Pot Roast with Bacon, Garlic and Rosemary

So meaty.

I am definitely a meat and potatoes kinda girl, especially when the temperature drops. I'm also one for quick and easy preparation as well as budget-friendly cooking since now I have my hands full with this little guy.

Hank likes meat, too.

Last night I set out to make something hearty, soul-satisfying, and most of all easy, so I came up with this little one-pot wonder-- Rustic-Style Beef Pot Roast with Bacon, Garlic and Rosemary.

Mise en place

Begin by searing your meat and cooking bacon. Discard half the drippings.

Next, saute onions and garlic.

Deglaze aromatics with a nice dry red wine, scraping up the bits off the bottom of the pan.

Add stock, water, tomatoes and rosemary.

Return meat and bacon to pot. Cook for about 2 hours.

Reduce sauce, add a slurry, slice and plate it up!

Rustic-Style Beef Pot Roast with Bacon, Garlic and Rosemary
Serves 4-6

This saucy pot roast is simply bursting with rich flavors. It gets its "rustic" stylings from rough chopping the aromatics (onions and garlic) and incorporating whole sprigs of rosemary that are tossed right into the sauce making this an easy to prepare weeknight dinner.

Ingredients:

2 pounds beef bottom round roast, trimmed of excessive fat
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 slices of bacon, diced
2 medium onions, sliced
5 cloves of garlic, smashed
1 cup good quality dry red wine
2 cups low-sodium chicken stock
1 cup water
1 (14-ounce) can of Italian cherry tomatoes (such as Rienzi brand)
2 sprigs rosemary
Salt and Pepper, to taste
1 tablespoon cornstarch
2 tablespoons cold water

Preheat a large dutch oven or cast iron pan to medium-high. Sprinkle beef with salt and pepper on all sides (going easy on the salt due to the use of canned chicken stock). Add olive oil to pan and sear beef well on all sides. Remove to a plate.

Add bacon to pan and saute until crispy. Then remove to a plate. Pour off half the pan drippings and discard. Add onions and saute 5 minutes. Add garlic and saute another 5 minutes. Deglaze pan with red wine, being sure to scrape up all the goody bits off the bottom. Next, add chicken stock, water, tomatoes and rosemary.  Finally, add bacon and beef back to pan. Add a little bit more water if necessary, so you can cover beef entirely. 

Bring sauce and meat back up to a boil for two minutes uncovered. Then lower heat, cover and simmer for about two hours or until nice and tender. Periodically, remove surface grease and fat with a spoon and discard.

Remove meat to a cutting board and let rest. Crank up the heat on your sauce and simmer for about 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and remove rosemary sprigs.

Mix together cornstarch and cold water to make a "slurry". Add slurry to simmering sauce and bring up to a gentle boil. Simmer for about another 8-10 minutes or until thickened.

Slice beef and plate. Pour sauce over beef and garnish with a rosemary sprig. Save any additional sauce for bread dipping or as a gravy for potatoes, polenta, rice etc....

Note: this recipe is really great served with mashed potatoes or a simple risotto!

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