Italian Pot Roast That Tastes Like It Took All Day
Pot roast is a fantastic comfort dish. Adding an Italian flair to it makes it all the better! Stracotto, the comfort food you didn’t know you were missing!
Things to know:
What does stracotto mean in Italian?
In Italian, the term stracotto means “overcooked.” In fact, classic stracotto dishes are slow-cooked to fall-apart perfection.
What kind of meat is used for stracotto?
Our preference for a Stracotto recipe is a chuck roast. However, you can use almost any cut for slow braising, such as brisket, eye-of-round, rump, sirloin tip, or beef short ribs. In fact, the more tough the cut is, the better!
What to eat with stracotto?
It’s wonderful served with mashed potatoes, polenta, or even crusty bread for dipping.
How long does stracotto usually cook?
Cook until the beef is fork-tender, about 3 hours, turning the beef over halfway through and adding more beef broth, as needed.
What are some similar dishes to stracotto?
Stracotto, Spezzatino, Stufato, Brasato: Italians have many names for the humble, hearty beef stew you can find throughout the country, but especially in northern Italy.
What is a chuck roast good for?
Chuck roast is excellent for slow-cooked dishes like pot roast (or in this case Stracotto), stews, and shredded beef for tacos or sandwiches because its connective tissue breaks down into rich gelatin, creating tender, flavorful meat when cooked low and slow in a crock pot, Dutch oven, or Instant Pot. It’s also great for smoking, making French dip sandwiches, or grinding for burgers.
What kind of meat is chuck roast?
Chuck roast is a flavorful, affordable cut of beef from the shoulder and neck area, known for its rich marbling, toughness, and abundant connective tissue, which makes it ideal for slow-cooking methods like pot roast or stew, breaking down to become tender and juicy.
Ingredients
4 T olive oil divided
1 (4-pound) chuck roast tied
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 large onion finely chopped
2 large carrots finely chopped
2 stalks celery finely chopped
4 ounces pancetta diced
12 cloves garlic 2 chopped, 10 sliced, divided
2 cups dry red wine
2 cups beef broth
1 can (28-ounce) crushed tomatoes preferably a good imported Italian brand
1 T Italian Seasoning (we love Cattleman’s Grill Italiano)
2 ounces dried porcini mushrooms, reconstituted in 1 cup hot beef stock, then cut into 1/2″ pieces
8 oz. crimini (button) mushroom caps, not sliced
3 sprigs thyme – minced, 2 sprigs of leaves for final seasoning
1 T sage – freshly chopped
1/3 cup basil – finely chopped
2 large bay leaves
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Season the chuck roast liberally with salt and black pepper.
2. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium-high heat in a large Dutch oven. Place chuck roast in Dutch oven and brown well on both sides, approximately 4-5 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate, pour off and discard browning fat.
3. Refresh oil with remaining 2 tablespoons oil. Add onion, carrot, celery and pancetta. Reduce heat to medium. Cook 7-8 minutes or until vegetables are tender.
4. Add chopped garlic and cook briefly 10-15 seconds or until fragrant.
5. Add the wine and bring to a boil. Boil 1-2 minutes.
6. Add the beef back to the pot along with any accumulated juices.
7. Add beef broth, tomatoes, sliced garlic, basil, Italian seasoning and bay leaves. Bring to a gentle simmer over medium heat.
8. Place a layer of aluminum foil or parchment paper over the top of the Dutch oven followed by the lid. (You want to minimize evaporation as much as possible.)
9. Place in the oven and cook 2 1/2 to 3 hours or until meat is extremely tender.
10. Place on a serving platter and slice or shred as desired.
11. Serve with mashed potatoes or over rice. ENJOY!
Equipment used:
DISCLOSURE: When we link to products and services, those links may be customized affiliate links. If you click on any of those affiliate links and make a purchase within a certain time frame, We’ll earn a small commission. The commission is paid by the retailers.
Here’s an example: If we link to our favorite vegetable peeler, and you click on that link and complete a purchase within the next 24 hours, we may receive a commission somewhere between 1 to 10 percent of your total order.
We are careful to link to products and retailers that we use ourselves and recommend. These affiliate programs use cookies to track visits for the purposes of assigning commission on these sales. Money earned keeps Galley of the Sun running and allows us to do what we love.
Thank you for your support.
SELECT AFFILIATE PROGRAM DETAILS: We are currently members of affiliate programs with Amazon and Dalstrong. We are eligible to earn from qualifying purchases.