From Washington Post. I've got lots of pot roast recipes but I liked how this one sounded. One note - the recipe calls for cooking in the oven at 300F. I've found that is too high, it evaporates too much of the liquid hence not much for gravy. I'm cooking it at 225F. It's also important not to over-cook, pot roast gets a weird texture when it's over-cooked, sort of rubbery.
Ingredients
1 ounce dried porcini mushrooms (may substitute other varieties, such as shiitake and morel)
3 cups hot water
One (2- to 3-pound) well-marbled boneless chuck roast, preferably tied
Kosher salt
Finely ground black pepper
2 tablespoons vegetable oil or another neutral oil
2 medium yellow onions (about 14 ounces total), thinly sliced
4 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons dried thyme or 1 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme leaves
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1/2 cup dry red wine, such as pinot noir
Instructions
1. Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 225 degrees. Meanwhile, soak the porcini in the hot water for 30 minutes. (This is a good time to prep the rest of the ingredients.)
2. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the mushrooms to a fine-mesh sieve (reserve the soaking water). Rinse the mushrooms briefly under cold, running water (they can be gritty), pat dry with a paper towel or clean dish towel and coarsely chop. Strain the mushroom soaking liquid through a mesh strainer lined with cheesecloth or paper towels into a bowl.
3. Pat the meat dry with paper towels and generously season all over with the salt and pepper. In a large Dutch oven or other large ovenproof pot with a lid over medium-high heat, heat the oil until shimmering. Add the meat and brown on all sides, 15 to 20 minutes total; transfer to a platter.
4. Add the onions, garlic, thyme and the mushrooms, sprinkle with some salt and pepper, and cook, stirring frequently, until the onions start to soften and become translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the tomato paste and cook, stirring frequently, for 1 minute more. Add the red wine and deglaze the pan, scraping up any bits stuck to the bottom. Add the seared meat, with any accumulated juices, along with enough of the mushroom soaking liquid to come about halfway up the meat (the amount of liquid you’ll need will vary with the size of the roast as well as the cooking vessel), bring to a simmer, cover and transfer to the oven.
5. Cook, flipping the roast and checking on tenderness every 45 minutes, until fork- (or spoon-) tender, 3 hours to 3 hours 30 minutes. Transfer the meat to a large, rimmed platter, discard the string (if present), and skim the fat from the braising liquid. (If serving the following day, you can cool and refrigerate the pot roast to more easily scrape the fat off the top once it’s chilled.)
6. Taste the braising liquid and season with additional salt and/or pepper, if desired, then pour it over the pot roast and serve warm.