Pot Roast with porcini mushrooms and onions

It all started with a bottle of wine — well, two to be exact. A good friend of my husband’s — who owns an extensive wine cellar — sent us a surprise gift of two bottles of Brunello di Montalcino. He knew we had been in Montalcino a couple of years ago, where we had enjoyed wines from the Caparzo vineyard, so he wanted to repay some hospitality with a bottle of the 2013 and the 1990 vintage. We couldn’t wait to crack open the older vintage first. But I knew I needed to accompany it with a meal worthy of this 30 year-old wine. I had some dried porcini mushrooms I had bought in Italy waiting to be used, so I decided to incorporate them into a rich pot roast.

Start by dusting the meat (mine was a chuck roast that weighed 2 1/2 pounds) with flour, salt and pepper, and browning it in olive oil. Then remove it from the pan.

Add the onions and sauté them in the oil that remains in the pan. They’ll add a sweetness and richness to the dish. While the onions were cooking, I soaked the porcini in water.

The onions reduced considerably and turned a golden color. Those browned bits on the bottom of the pan will add lots of flavor too, once the liquid is poured in and everything has a chance to blend together.

Place the browned meat back into the pan and add the liquids, plus the seasonings — bay leaf, herbs de Provence, salt and pepper.

Place a lid on the pot and put it in a preheated 350 degree oven. Let it cook for two hours, checking it every once in a while.

Remove the meat from the liquid. If you have time to let it cool, let it sit for a half hour. It’s not necessary, but it makes it easier to slice. 

If you want, you can place the platter in the microwave to reheat it, then add the hot porcini and onion sauce to ensure it’s piping hot when served.Sprinkle with some minced parsley and serve more sauce on the side.

We drank the wine with our pot roast dinner, accompanied by sweet and sour cabbage, mashed potatoes and carrots. I think we did the 1990 vintage justice. Now onto the 2013!

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Pot Roast with porcini mushrooms and onions

Author: Ciao Chow Linda

printable recipe here

Ingredients

• 1 2 1/2-3 pound chuck roast, dusted with flour, salt and pepper
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 1/2 large onions, sliced (about 3 cups sliced onions)
• 3 large cloves of garlic, crushed
• 1/2 cup dried porcini mushrooms, rehydrated in 1 1/2 cups water for about 1/2 hour
• 2 cups beef broth
• 1 cup red wine
• a few fresh bay leaves (use dried if fresh unavailable)
• 1 teaspoon herbs de Provence
• salt, pepper

Instructions

1. In a heavy Dutch oven, add the olive oil and bring to a medium to high heat.
2. Dust some flour, salt and pepper on all sides of the chuck roast, shaking off any excess.
3. Place the meat into the pan with the olive oil and brown all around.
4. Remove the meat to a platter.
5. Turn the heat lower and add the sliced onions, cooking them until they caramelize.
6. Add the crushed garlic and cook for a minute or two, then return the meat to the pan.
7. Add the red wine, beef broth, the mushrooms and the liquid from the mushrooms.
8. Add the bay leaves, herbs de Provence, salt and pepper.
9. Place a lid on the pan, then place it on the middle rack of a 350 degree preheated oven for two hours, checking every once in a while to make sure the meat is immersed in liquid.
10. After removing the pan from the oven, gently take the meat out of the pan and onto a platter.
11. This step is not necessary, but it makes for easier slicing, especially if the meat has rested at least a half hour.
12. Reheat the sauce to make sure it’s piping hot, then pour some of the porcinis and sauce over the meat and serve the rest of the sauce on the side.
13. Sprinkle with a little minced parsley for garnish.

3.5.3251

 

Cream of Porcini Mushroom Soup

Don't make this if you're worried about cholesterol. I use a half stick of butter and a half-pint of cream for this recipe. But it's not the kind of soup you'll make everyday. It's a special occasion soup. I ate it at a very special occasion -- the wedding of my nephew Greg and his bride Shea -- in a lovely setting in Montreal, Canada. The ceremony took place at Chateau Ramezay, a structure built in 1705 that served as the residence of Montreal's governor at that time but is now a museum. The reception was held at Duel, a Montreal restaurant whose two chefs maintain a friendly rivalry between Asian and modern French cuisine. I tried to duplicate one of the courses we ate (since the chefs never responded to my request for their recipe) and if my attempt is not exactly the same as theirs, it's pretty darn close -- and pretty darn good. I really wouldn't be too concerned about the calories and cholesterol either. The recipe makes enough to feed eight people. So if I calculate the damage spread throughout that many servings, I think I feel better already.

Here's the beaming couple:

Cream of Porcini Soup

1 ounce dried porcini mushrooms
1/2 stick butter
2 leeks, cleaned and sliced (white part only)
4 shallots, peeled and sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 1/2 cups fresh sliced mushrooms (I used cremini, but you can use button mushrooms if you like)
1 large sweet potato, peeled and diced (you can use white potato if you prefer)
1/2 cup dry vermouth or white wine
4 cups chicken broth
a few sprigs of fresh thyme
1 tsp. salt, or more to taste
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1/2 pint heavy cream

Soak the porcini mushrooms in 2 cups tepid water for at least 1/2 hour. In the meantime, melt the butter and saute the leeks, onions and garlic until transparent. Drain the mushrooms, which have been soaking, and save the soaking liquid. Chop the dried mushrooms and add to the pot with the leeks, onions and garlic. Add the fresh mushrooms, except for about 1/2 cup that you reserve for the end garnish. Continue to saute everything until the mushrooms are cooked through. Strain the water where the porcini were soaking and add to the pot. Add the rest of the ingredients, except the heavy cream. Simmer for at least 1/2 hour or until the potato is cooked through. Put everything into a blender and blend until totally smooth. You'll have to puree everything in about three separate batches. Pour the puree into a clean pan and add the cream, stirring until everything is blended and heated through. Serve with the mushroom garnish floating on top. To make the mushroom garnish: Chop up the remaining 1/2 cup of mushrooms and saute in a couple more tablespoons of butter.