Inedible. 2.5 hours at 250 degrees. Internal temps between 160-170. (I was shooting for 160, but still…)
Tough and tasteless. The veggies were rock hard. (2.5 hours! Small pieces!!)
The worst part is that I have no idea what went wrong. Wrong amount of liquid? Wrong cut of meat? Bad temp?
The vegetables not cooking through is what really mystifies me.
Bless his heart, my brother said, “You win some, you lose some.” And kindly decided it must be the cut of meat.
I’m going to throw it all in a pot tomorrow with some stock and BBQ sauce and see what we get. As my brother said, “It’s not like it could get worse.”
ETA: Talked w/ones more knowledgeable – apparently I didn’t cook it long enough! Next time, next time… Really though, you’d think Pot Roast would be a no-brainer.
Pot roasts used to mystify me, until I ran across a recipe that came in a booklet with my cast iron 5-quart dutch oven, which is now the ONLY thing I’ll cook a pot roast in. And it can be a fairly cheap cut of meat.
Trim it of excess fat, rub it with whatever dry rub or seasoning mixture you’re inclined towards, slap it in the Dutch oven, and pour about a cup of water around it, not over it. Put it in your oven that’s been preheated to 325 degrees and cook it for 3 hours, turning it every half hour. Add more water if necessary (again pouring around and not over the roast). Add your veggies about 30 minutes before it’s done, or you’ll have the exact opposite problem and they’ll be overcooked..
I’d only cook it to about 155 degrees internal temp, because you’re going to want to let it sit for a few minutes before you carve it, and it’ll keep cooking once you take it out of the oven.
Yummy stuff.
From talking with others, it would seem that I am not alone in my pot roast problems. :)
I’ll be giving it another whirl the next time roasts are on sale – hopefully it will go better!! I won’t give up on this one, because I love pot roast too much.