The Pot Roast Thread
Posted: Mon Oct 08, 2012 2:24 pm
In the What's Cooking? thread, Jo Ann got us all salivating over the idea of pot roast yesterday so tonight a couple of us are making one for dinner.
Bob and I got to talking about our own histories with this storied American Sunday meal on the way to the store this morning. For him, it was a favorite meal at his grandmother's house: potatoes, carrots and onions were roasted alongside the meat. Pretty much like at our house. But for me, not a favorite at all: my fussy childhood self basically detested well done beef of any kind, and I hated onions even more. My favorite part was the potatoes. Bob asked if ours had gravy, and I'm sure it did but I can't remember that part: didn't like gravy either!
Now of course, it all sounds entirely wonderful.
The cut my mother always used was the 7-bone roast and it would be about three inches thick to ensure enough to feed our family of six. I couldn't find a 7-bone this morning but I only went to one store--I so rarely see chuck blades around here that I figured it was futile to even try to find one. But for yucks just now, I decided to call a few stores and see if I'd have lucked into something had I looked. That was a uniform 'no', but Fred Meyer (Kroger chain) did say he'd had some over the weekend and has a standing order for it every Thursday that doesn't always come in. Most importantly, he explained why it's getting harder to find: processors don't like them because they're heavier to ship with the bone in, and any cut bone-in has a shorter shelf life because the bone is where the bacteria lives. Add to that the fact that fewer households these days appreciate or even know what to do with these fatty, long-cooked granny cuts, as we here would know, and the 7-Bone is all but doomed unless you happen to live in an area with a strong regional preference for it. Get 'em while you can.
Speaking of blade cuts, anyone else a fan of the thinner cut of the 7-bone, usually called Chuck Blade Steak? I love that cut! Chewy, but oustanding flavor and an interesting twist for a summer barbecue--used to be so cheap at under $2 a pound on sale that one could do a huge pile of beef for a crowd for virtually nothing. The steaks tear apart along the gristle and bone lines into 4 or 5 personal sized portions that take well to a strong marinade (a combination of worcestershire sauce, mustard, sherry and garlic is quite worthy) and eating out of hand, like spare ribs. Yowza!
Not sure yet if I'll go for a nostalgic version that speaks to both of our childhoods, or give it the Chez J treatment, but we'll see. Might just open a nice syrah to talk about on the wine side, too.
Bob and I got to talking about our own histories with this storied American Sunday meal on the way to the store this morning. For him, it was a favorite meal at his grandmother's house: potatoes, carrots and onions were roasted alongside the meat. Pretty much like at our house. But for me, not a favorite at all: my fussy childhood self basically detested well done beef of any kind, and I hated onions even more. My favorite part was the potatoes. Bob asked if ours had gravy, and I'm sure it did but I can't remember that part: didn't like gravy either!
Now of course, it all sounds entirely wonderful.
The cut my mother always used was the 7-bone roast and it would be about three inches thick to ensure enough to feed our family of six. I couldn't find a 7-bone this morning but I only went to one store--I so rarely see chuck blades around here that I figured it was futile to even try to find one. But for yucks just now, I decided to call a few stores and see if I'd have lucked into something had I looked. That was a uniform 'no', but Fred Meyer (Kroger chain) did say he'd had some over the weekend and has a standing order for it every Thursday that doesn't always come in. Most importantly, he explained why it's getting harder to find: processors don't like them because they're heavier to ship with the bone in, and any cut bone-in has a shorter shelf life because the bone is where the bacteria lives. Add to that the fact that fewer households these days appreciate or even know what to do with these fatty, long-cooked granny cuts, as we here would know, and the 7-Bone is all but doomed unless you happen to live in an area with a strong regional preference for it. Get 'em while you can.
Speaking of blade cuts, anyone else a fan of the thinner cut of the 7-bone, usually called Chuck Blade Steak? I love that cut! Chewy, but oustanding flavor and an interesting twist for a summer barbecue--used to be so cheap at under $2 a pound on sale that one could do a huge pile of beef for a crowd for virtually nothing. The steaks tear apart along the gristle and bone lines into 4 or 5 personal sized portions that take well to a strong marinade (a combination of worcestershire sauce, mustard, sherry and garlic is quite worthy) and eating out of hand, like spare ribs. Yowza!
Not sure yet if I'll go for a nostalgic version that speaks to both of our childhoods, or give it the Chez J treatment, but we'll see. Might just open a nice syrah to talk about on the wine side, too.