Braised Beef

Braising is cooking in a tightly covered dish with a good amount of liquid, low heat and for a considerable
time.  Most crock pot cooking is braising, and we in the United States call braised beef pot roast. Here is the
basic recipe.  Several ways to finish it are suggested in this cookbook.

Trim the excess fat from a three to four pound beef roast.  Do the best you can removing the fat but don't
remove dense connective tissues: they will contribute nicely to the broth the meat is braised in.  I prefer
boneless shoulder or eye of round roasts, but boneless chuck or seven bone roasts work well although the
finished roast and gravy may be a bit greasy.  If the beef is wet dry it with a towel or paper towels so that it will
brown properly.  Heat a skillet or casserole over high heat, add enough peanut or olive oil so that the pan's
bottom is coated, and when the oil is hot put the roast into the pan.  Turning with tongs, brown every side of the
roast.  This will take ten to fifteen minutes.  You can minimize spattering by browning the roast in a casserole
or other high sided pan.  If you make a mess with spattering, don't fret.  It usually happens and I just clean
up a little later.

At this point you can set the browned beef on a clean plate and procede to finish and season it.  The traditional
French method is to both brown then braise the beef in the same heavy casserole.  For all the variations that
follow you should remove the grease remaining in the casserole or sautée pan but don't wash it yet.

The braising is best done in a 275F (135C) oven for at least 2 hours.  This will use more energy and warm your
kitchen which, depending on the season, may be what you want.  Another alternative is to braise in a crock pot
which will give the same cooking results with much less energy used and not heat your house.  It's your choice
but don't omit the browning.  It makes a big difference.  Finish the roast in one of the suggested ways.