Pot-Roasting

A Traditional Method with Contemporary Appeal

Appears in
Cooking One on One
Cooking One on One

By John Ash

Published 2004

  • About
Pot-roasting is most certainly an ancient technique, one that works equally well whether you’re using a heavy iron pot over an open fire, the hot coals at its base, or a modern oven. Pot-roasting is also the perfect way to cook tough pieces of meat—pretty much the only kind available in days gone by.

The French, who are very precise in how they describe cooking methods, would call pot-roasting a braise. Braising is cooking (generally meats) in a tightly covered pot with a small amount of liquid. The technique is ideal for tougher cuts of meat, which contain more collagen, or connective tissues. Long, gentle cooking in a closed pot slowly converts the collagen to gelatin without burning the outside of the meat. This is not a technique you’d use for more expensive, tender cuts of meat, since they have much less connective tissue and they’ll just end up dried out. The other advantage for the health-conscious cook is that pot-roasting renders (melts) much of the fat from the meat so it can be skimmed from the sauce. If the pot roast is made a day ahead, not only does its flavor improve, but the chilled fat can be removed more easily.