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Elegant chuck roast dinner??

post #1 of 12
11/3/12 at 12:38pm
Thread Starter 

Dry roasting a chuck roast? I usually braise it but I'm thinking, can I roast it?  I don't mean like a regular roast beef where it's red in the middle.  Obviously this will have to cook through.  I recall asking this question before about an elegant pork butt dinner and I was so pleased with French Fries' method that I've roasted it a few times for dinner parties.  Here's that thread http://www.cheftalk.com/t/67835/elegant-pork-butt-dinner

 

So I'm thinking about using the same cooking method to do this chuck roast.  Think it'll work?


Edited by Koukouvagia - 11/5/12 at 3:29am
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post #2 of 12
11/5/12 at 3:30am
Thread Starter 

Update:  Since I could find zero information on how to dry roast I went ahead and made the chuck into a killer pot roast using a recipe from the Pioneer Woman.  It was excellent but I still want to know if I can dry roast a chuck. 

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post #3 of 12
11/5/12 at 6:10am

My personal opinion and experience is that a chuck roast is way too tough to dry roast.

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post #4 of 12
11/5/12 at 3:57pm

I slow smoke chuck dry so yes it can be done. I do foil (I do not add any liquid) during the last 2 hours though. So it is a combo dry roast and self braise at the end.

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post #5 of 12
11/6/12 at 1:12am
Sure it can be dry roasted. As MaryB indicated smoking is a method of low temperature dry roasting. Here lower temps are preferred over high heat roasting for tough cuts like chuck and brisket. The connective tissue that makes these cuts tough and the fat break down and provide a lot of moisture in the finished product. The end result can be very tender and moist. No reason why this can't be done in an oven with no smoke. And elegance is more about presentation

You can't lay on the beach and drink rum all day unless you start in the morning

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post #6 of 12
11/6/12 at 4:28am
Thread Starter 

Thanks MaryB, I have a smoker but I'd like to try it in the oven.  And in the end you to wrap in foil which I consider braising in its own juices.  I have a method for dry roasting eye-round that I learned from America's Test Kitchen which involves rubbing it with a generous amount of salt and letting stand in the fridge over night.  Then sear it on all sides and slide into a very low oven.  In the last half hour the I turn off the oven and let the roast sit in there.  It cooks to medium and is incredibly juicy and tender.  I don't know if that would work with a chuck though considering how much fat and connective tissue it has comparatively. 

 

Quote:
Originally Posted by Scubadoo97 View Post

...And elegance is more about presentation

 

True true.  By elegant I just mean is it fancy enough to serve at a holiday dinner party?  I consider pot roast a weekday dish.  Not that it's not good, just not fancy enough I guess.

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post #7 of 12
11/6/12 at 12:45pm

Can try it, if it turns out dry chop it for chili or shred for chimi's. Save the pan juices to pour over after defatting. Chuck has such great flavor it would be worth experimenting.

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post #8 of 12
11/6/12 at 1:44pm

A chuck of beef has very little fat. It is good for stew, pot roast  or sauerbratin.or beef a la mode(anything cooked with liquid like braising) I really do not even think slow smoking will help because of the absence of any fat.

CHEFED
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post #9 of 12
11/6/12 at 6:18pm
Chuck usually has ~30% fat. I would not call that lean

You can't lay on the beach and drink rum all day unless you start in the morning

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post #10 of 12
11/7/12 at 3:11am

Retail cuts from the arm chuck are more or less trimmed whereas a whole chuck before cutting and trimming may well contain 25-30% fat., but after we finish butchering the meat it does'nt.. In any event it is best cooked with liquid.

Chef EdB
Over 50 years in food service business 35 as Ex Chef. Specializing in Volume upscale Catering both on and off premise .(former Exec. Chef in the largest on premise caterer in US  with 17 Million Dollars per year annual volume). 
      Well versed in all facets of Continental Cuisine...
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post #11 of 12
11/7/12 at 4:06am
Thread Starter 

The chuck I buy seems to have lots of fat.  Anyway, it's already a pot roast and even that's gone.  I buy chuck often so I will give this a try.  It can't hurt.

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post #12 of 12
11/7/12 at 12:28pm

Even trimmed chuck has quite a bit of fat and connective tissue. And I slow smoke them several times a year for pulled beef sandwiches. Could get a whole chuck roll and do your own cutting, usually cheaper this way too! Most retail chuck cuts I see now are to thin, for a slow dry cook I use a 3 to 4 inch thick roast.

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