Big Bear’s Perfect Pot Roast
It falls apart every time. My Big Bear is the chef in our family (Thank goodness, because I hate to cook), and he knows how to get our attention when he starts cooking a pot roast for dinner. And fortunately, he makes enough to feed a small army so there are plenty of leftovers to satisfy our hearty appetites.
My mother taught me how to make a perfect pot roast. Then I taught Bob and handed over the reigns, and I’m glad I did. I can make a good roast beef dinner if I have to, but I have never tasted one as delicious as the one that my hubby prepares.
That said, lets get down to business …
1 – Large Bottom Round Roast (Prefer fresh to start as frozen takes an hour longer to cook)
2 – Large White or Yellow Onions
1 – Bag of Carrots (16oz or 32 oz bag depending on how many carrots you want)
1 Tbs – Celery Seed
5 – Bay Leaves
1 – Tbs of Fresh Ground Black Pepper
1 – Cup Dry Sherry (Not Sherry Cooking Wine…. Real Sherry Wine)
1 – Pkg of McCormick’s Savory Pot Roast Slow Cooker mix (in the gravy aisle)
1 – 32 oz Container of Beef Broth (brand does not matter)
- Fill a large cooking pot 2/3 full of cold water.
- Empty McCormick Savory Pot Roast pkg into pot of water. Stir with whisk to dissolve (Note: use 2 pkgs if cooking two roasts in a larger pot).
- Add 1 cup of Sherry and 32oz of Beef Broth to pot, Whisk to mix.
- Add Bay Leaves, Celery Seed, and Course Round Pepper to pot. Again whisk to mix.
- Open pkg containing roast, remove roast. Using a sharp paring knife, repeatedly stab all sides of the roast (1” – 1 1/2” spacing) (USE EXTREME CARE AND KEEP HANDS CLEAR). This helps tenderize the beef and allows seasoning to flavor the meat during cooking. Place roast slowly in pot. Use caution not to splash pot contents.
- Place pot on large burner and turn on “Hi Heat” until water begins to boil. Reduce heat to Medium or Medium Low for a slow boi
- Peel both onions. Cut off ends of each onion. Cut each onion in halves (at the middle or equator of the onion). Cut each half into 6 segments. Separate onion layers and add to pot.
- Peel Carrots and cut into thirds or quarter segments depending on the size of the carrots. Place Carrots in a bowl and set aside for now.
- Simmer to low boil, reduce heat on roast to Low/Medium for 3 hours from the start of the boiling. Set a timer. (I Recommend placing a cooking screen (not a lid) over the pot to prevent splashing of the boiling contents out of the pot during cooking.
- At 3 hours add Carrot segments to pot. Distribute carrots to submerge in broth. Add additional water to pot as necessary to keep roast covered with water.
- Cook for 1 additional hour or up to 90 minutes depending on the size of the roast.
- Use carving forks or tongs to remove roast; place on serving platter. Optional: Based on personal preference…. We trim off the layer of fat on the bottom of the roast after cooking and discard. Add 2-4 ladles of broth over sliced meat to keep it moist on the serving platter.
- Remove Carrots from broth with a sifting or slotted spoon and serve as a side vegetable.
Optional: You can add several peeled whole or halved potatoes to the pot along with the carrots based on the space available. I recommend increasing pot size to accommodate the potatoes.
Delicious!!!
Consider reserving a cup or two of the broth from the pot to make gravy or add a partial amount of broth to pkg gravy mixes (1 cup reserved broth, 2 cups water added to 3 pkgs of favorite gravy mix)
Enjoy! Meat should almost fall apart with a fork!
Total cooking time 4-4:30 min.
1 roast serves 6 – 8, depending on size… Cook two for leftovers and hot roast beef sandwiches tomorrow!
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