The Perfect Holiday Roast

Who doesn’t love a good roast of beef?  The only thing is…it appears a good many of us, 65 per cent in fact, don’t know the difference between an oven roast and a pot roast.  Are YOU in this 65 per cent?  If you are, let’s start at the grocery store.  When you get to the grocery store there are generally three types of roasts you’ll find: Oven Roasts, Pot Roast and Rotisserie Roasts (in this post we’ll only focus on the first two).  Each roast should be labelled with which type of roast it is: oven, pot or rotisserie.  Also on that label should be the cut name, like Top Sirloin (Oven Roast) or Blade (Pot Roast).  Both of these will give you a good idea of what you’re to do with the roast once it is home. 

When it comes time to cook, an oven roast is, well, it’s cooked in the oven.  A pot roast is…you guessed it, cooked it in a pot! 

Let’s look a little more closely at Oven Roasts first.  These are cooked using dry heat – meaning no liquid in the pan and no lid trapping moisture inside.  Literally all you need for a great oven roast is a roast (duh!), a roasting pan, a meat thermometer and an oven (again, duh!).  Of course you can add to the roasts fabulousness by adding some seasonings like fresh ground pepper or garlic. 

Cook your oven roast using the simple step by step cooking guide, or by watching the video.  There are oodles of great recipes too.  I prefer simple ones, like this.  What do you prefer, simple or extravagant?

Now onto the Pot Roast, Pot Roasts are usually less tender cuts of meat, which is 1) why they are a little more value priced than oven roasts and 2) why they should be cooked using moist heat, by either braising, pot roasting or simmering in a liquid.  The joy of pot roasts is how fork-tender they get after a slow steady simmer.  I’m always amazed at the transformation! 

Cook your pot roasts using the simple step by step cooking guide, or by watching the video.  And of course, there are amazing recipes.  This is my favourite one.  Are you a pot roast purist only cooking the roast, or do you like to add veggies into the mix?

So, did you learn something new?  Are you now confident to make the ultimate roast?  Anything I missed?  

P.S. If you don’t have all the tools you need to make the ultimate oven roast, don’t forget to enter to win a super amazing Roasting Cookware Prize Package worth almost $500.  The contest closes January 4^th, 2011.