Slow Cooker Grass Fed Pot Roast

 

 

I am back finally... with the first recipe in 2014 ! If you are wondering where I have been.... I just started a new job and had been busy trying to get use to a new schedule. The Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year holidays threw me off completely. I hardly have any time for myself with all the  parties.

 

I am so glad that that we are back to routine.

 

We made this slow cooker grass fed roast on Sunday. We have been using grass fed for a few weeks now and loving it. I have been wanting to try grass fed beef after reading all the benefits of grass fed vs grain fed beef. But it took us a while to jump into the wagon due to the cost factor. But we were so glad to make the switch. I finally have meat which taste like those in Singapore. I have always complained to the Hubby that the meat here taste "fake" and I could not understand why. I finally realized it when we make the switch to grass-fed. The hubby had a burger at Texas Land and Cattle last week and he texted me : "the meat taste fake". *smile*.. He finally understood what I meant :)

 

I took us a while to figure how to cook grass fed meat. Grass fed meat are leaner with less fats. They has to be cook with lower temperature. Basically. "low and slow".  The slow cooker is a good one to use. The roast we did on Sunday came out tender and moist and almost falling apart,

 

 

Ingredients:

4 pound arm roast

5 stalk of Celery

2 -3 carrot

one onion Chopped

1/2 cup of red wine

Salt

Pepper

Cajun Seasoning

Thyme

Tumeric powder

Coconut oil or bacon grease or olive oil or butter ( we use bacon grease)

 

 

Direction

1. Seasoned the roast liberally with salt, pepper, Cajun seasoning , thyme and turmeric powder.

 

2. Cut the celery, carrots into 2 inches pieces.

 

3. Lay the onion, carrot and celery on the bottom of the slow cooker

 

4. Heat a skillet and brown the roast on each side.

 

5. Lay the browned roast on top of the cut vegetables in the slow cooker

 

6. Cook low for 8-10 hours. We did 9 hours and it was perfect.

 

 

~bel~

 

 



Pot Roast

 

I have always make my pot roast in the slow cooker and have been toying with the idea of making it on stove top or oven. The hubby and I decided to take yesterday off from running and this give me a perfect opportunity to try a recipe. 

I did a quick search on the internet and decided to try this recipe from Simply Recipe. It look simple enough with just some easy ingredients which we have at home. The only changed I made from the recipe was to substitute red wine with beef broth. I am sure this will taste much better with red wine.

The hubby gave a triple thumb up for this recipe and went for 2 big servings. Well, both of us polish off the whole pot roast.  The hubby last word was " you have to make this again".. so I guess this is really good. 

Ingredients

• 3 1/2 lb of beef shoulder or boneless chuck roast (look for a piece that is well marbled with fat for best results)
• 2 Tbsp olive or grapeseed oil
• Salt, pepper, italian seasoning to taste ( I use a blend of seasoning which the hubby make)
• 2 large yellow onions, thickly sliced, lengthwise (root to tip), about 4 cups sliced onion
• 4 cloves of garlic, peeled
• 1/2 cup of red wine ( Iuse beef broth)
• 1 bay leaf
• Several carrots, peeled and cut lengthwise

 Directions
1 Use a thick-bottomed covered pot (oven-proof if you intend to cook in oven), such as a dutch oven, just large enough to hold roast and vegetables. Heat 2 Tbsp of oil on medium high heat (hot enough to sear the meat). Pat the roast dry with paper towels. Sprinkle and rub salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning all over the meat. Brown roast in pot, all over, several minutes on each side. Don't move the roast while a side is browning, or it won't brown well.


2 When roast is browned, remove from pan and set on a plate. Add the onions to the pan and cook for about 5 to 10 minutes, until they begin to brown. Add the garlic and carrots to sit on top of the onions. Set the roast on top of the onions, garlic and carrots. Add 1/2 cup of red wine. Add the bay leaf.

3. Cover. Bring to simmer and then adjust the heat down to the lowest heat possible to maintain a low simmer when covered . If cooking in the oven, bring to a simmer first on the stovetop, then put in the oven, start the temp at 300°F for 15 minutes, then drop it to 225°F

3 Cook for 3 1/2 to 4 hours, or longer, until meat is tender.

Slow Cooker Beef Stew

 

We have some weird weather the past week. It was hot and it was cold and wet. It was hot on Wednesday at 80 degree and it changed over night to thunderstorm on Thursday at high of 55 degree. Well.. it is probably not so cold if you come from east or north east. But this is Texas.. anything lower than 70 degree is Brrrrr for us :)

And yes.. it was brrr for us on Thursday. So I decided to make a beef stew to warm our soul. I found this recipe (<= click)  from Simply Recipe and adapted it to the ingredients I have at home. I love this recipe for the simple reason that it is not tomato based. I am not a fan of tomato based stew. The use of beer and beef broth with just 2 tablespoon of tomato base is perfect. The hubby agreed that this is a keeper. We have some leftover on Friday and it seems to taste even better. 

Ingredents ( My adapted version)

• 2 Tbspcoconut oil
• 2 pounds well marbled chuck beef roast, cut into 2-inch piece
• 2 cups chopped onion
• 2 celery stalks, chopped
• 2 Tbsp tomato paste
• 1 pint (16 ounces) stout or any dark beer ( I use shiner bock)
• 3 cups beef broth
• 2 large carrots, peeled and cut into chunks
• 2-3 potato and sweet potato, peeled and cut into chunks
• 3-4 teaspoons dried thyme
• Salt and pepper

Direction
1, Heat the coconut oil in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Brown the beef in the oil. Sprinkle salt and pepper over the beef as it browns. Once browned on all sides, transfer the beef pieces into the slow cook

2 Add the onions and celery to the pan in which you just browned the beef. Sauté the onions and celery until they begin to brown at the edges, about 5 minutes. Add the tomato paste and mix well. Cook for a minute or two, then add a little of the Guinness, enough to make it easier for you to scrape up any browned bits at the bottom of the pan. Transfer the celery and onions into the slow cooker.


3 Add the rest of the Guinness, the beef broth, carrots, potato and sweet potato, and thyme to the slow cooker. Add two teaspoons of salt. Cover and cook on "high" for 4 hours, or "low" for 8 hours. When done, add more salt to taste.

~bel~

Crockpot Pork Roast

 

Our crockpot is very much under utilized in the last few weeks as we relied on the the hubby to cook on stove pot. Now that we are back to serious training, we are out running most evening till late. So the crockpot gets to come out of hibernation.

I made these pot roast on Monday with the crockpot. Just some simple ingredients and we have a wholesome dinner.Just love the crockpot for making life so much easier. A hot meal after a hard run is god sent :)

Ingredients: 

1. Roast - we see top roast about 2 pounds

2. 1 onion chopped

3. 6 celery sticks- chopped into 2 inches length

4. 1 potato - cut into quarters

5. 1 sweet potato- cut into quarter

6. 1 cup of chicken broth

7. 1 table spoon of paparika

8. 1 table spoon of cumin

9. 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne pepper

10. Salt and pepper to taste

11. 1 table spoon of Lawry's seasoning

Direction: 

1. Season the roast with the last five ingredients for at least 30 mins

2. Lay the vegetables on the crockpot

3. Put the roast in top of the vegetables

4. Add in the chicken broth

5. Slow cooked low for 7-8 hours or high for 5 hours

~bel~

Crockpot Beef Stew

 

I really do not like this picture. It does not do justice to the beef stew. This is probably one of the best recipe for beef stew.. well.. even the hubby who is not a fan of beef stew agreed with me. And of course... it has to be good since I am the creator of this recipe :)

I have been looking at a number of beef stew recipes and most of them contain some ingredients which I do not like.. so I decided to create my own :)

This is really a good recipe for a busy day... a crockpot and 10 minutes of preparation time and Bingo.. dinner is done.

Ingredients:

 2 pounds of stew meat

 3-4 carrot , chopped

3-4 celery, chopped

2 potatoes

1 onion - chopped coursely

2 cup of beef broth

2 cup of red wine

1 table spoon of thyme ( more to taste)

1 table spoon of oregano ( more to taste)

1 small can tomato paste 

1 teaspoon of paparika

3-4 bay leave

Cayenne pepper ( to taste)

Pepper and salt ( to taste)

Direction

1.  Season the stew meat with the spices, salt and pepper for at least 30 minutes

2. Lay the crockpot with the onion , carrot and celery

3. Put in the seasoned stew meat

4. Pour the beef broth and wine into the crockpot, add in the tomato paste ( add in more thyme and oregano to taste) and bay leaves

5. Stir and cook on low for 7 to 8 hours

~enjoy~

Chili

 

The first cold front hit town this weekend... Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrr... it was freezing cold ! A 33 degree drop from the summer 100 degree. LOL.. yes.. it was only 67F cold... but it felt like winter .  The body had a rude shock from the sudden cold front and the only 3 things I could do were slept in, couched under the blanket and drink hot ginger tea. 

The BF made my day when he decided to make chili... well .. we did plan ahead for the cold. We went grocery shopping for chili ingredients on Saturday in anticipation of the "freeze". The BF found an amazing recipe   (<= click) from Allrecipe.com.... beer, coffee and cocoa powder.. who can resist the combination.

The day just got better (despite the cold) when the BF said to me "I am okie. You just need to couch and rest.." when I offered to help make the chili....:)

The recipe looks intimidating with the many ingredients.. but it was actually very easy. The preparation time was only 20 minutes.

This is an amazing recipe. The combination of beer, coffee and cocoa powder are awesome. It is just so good !


The base before we add the meat

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons vegetable oil ( we use canola oil)
2 onions, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 pound ground beef
3/4 pound beef sirloin, cubed ( we use ground pork sausage )
1 (14.5 ounce) can peeled and diced tomatoes with juice
1 (12 fluid ounce) can or bottle dark beer ( we use shiner black)
1 cup strong brewed coffee
2 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste
 1 (14 ounce) can beef broth
1/2 cup packed brown sugar ( we omit the sugar as we are on Paleo)
3 1/2 tablespoons chili powder
1 tablespoon cumin seeds
1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
 1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
 1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon salt
4 (15 ounce) cans kidney beans ( we omitted the beans as we are on Paleo)
4 fresh hot chile peppers, seeded and chopped

 Directions
1. Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Cook onions, garlic, ground beef and cubed sirloin in oil for 10 minutes, or until the meat is well browned and the onions are tender.
2. Mix in the diced tomatoes with juice, dark beer, coffee, tomato paste and beef broth. Season with brown sugar, chili powder, cumin, cocoa powder, oregano, cayenne pepper, coriander and salt. Stir in 2 cans of the beans and hot chile peppers. Reduce heat to low, and simmer for 1 1/2 hours.
3.  Stir in the 2 remaining cans of beans, and simmer for another 30 minutes. ( we omitted this step as we do not use beans)
( We browned the meat in the iron skillet, mixed the base in another pot and added the meat to the
base after they were browned)
~bel~

Garlic Top Sirloin Pot Roast in Beer Broth

The BF and I were talking about beef stew in the car and he wondered aloud whether he can pour a can of beer on the stew. Why not ?

I am not surprise that the boy put in a can of beer in our dinner last night.  I have learned that if things will be done if he is stuck in his head.

We have some sirloin beef at home and the boy adapted a recipe (<= click) found in Allrecipe to make a Sirloin tip roast in beer broth :0

The beer in the broth is really refreshing. I could smell the beer as I lifted the lid. The pot roast was perfect... and Yes.. we were both happy with this recipe. So glad that there is leftover for dinner tonight 

Our beer version:

Ingredients:
 1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon paprika
1 (3 pound) top sirloin roast
6 cloves garlic, slivered
6 Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and quartered
 4 carrots, cut into 2 inch pieces
2 large sweet onions, peeled and chopped
1 cup chicken stock
3 cubes beef bouillon
1 bay leaf
2 large green bell peppers, cut into 2 inch pieces
1 can beer
4 stalk celery, chopped into 2 inch pieces

 Directions
1. Rub salt, pepper and paprika into the meat. With a small knife, make slits in the roast. Press the garlic slivers into the roast.
2. Place the vegetables in a large slow cooker. Place meat on top of the vegetables.
3. Pour in broth and beer
4.  Place lid on slow cooker, and cook for 6 hours on High, or 8 hours on Low.

`bel~

Crockpot Meat Loaf

 

I love crock pot. I think crock pot is the most wonderful invention for busy people. We use crock pot a lot as we have crazy running schedule. We do not get home till 8 or 9pm each day. The best thing after a hard run is a warm dinner in the crock pot

I have learn to convert my favourite recipe to crock pot friendly. I made this meat loaf last night using the recipe from Kalyn Kitchen. Instead of putting the meat in the oven, I put it in the Crock pot on low for 7 hours. I added some green beans to the crock pot before we leave for our track work out.

Awesome to come home with some dinner ready for us :)

No Bean Chili (Rib-eye Chili)

Chili with a twist ! No beans, no ground meat.. just plain old bacon and Rib eye. Nothing can possibly go wrong with bacon and Rib eye , right ?

Asked the BF to choose a recipe to make dinner.... and bingo he picked this winner from  our cook book (Cast Iron Skillet Flavors) ... . Had to trust this boy when it comes to FOOD !

Ingredients:
3 slice bacon, chopped
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 tablespoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
2 teaspoon cumin
2.5lb rib-eye, cut  into 1/2 inches
3.5 cup of water
1 teaspoon dry oregano
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 tablespoon of cornmeal ( we use coconut flour)
1/4 cup of sour cream for garnish

Direction
1. Cook the bacon till crisp
2. Add the onion and garlic and cook till onion is soft
3. Add paprika, cumin and chili powder, stir for 2 min
4. Add beef, water and oregano
5. Simmer for 2- 2.5 hour till beef is tender
6. Add salt and pepper
7. Stir in the cornmeal, stir for 5 min or till thicken
8 Serve with sour cream ( we omit this since we are on Paleo)

~bel~

Non Gluten, Non Soy, Dairy Free , Paleo Friendly Meat Loaf

Meat Loaf.... I never had them !  Just because most of them contains bread crumbs.. and I was on south beach for a while before switching to this Paleo Style of living... so bread crumbs was a NO NO to me

We were watching Food Network and Paula Deen was making meat loaf.. I told the BF that I wanna one ! So lucky me.. got one.

We found a really good recipe from Kalyn's Kitchen. The BF said it taste as good as those with bread crumbs.

Ingredients:
2 lbs. lean ground beef (less than 10% fat)
1 pkg. (19.5 oz.) hot turkey Italian Sausage ( We use Chorizo)
2 T dried chopped onion
1 T garlic powder
1 T dried basil
1 T dried parsley
1/2 cup flax seed meal
1 tsp. Vege-Sal (or 1/2 tsp. salt)
1 T ground fennel
1 cup finely chopped slow roasted tomatoes (or use sun-dried tomatoes - rinse with hot water if oil packed) 2 eggs slightly beaten

Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 F. Remove ground beef and turkey sausage links from refrigerator and let come to room temperature.
2. In bowl, combine dried onion, garlic powder, dried basil, dried parsley, flax seed meal, Vege-sal or salt, and ground fennel.
3. Squeeze turkey sausage out of casings in small pieces into large mixing bowl. Break ground beef into pieces and place in same bowl.
4. Add dried herb/flax seed meal mixture, tomatoes, and eggs to meat mixture and use your hands to combine well.
5. Try to mix the meat enough to get spices and eggs evenly distributed without overmixing.
6. Shape meat into two loaves and put in oven for about an hour and 15  minutes or when the thermometer indicate that it is done



~bel~