes. Adjust the heat so the mixture simmers; when the vegetables are nearly tender - about 10 minutes later - nestle the fish, browned side up, among the vegetables; keep the browned crust above the liquid. Cook, undisturbed, until the fish and vegetables are tender, 10 to 15 minutes.
• Transfer the fish to a cutting board, and divide the vegetables among shallow bowls. Slice the fish and put it on top of the vegetables. Taste the cooking liquid, and adjust the seasoning; ladle it over all, garnish with the parsley and serve.