German Style Pot Roast

The nights have been getting chilly in San Diego, so I was in the mood for some comfort food. This is an adaptation of a Whole Foods recipe, and is delicious. It's pretty low-calorie, and simple to make, just kind of time consuming. The ingredients are:

2 tsp. Dried Dill Weed
2 tsp. Sea Salt
1 tsp. Minced Dried Onion
1/2 tsp. Allspice
1/2 tsp. Ground pepper
1 3-4 lb. Boneless Beef Chuck Roast
2 Tbs. EVOO
2 Large Onions, sliced (I like sweet yellow onions)
2 Cups Beef Stock
1 Cup Apple Juice
1/2 tsp. Cinnamon
6 Carrots, peeled and sliced in 1" pieces
1/2 of One Red Cabbage, cored and thinly sliced
3 Large Russet Potatoes, cut into 1" pieces
2 Apples, peeled, cored, and cut into 8 slices each

Pictured below are the wet ingredients and the spices...

And the produce...

 Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. In a rammekin or small bowl, combine the dill, salt, onion, allspice, and pepper. Dry the roast with  paper towels, then smear the dry rub on all sides of the meat.

In a large roasting pan or Dutch Oven, heat the EVOO over medium-high heat, then brown the roast on all sides. This helps to seal in moisture doing the slow, dry roasting process in the oven. After browning, remove the roast from the pan and set aside. (Pictured Below)

Now, add the onions to the roasting pan with 1/4 cup water. Cook, stirring occasionally until the onions are golden and tender, which will be about 8-10 minutes.  Then stir in the beef stock, apple juice, and cinnamon, and bring to a boil.

Return the roast to the pan, cover, and roast one hour.  Stir in cabbage, carrots, and potatoes, and re-cover,  cooking for another 1 hour 45 minutes-2 hours, depending on the size of the roast. Vegetables should be tender.  During the last 15 minutes of cooking, uncover and add apples.

 Note: as always, cooking times may vary. If you find your meat is done but your veggies are not, remove the meat, cover in foil, and raise oven temp to 400 degrees to finish roasting.

Transfer to a large platter and dribble the pan juices over the meat and vegetables. 

For my wine-friendly friends, this is great with a Malbec or Syrah; or a Pinot Noir if you like a lighter red.

The added bonus is that the meat makes AMAZING roast beef sandwiches for leftovers...Crusty rolls, a touch of horseradish mayo, tomato, and crispy romaine lettuce. YUM!