It may sound weird but my family gave this root beer pot roast at least a hundred and fifteen stars.  Maybe more.  There is something about the soda that makes the meat buttery and tender, absolutely melt in your mouth good.  The root beer adds a subtle sweetness and a nice spicy touch.

Since it is cooked in a slow cooker the actual work time for this is less than 10 minutes.  The carrots added to the cooking liquer give it an added sweetness and onion adds a little depth.  It is very similar to a Sauerbraten in many ways.  Serve it with some homemade rolls and mashed potatoes and your Sunday family dinner is Mayberry RFD perfect.

The kind of root beer that you use will make such a difference in this.  I suggest that you try an artisan microbrewed root beer for the very best results…but A & W would be my next choice.  Remember that the complexity of flaqvors in the root beer will creat the complexity of flavors in the finished dish so a fake, chemically rootbeer will never be as good as a good one.  End of sermon.

Root Beer Pot Roast

• Black Angus organic pot roast, 5 lbs
• 36 ozs of root beer, room temperature
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 10 organic carrots, peeled and cut into chunks
• 1-2 onions, optional

Season roast on all sides and set aside for 15 minutes while you prepare the carrots.

Heat a frying pan and add just a touch of olive oil.

Brown roast on all sides, just until you get that nice caramelization crispiness to the meat.

Pour 1/3 of the room temperature root beer into the slow cooker.

Add the meat carefully.

Add the carrots and onions if you are using them

Pour the rest of the root beer over the roast and cook on low for 8 to 10 hours.

Serves 8-10 hungry people

images:c) restless chipotle 2009, all rights reserved.