Slow Cooker Italian Pot Roast with Sun-dried Tomatoes & Kalamata Olives
09
So, yeah. I have a new dentist and we are in that whole getting-to-know-you period. At my last appointment he asked if I had any hobbies, and because I am a really lame person who doesn’t have many any more, I said cooking. I have to say that while I still enjoy cooking for the most part, I would hardly call it a “hobby” at this point so much as a necessity. At any rate, he then started talking about various dishes he likes, and he mentioned that he makes this Italian pot roast from an old Boy Scouts cookbook. He rattled off the ingredients and it sounded really good, so I decided to search for it online (who am I kidding? Internet surfing is obviously my true hobby) and found it rather quickly. I decided to make this in the slow cooker so we could have it during the week, and we had it alongside some Parmesan farro.
I didn’t add any wine to this, but I think next time I’ll add a little red wine, especially since I upped the broth a bit (just to make sure there was enough liquid, since it was going to be in the slow cooker all day). This is not to say that it wasn’t delicious as-is, but I feel like pot roast needs wine or something. 🙂 We did all really like this and the leftovers were SO good too. The sun-dried tomatoes add a great sweetness and the kalamata olives a salty bite. The pearl onions get cooked down until they are soft, sweet, and fabulous. I actually put a whole bag in vs. 1 cup, mostly because I read the recipe incorrectly, but I’m glad I did it.
The prep is also really easy—which should be mandatory for a slow cooker recipe.
Slow Cooker Italian Pot Roast
Adapted from Scouting Magazine
1 beef chuck roast (about 3 lbs.)
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1/4 cup red wine (optional)
1 cup beef broth
2 Tbsp. light brown sugar
2 tsp. dried oregano
1.5 tsp. dried basil
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
1/2 tsp. dried crushed rosemary
3Â cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes, sliced (I didn’t use oil-packed ones)
1/2 cup Kalamata olives, pitted and sliced
1 (10 oz.) bag frozen pearl onions
Season the roast liberally with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high, and once hot, brown the roast on all sides. Move to slow cooker.
Add the garlic and stir until fragrant, about a minute. Add in the wine (if using) and broth (if using wine, you may want to reduce beef broth amount slightly), scraping up the browned bits. Stir in the sugar, herbs, and salt and pepper to taste. Pour the mixture over the roast.
Nestly the sundried tomatoes, olives, and pearl onions around the roast. Cook on low for 9-11 hours. Skim off the fat and heat on high, uncovered (if desired) to thicken slightly.
Dude, I need to get a dentist that gives me recipe tips! 😉 This sounds fab!
The olives are an interesting touch. I’m not sure how I feel about them.
You are very much like me, therefore you feel great about them. 🙂
Another must try slow cooker recipe. Thank you (and thanks to your dentist, too)!
Why did my dentist never ask me for my hobbies???? 😉 😉 Okay, I try to not take it personal, and for sure I’ll give this recipe a try now that autumn in coming. My husband is a total sun dried tomato lover and olives are always a winner too, so maybe for his birthday…?
Note to self: talk to my dentist more about recipes, because he might be harboring gems like this!
I would guess the olives add some acidity and brightness to the pot roast — sounds like a good combination!
I love slow cooker recipes. I have more interesting pork recipes than beef. So this
strikes my fancy.