so this is fun… the leaves are falling, the air is chilled… that means its SLOW COOKER SEASON!
hooray! every lazy cook’s favourite time of the year. i for one, am a huge fan.
but i’ll be honest… there gets to be a point when everything you throw in the slow cooker kinda starts to feel the same… it’s broth or tomato base… its a soup or a stew… since it comes from *my* slow cooker, its usually spicy and slightly mexican seasoned… it has mirepoix or similar for the veg…
yes, its easy to get into a slow cooker rut.
i did however find a fun listing of “30 nights of paleo crock pot meals” which has breathed new life into my slow cooker (can i from here on just refer to it as the SC? perfect.)
so yesterday i decided to try out the recipe from civilized caveman cooking for a balsamic roast.
i basically had all the ingredients in my house (besides the roast, which a quick trip to the farm solved) and it sounded different and tasty. plus we buy a balsamic vinegar from costco that is not only delicious, but in a giant bottle, so i always feel the need to cook with a lot of it whenever possible.
step 1 – season & sear off the roast.
i used paprika, garlic salt, salt & pepper for seasoning and then seared it at high heat with coconut oil in my non stick.
it was smoky in my kitchen for 5am, lol. but we were rewarded with a beautiful sear on that little fucker.
oh, it was a small beef top sirloin roast about 1lb – served 2 people. the recipe calls for a 2lb roast but obviously serves more.
step 2 – veggies meet meat.
the recipe called for onions only, but i had carrots & celery handy, so i threw together the tried & true mirepoix.
i used a whole yellow onion as per the recipe and 2 sticks of celery & 2 carrots.
then lovingly placed the seared roast on top.
step 3 – add liquid.
the recipe told me to deglaze the pan with the wine & water, but since i seared mine at such a high heat, the pan had some black bits that i decided i should live without.
also, the recipe calls for white wine – which with beef seemed weird to me. so i used red. also i had red open already and not white, so there’s that.
i combined the following and poured it into the SC:
- 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
- 1 cup tomato sauce (i used the italian kind in the glass bottle)
- 1/2 cup of red wine
- 1/3 cup of water
of course, throw in a pinch of salt for good measure and some cracked black pepper.
step 4 – cook on low for however long you’re going to be out of the house for. mine went for 12 hours.
step 5 – serve and eat up!
final thoughts – as always, i think every recipe can benefit from chili flakes. but also i think its worth mentioning that often in recipes like this, i’ll remove the meat and use my immersion blender to puree the slow cooked veg, making the sauce thicker and more gravy-like. that would have been delightful in this case.
the vinegar gave a nice acidity but didn’t overwhelm anything and the beef turned out delightfully slow cooker perfect.
and my house smelled fucking spectacular when i got home.
SC win!
here’s the original recipe for those that like to play by the rules.
Crockpot Balsamic Roast
Ingredients
- 2 Lb any roast, I used Top Round
- 1 Large Sweet Onion, sliced
- 8 Ounces Tomato Sauce
- 1/2 Cup Balsamic Vinegar
- 1/2 Cup Water
- 2 Tbsp White Wine
- 2 Tbsp Coconut Oil
- Rub(Amount to your taste): Salt, Black Pepper, Garlic Powder, Onion Powder, Smoked Paprika
Cooking Steps
Season your roast on both sides generously with the spices listed above to your liking
Heat your coconut oil in a large pan over medium-high heat, once warm sear each side of your roast for 3-4 minutes
Place your sliced onions in the bottom of your crock pot and put your seared meat on top of the onions
Combine your balsamic vinegar and tomato sauce in a bowl and mix well, then pour over your meat in the crock pot
Add your water and white wine to your pan and de-glaze it
Pour this mixture in your crock pot as well
Place the lid on, set to low and cook for 6-8 hours
Enjoy
