by Telegraph Brewing Company, Santa Barbara
This time of year, with the longer nights and the cooler weather, our thoughts turn to stews and braises when we get hungry. There is little more satisfying on a cold night than a plate of rich beef stew or pot roast and a hearty beer paired with it. So grab a group of friends, a selection of Telegraph beers, and get cooking!
We think our pot roast is the best.
It seems almost every country has developed their own version of “beef stew,” and all have their merits. The French almost always use wine as the braising liquid in their stews, the classic being Beef Burgundy, with a whole bottle of wine going into the pot. Yankee Pot Roast, the traditional American version of beef stew, often includes some wine, usually in combination with beef stock. The Belgians, on the other hand, use what they are most fond of, namely, beer. Carbonnade a la Flamande, or Flemish Beef Stew, is a rich, deeply flavored stew made with a malty, Belgian ale, onions, and chunks of nicely marbled beef.
For our recipe, we take the best of two of these stew traditions, combining the technique of the Yankee Pot Roast with the beer of the Belgian Carbonnade and create a unique beer-braised pot roast. This works best with a full flavored beer that isn’t too hoppy; Telegraph California Ale or Telegraph Stock Porter both work well.
Telegraph Beer-Braised Pot Roast
3-4 lb boneless chuck roast
1 onion, diced
2 carrots, diced
1 ½ Cup Telegraph California Ale or Stock Porter
1 tablespoon tomato paste, or 3 tablespoons ketchup
3 Yukon Gold potatoes cut in 3/4-inch chunks
2 carrots cut in ½-inch chunks
Salt, pepper, dried thyme, olive oil, bay leaf, freshly chopped parsley
Rub the roast all over with salt, pepper, and dried thyme. Brown the roast in a large, heavy pot or Dutch oven with 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium-high heat, 3-4 minutes per side. Remove meat to a plate and add to the pot one large onion, diced, and two carrots, diced. Sautee the vegetables until soft, about 5-8 minutes.
Now add the Telegraph California Ale or Stock Porter, the tomato paste or ketchup, and a bay leaf to the pot with the vegetables. Bring the liquid to a boil and return the meat to the pot. Cover and reduce heat to low to maintain a gentle simmer.
Cook until the meat is quite tender, about two and a half hours. Then add 2-3 cups of potatoes and carrots cut into 1-inch pieces and cook for an additional 20 minutes. You should have perfectly cooked vegetables and a very tender roast swimming in a deliciously rich beer gravy. Adjust the salt to your liking. You can thicken the gravy, if necessary, by reducing it in the pot after removing the meat and veggies. Garnish with freshly chopped parsley and enjoy!
