# Elk Pot Roast in a crockpot



## alleyyooper (Jul 6, 2007)

Ingredients
•Elk chuck/shoulder roast of any size.
•1/2C red wine
•32oz beef broth (I prefer the lower sodium kind)
•14.5oz can of petite-diced tomatoes
•2T flour
•1 onion
•2C tiny carrots (about half a bag)
•3-4 stalks of celery
•3+ cloves of garlic
•1 turnip*
•1 parsnip*
•2 rutabega*
•2-3 bay leaves
•1 big sprig of rosemary
•a few peppercorns
•3-4 potatoes
•2T butter

Preparation

Start by browning the meat on all sides in a very hot pan. Elk is very lean, so I rub it with vegetable oil first and give it a light salting. While the meat is resting, deglaze the pan with the red wine and some beef broth. Dump that into the Crock Pot.

Make a slurry of the flower and some (cold) beef broth. Dump that in along with the can of tomatoes and the remaining broth.

*I use my pot roast as an excuse to eat all those weird root vegetables that you might not otherwise try! I peel them and chop them into roughly very large egg-sized chunks. Don't do the potatoes just yet - we'll add those later in the day so they don't turn to mush. If you don't want to use those vegetables or can't get them, I'd subsitute a couple more large potatoes, and put two whole (or halved if very large) peeled ones in right now.

Cut the celery into about 2-3 inch pieces and toss that in along with the quartered onion (broken up), carrots, and as much smashed or rough-chopped garlic as you like.

I like to use a tea ball to hold my herbs. If you don't have one, you can either use a "bouquet garni" or just fish them out later. Break up the bay leaves and strip a sprig of rosemary and put all the leaves into the ball along with the peppercorns. I tie it to the pot handle with some string.

Put in the roast, tied if necessary, working it down to about the middle of the pot with veggies above and below. I usually hit the pot with a few twists of the pepper grinder at this time, and (when the wife isn't looking) a couple shakes of crushed red pepper.

Cooking

Just throw everything but the potatoes into the Crock Pot and turn it on low. About 1.5 hours before dinner time, add the peeled and quartered potatoes and turn it on high. Mine usually ends up with a total cooking time of about 8 hours.

About 20-30 minutes before dinner, you'll need to reduce the liquid to make a nice sauce/gravy. Take the meat out and set it on the cutting board and tightly cover it with foil. Take the vegetables out with a slotted spoon and put them in a covered bowl. Pour the remaining liquid through a strainer into a large pot. Boil over high heat to reduce, stirring semi-frequently, scraping the bottom of the pot. I do this for about 20 minutes, until it coats my spoon with a nice gravy-like consistency. Right at the end, stir in the butter to finish the sauce. I usually end up with a little over 2 cups of rich, dark brown sauce.

If you're going to serve bread or biscuits, the perfect opportunity to get those in the oven is during sauce reduction.

Slice the meat and serve family-style.

 Al


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