Oniony Pot Roast

I've been making and loving my mom's pot roast since I started cooking and it's so simple it seems silly. It's 2 or 3 onions sliced, a little garlic, a bay leaf or two, salt, pepper, a bit of beef broth and water. I braise it on the stove top for 2-1/2 to 3 hours and it's ready to serve. How easy is that, right? Well I came across a recipe that was a crock pot roast and it kind of reminded me of mom's and I had to give it a try. Equally as simple, but with a few more flavor boosts. But remember, I don't have a crock pot- so I converted it to a stove top meal and it's as good as any pot roast I've ever made. The aromas will simply have your mouth watering after about an hour, which of course will give you plenty of time to make your side dishes. How about egg noodles and a broccoli casserole, or mashed taters and string beans?

Oniony Pot Roast

2 T canola oil
2-3 pound chuck roast
1 can beef broth (I use the no fat low sodium)
2 onions sliced (this was my addition to the recipe)
1 can cream of mushroom soup (again I use the low fat)
1 package onion soup mix (I buy store brand- it's 1/2 the price of Knorr or Lipton and just as good for this recipe)
1 T Worcerstershire sauce
1 T red wine vinegar
1/2 tsp garlic powder
2 dried bay leaves (the original recipe called for 1/2 tsp dried thyme)
1/4 tsp black pepper

Notice I left out the salt. I don't even think the original recipe called for salt, most likely due to the sodium content in the onion soup mix.

Ready to cook? On medium to high heat sear your roast in oil. I didn't even season mine. Just brown it on all sides to keep the meat juicy while it's bathing in the broth. Here's a picture of mine before I browned the short sides.

While your roast is browning, mix together all sauce ingredients.

When meat is sufficiently seared, remove it from the pan and add the onion/broth mixture to the hot pan. Deglaze the pan by stirring up the browned bits from the roast. Now add meat back to the saucy pot and bring to a high simmer. Cover, reduce heat and cook on low for about 3 hours. I promise you, you will enjoy this meal. And try and save some of the beef and onion sauce for a sloppy sandwich, which is most of the reason I make a pot roast. Very yummy.