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Sliced Roast & Pan Gravy

SERVES 15 · PREP 30 MIN · COOK 4 HR
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Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 4 hours
Servings: 15
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American
Ingredients Equipment Method Video Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 5 lb beef chuck roast cut in half
  • 1 tbsp kosher salt
  • 1 tbsp black pepper
  • 1 tbsp garlic powder
  • 1/2 cup all-purpose flour for coating
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 tbsp butter for searing
  • 6 tbsp butter 3 per skillet
  • 3 large onions sliced
  • 2 tbsp minced garlic
  • 1 can 6 oz tomato paste
  • 1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
  • 2 tsp Fireside garlic & herb blend
  • 1 tsp dried thyme
  • 5 cups beef broth
  • 1 to 2 packets brown gravy mix to stretch the gravy

Equipment

  • 2 Cast Iron Skillets

Method
 

  1. Pat both halves bone dry. Mix salt, pepper and garlic powder; season every side.
  2. Coat all sides in flour. This is what makes the gravy thick.
  3. Heat two cast iron skillets hot. Add oil and 1 tbsp butter each.
  4. Sear flat sides first, about 3 min per side, until brown all the way around.
  5. Set on a plate.
  6. Lower to medium. Add 3 tbsp butter and 1 1/2 onions per skillet. Cook until they soften.
  7. Add 1 tbsp garlic, half the tomato paste, 2 tbsp Worcestershire, 1 tsp Fireside garlic & herb blend and 1/2 tsp thyme to each.
  8. Pour 2 to 2 1/2 cups broth into each. Stir up the bottom, then set the roast back in.
  9. Lid on. 350°F for 2 to 2 1/2 hours. Do not open it.
  10. Pull while it still holds its shape. Rest 20 min on a board.
  11. Slice thin against the grain. Lay the slices back in the juices.
  12. Lid on, back in a low oven 1 to 1 1/2 hours.
  13. For gravy, strain the juices from the second skillet through a fine strainer. That strained liquid is your base.

Video

Notes

Cut the Roast in Half
A whole 5 lb roast is too thick to get tender in the time most of us have. Two halves fit flat in cast iron and cook in about two-thirds the time. You lose nothing, because you are slicing it anyway.
Pull It Before It Falls Apart
A roast you can slice and a roast that shreds are two different roasts, and the only difference is when you pull it. If a fork twists with almost no fight, it is ready. Leave it longer and it will not hold a slice.
Good to Know
  • The flour coat before searing is doing two jobs - crust on the meat, body in the gravy.
  • Slicing thin and returning the meat to its own juices is what carries the flavor all the way through.
  • Chuck has three or four muscles running different directions. Pull them apart at the fat seams first, then slice each chunk against its own grain.
  • To stretch the gravy, make brown gravy mix with beef broth instead of water - 1 packet to 1 cup liquid - and whisk it into the strained base.
  • Shingle the slices in a pan, ladle gravy over, cover and hold at 200°F until you sit down.