Need to stop the tough pot roasts!

[deanna]

Help! Anytime I make a pot roast in the slow cooker, it comes out tough. Is it the cut of meat or am I just cooking it too long? I've tried cutting the time back some but it didn't seem to matter. I am looking for that melt in your mouth kind of recipe. I actually accomplished it once way back, but can't seem to do it again.

Thanks for any advice!
Deanna

 

[jennyema]

Tell us how you cook it!

What cut of beef do you use? How much liquid and what kind do you use? For how long and at what temp are you cooking it?

 

[Gretchen]

it needs to be cooked at a low temp for a long time. Allowing it to boil at any point will toughen the meat. The liquid needs to cover the meat or if it is a large roast cut, it should come half way up the sides. The most flavorful cut is a chuck roast and it will be tender because of the marbling of fat. Rump and round are also good for pot roast but are leaner and will not be quite as tender/falling apart, but still good for pot roast.
For the slow cooker you might try a technique used in braising. Crumple a piece of parchment paper or foil and put it on the surface of the meat. This allows the liquid to concentrate more.

 

[Michelemarie]

Deanna - I have found that slow cookers recommend way too long of cooking times - I cook my pot roast for 4-5 hours on low and find them to be very tender. I usually throw in a can of cream of mushroom soup, dried onion soup mix and 1/2 soup can of sherry - it is very good served over egg noodles!

 

[deanna]

I've tried lots of different cuts of meat, so I can't say which I normally use, but I think I have been trying leaner cuts which may be part of the problem. Also, from your replies I think I am not using enough liquid. It is never covering half way up the roast. I try to cook veggies with it and I put the roast on top.

Thanks - I have some ideas now!

 

[TexanFrench]

Hi Deanna,

I always cook my pot roast with some acidic element--either vinegar or wine--to help break down the fibers. I use 1/2 wine or vinegar and 1/2 water, plus herbs. The meat should be covered or nearly covered with the liquid when you start cooking. Cook about 1 hour per pound of meat, or until fork-tender. Veggies (except onions and carrots and potatoes) should be added in the last 30 minutes or so of cooking. Put veggies beside or on top of the meat, not under it. And do not salt the meat before cooking--salt draws out the juices and toughens the meat. Cook on a low heat.

If you let the liquids dry up, and keep cooking the meat, you will end up with a piece of leather!

 

[TATTRAT]

low and slow...the longer the better as it will break down the connective tissues.

 

[TexanFrench]

Yes, Tattrat, you're right. In re-reading this, I see Deanna is using a slow cooker, so she needs to allow time for the machine to reach the cooking temperature, and then time her cooking from that point. It takes as long as it takes...

 

[Lizannd]

For cooking in a slow cooker you are doing everything

right. Vegetables on the bottom at the start of cooking, they actually take longer in the slow cooker than stove top or oven. Don't cover your meat with liquid. There is less evaporation with a slow cooker so you actually need less liquid. There should be no chance of boiling with a slow cooker unless there is something wrong with it so you can't be doing that. The only thing left is cut of meat and cooking time. You don't want a lean cut because it will come out dry and tough. I usually find that the cooking times are generally too long with slow cooker recipes. There is also a difference in cooking temp between the old original Crock Pots and todays slow cookers. The newer ones cook at a higher temp for food safety reasons so if you are using an old Crock Pot recipe cut down on the cooking time. Cut it by about 1/3 then check for tenderness. I generally check for doneness about 2 hours before the end of the recommended cooking time for any recipe I'm making. They almost always are done.

 

[kawarthagal]

I have tried several cuts,i usually pick a roast which has some fat with it,and not too much marbling.The cheaper cuts will do
Last weekend i got a really nice outside round roast on sale which was about 4lbs
Roast beef
3-5 pounds of beef
1 cup water
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 cup celery, chopped
1 cup onion, chopped
Potatoes sliced or halfed
I usually season very lightly or with small amount of pepper
The key is to put all the vegetables at the bottom,then the meat on top,the liquid amount is is key.There is only two of us here,this lasted several meals,i had some sandwichs too.The meat was absolutely delicious when done,and don't lift the lid
lynda

 

[Nicholas Mosher]

Just made this last night and had it today for lunch...

Yankee Pot Roast

Canola Oil - As Needed
3-4lb Chuck Roast or Eye of Round Roast (Latter is leaner)
2 Large Onions - Finely Diced
6oz Tomato Paste
2-T Flour
1-C Red Wine (Your Favorite)
3-C Beef/Veal Stock
3-C Beef/Veal Demi-Glace
6-8 Large Carrots - Cut into 1" Chunks
1 Bay Leaf
2 Cloves Garlic - Lightly Crushed
1 Sprig Thyme
1 Sprig Parsley
Freshly Ground Black Pepper & Kosher Salt

Pre-heat the oven to 325ºF. Pat down the roast with paper towels to remove as much moisture as possible. Heat an 8qt pot over medium-high heat with a couple tablespoons of oil. When you see a few whisps of smoke, sear the roast on all sides (including the ends), and then set it aside in a bowl.

Reuce the temperature to medium, and add a bit more oil and the onions. Cook until they are nicely caramelized, and then add the tomato paste. Stir it until it smells sweet and has turned a golden-orange. Add the flour with a bit more oil and cook the roux until the raw flour scent has passed. Add the red wine, and deglaze the pan. Stire in the stock & demi-glace and bring the sauce to a simmer. Add the roast (along with any juices) back to the pot, and flip it a couple times to coat the exterior with sauce. Add the carrots around the roast, being careful to submerge all of them. Bring the sauce back to a simmer, then place a tight fitting lid on it and place in the oven. Braise for 2hrs, removing the pot halfway to flip the roast.

Tie the remaining ingredients in some cheesecloth to make a sachet. after the two hours has passed, remove the pot and flip teh roast again. This time *** the sachet, pushing it down into the sauce. Return the pot to the oven for one more hour.

Remove the pot from the oven. Discard the sachet, and remove the roast an carrots to a separate bowl. Place the pot over medium-high heat and reduce the sauce (if needed) to a gravy consistency. Add S&P to taste.

Slice the roast, and return the slice to the pot for at least 15min. Then serve the slices of roast, carrots, and gravy over buttery mashed potatoes. Steamed green beans go well with it.

Braising actually dries out meat, but you don't notice it because the connective tissues between the protein fibers have melted out (making it tender), and the rich sauce/gravy gives it a moist mouthfeel. The oven temperture of 325ºF I listed above is what works for my oven with my 8qt pot. What you want to do is maintain a bare simmer in the pot. If you pull it from the oven to flip the roast after 1hr and it's at a full simmer, cut the temp 25º. If it's static, increase the temp 10-20ºF. 3hrs is usually enough time for me, but different shape and size roast may take anywhere from 2-4hrs. Since the braising process technically overcooks the meat squeezing moisture out into the sauce, you may find the center of a large roast to be tender, but with a slightly dry mouth feel. I return the slices to the sauce for 15-30min and allow the sauce to do it's magic. Be careful though, as the meat is very tender.

Being a one-pot kinda guy, I often just nix the mashed potatoes, and serve it with a nice hunk of baguette. You could also cut back on the number of carrots, and add some similar sized pieces of a waxy potato during the last hour of cooking when you add the sachet.

Serve whatever wine with the dish that you deglazed the pan with.

 

[Nicholas Mosher]

Oh by the way, like almost all braises this tastes even better the next day. In fact, I didn't eat any of it last night. I returned all the slices and carrots to the pot, chilled the pot in my sink with cold water, and refrigerated it over night. For the next few days I'll dig out a few slices with some carrots and "hunks" of gravy into a small 1qt sauce pot and warm 'em up over medium heat. At the same time all steam a few green beans to go with it.

 

[deanna]

Thanks kawarthgal! I have a chuck roast I will be trying soon! Wish me luck!

 

[Michelemarie]

MMmmmm, Deanna, let me know when you are cooking! heehee!

 

[kimashswan]

Hi All,

Just another thing that I have learnt over the years, is make an inscision into the roast and insert a peeled carrot into the meat, before roasting it, and it for some reason keeps the meat tender.

HTH

 

[Uncle Bob]

Deanna...

There is a lot of great information/recipe ideas here...take all of it in and store in your memory bank Then go back to Michelemaria's post #4...there in lies the answer to the roast you are looking for....It seems that the new popular brands/models of slow cookers cook at a higher temp(they will even boil)....thus causing over-cooking if cooked for a long time...I have a couple of older ones.. 10 years or more that can be left on all night/day and produce a very good product.

 

[lyndalou]

Chuck roastor a brisket is sooo good in the crock pot.

 

[deanna]

Well I took much of the advice here and it seems that when I used a chuck roast and cooked it less time, but still on low (I have a newer crock) it came out pretty well. Thanks to all!