I’m back with another braised beef dish! I’ll pretend like I meant to post recipes for beef short ribs and beef pot roast within a couple of weeks of each other, a braised beef series of sorts… Except that would be untrue. I’m really just busy, and kind of chilly with the change in temps, and naturally a girl’s mind turns toward the warm comfort of braising. Or this girl’s does—in between these two beef dishes, I braised and slowly devoured a pork shoulder. With trips to the farmers’ market for fresh vegetables (hurry!), there’s just no better way to pull together fast, whole food meals.
And so! Although you’ve likely made pot roast a million times, the fun twist on this version is adding some fresh horseradish for a kick and cooking kale in the beefy pan juices, which is a very good way to cook kale. I added carrots to the pan too, because carrots and pot roast are married in my mind, sort of like the Barbie and Ken of comfort food. That said, sweet potatoes or parsnips would be great with the beef, and other greens could stand in for kale (adjust cooking time accordingly). I didn’t picture it, mostly because I forgot to buy them, but a big pan of sautéed mushrooms scattered over the top of this just before serving would rock.
I tucked little slivers of garlic into the roast before cooking it, the way my mom does. But if you’re in a rush to get things bubbling, skip that step and just toss extra garlic into the pan with the onions.
Pot Roast with Kale and Horseradish
Serves 6
1 4-5 lb. beef chuck roast
2 cloves garlic, one cut into 1/4-inch slivers, one chopped
Kosher salt
1 Tbsp. beef fat or vegetable oil (I use avocado oil)
1 Medium onion, sliced into 1/2-inch slices
1 Bay leaf
4 Sprigs fresh thyme or 1/2 tsp. dried thyme
1 c. beef broth (or water)
2 c. torn kale leaves (center rib removed), packed
4 Medium carrots, peeled, trimmed, cut into 2-inch pieces
1 Tbsp. freshly grated horseradish (or more to taste)
Preheat oven to 250 degrees F. With a small, sharp knife, cut several evenly-spaced holes in roast. Push garlic slivers into holes. Sprinkle roast on all sides with salt.
Set a Duch oven over medium-high heat and add oil. When oil is hot, brown roast thoroughly on all sides. Set browned roast on a plate and add onions to the pan. Sauté for 1 minute, then add chopped garlic, bay leaves, and thyme. Nestle roast back into the pan, atop the onions, and add broth to the pan. Bring to a simmer, cover, and transfer pan to the oven.
Bake roast for 1 1/2 hours. Remove cover and tuck kale leaves and carrots around the roast, pushing vegetables down into the pan juices. Sprinkle vegetables lightly with salt, cover pan, and return to the oven. Bake for one more hour or until roast and vegetables are very tender.
Transfer roast to a cutting board and vegetables to a bowl, leaving pan juices in pan. Remove and discard bay leaf and thyme sprigs. Bring pan juices to a simmer over medium heat and stir in horseradish. Simmer for 1 minute. Season with salt if needed.
Slice roast and serve with vegetables and pan sauce.
