Two new roast recipes - kid tested, mother approved

Back on that roast thing again, huh?  Yes, I am.  Why? Well, roasts are a really easy cut in my humble opinion. Especially when I get a wild hair and think “I wonder what this would be like???”  ESPECIALLY with a crock pot. You really can’t mess up a roast in a crock pot.

So my latest include two variations of the Chuck Roast.

Mexican Shredded Beef

Get out your crock pot. I usually spray mine with non-stick spray… makes clean up a lot easier. Put the roast in.

If yours happens to have rope, make sure to cut it off and place in the crock pot.

Sprinkle with salt and pepper and just for fun – some cumin.  Cover with fresh cilantro. I cut mine in about ½ inch strips. Then dump a can of rotelle tomatoes (I used the ones with lime and cilantro). Hold on to the can – fill it about 1/3 full with lime juice and dump over the roast. Set the crock pot to low and cook all day, 8-10 hours.

How pretty is that?!?!

NOTE: You won’t find a lot of measurements in my recipes. Remember what I said about roasts being forgiving with experimentation? Plus, measuring just means more dishes to wash and who has time for that?

Once ready to eat, shred the beef. We used ours for tacos.

If only I could figure out how to make these pictures scratch 'n sniff because this smells divine...

My kids raved about them – without prompting, even. So this is definitely going to be on rotation. We had some leftovers so I’m contemplating doing a super nachos night or enchiladas. Or let’s face it. I will probably just be lazy and do tacos one more night but I can totally see lots of options for this dish.

Chuck Roast Steaks

Take a chuck roast – find the grain.

See how the lines go up and down... that would be the grain

Cut with the grain into two inch slices.

When i did two inch blocks, i ended up with four equally sized pieces. cut to your preference but two inches is probably a good rule of thumb.

Get your favorite marinade and immerse the slices in the marinade. I did 12 hours. NOTE: when using marinades, make sure there is an acid base such as tomatoes, lime juice, or vinegar. The acid is what will make the beef tender.

My go to marinade is a balsamic / olive oil dressing. No need to make things complicated.

Once dinner time gets close, fire up the grill and cook as you would any ordinary steak. Let sit, covered for five to ten minutes before slicing. Since you sliced with the grain, you will have an easy time of slicing against the grain when ready to serve. And if you haven’t ever paid attention to how you slice beef, you should. The difference in tenderness is amazing.

Another win with the kids. They thought they were eating steak!