Jalapeño Pot Roast

This recipe came to me from Stephanie O'Dea's book Make It Fast, Cook It slow. This book is the first that I purchased after receiving my slow cooker about 2 years ago. I have never regretted my purchase and I invite you to check out her blog where she keeps her recipes. I have to say that some recipes were a total disaster, but not the one that follows!

I made this recipe on our anniversary which I had totally forgotten until my boyfriend mentioned it on the morning walk to work. I had planned leftovers for that night and figured that our anniversary deserved better. I rummaged through my freezer and found an expensive cut that I had purchased a few weeks ago when it was on sale. I usually cook my roast beef  in the oven and cringed at the idea of throwing it in the slow cooker, like some cheap piece of meat. But I had no time to defrost, so in there it went, still frozen. So here it goes.


 The Recipe

3 pound chuck roast ( or whatever you have and it can be frozen)
1 (10 ounces) can of cream of something soup (I added 2 cans of cream of mushroom)
2 to 4 tablespoons of jarred jalapeño slices
1 (15 ounce) can of black beans, drained and rinsed (I added red kidney beans)
1 yellow onion, sliced in rings
1 to 2 cups of plain yoghurt or sour cream( I added Greek-style plain yoghurt)


1. Use a 4 qt slow cooker. Put in the meat and add your cream-of whatever soup, the jalapeños, the black beans, as well as the onion slices. Cover and cook on low for 8 to 10 hours.

2. After the meat has cooked, remove it using tongs. Scoop out a cup of the liquid and put it into a mixing bowl with the yoghurt or sour cream. Mix well. Pour the mixture back into the crock and stir to completely dissolve the yoghurt or sour cream. Slice the meat , return to crock and proceed to serve.


The Results


This is a nice alternative to the traditional slow cooker roast. It has a nice spiciness but you can easily choose the spice factor with  the amount of jalapeños and yoghurt that you add. My boyfriend really liked it, as well as my two year old that ate all his meat for the first time in his life.

I enjoyed that all the ingredients were in my pantry and fridge. I keep jarred jalapeños for the days when I feel like making nachos or sandwiches and this was a new way to enjoy them. As for cream-of-something, it is a staple that most people keep on hand. If you prefer home-made, the author suggests to use two cups of your own cream-of-whatever. I must add that my second can of cream of mushroom soup was not necessary. When I was preparing the dish, I thought it looked a bit naked so I just threw an extra one, but one simple can would have suffice.

However, the can of black beans was unnecessary. Sure if you are looking to add beans in your diet, it can be interesting, but I didn't think that it belonged in the dish. It just felt like she had an extra can of beans which she added. So if you don't have beans on hand, or your family doesn't enjoy them, feel free to omit.

I will make this again, but with a cheaper cut so I feel less guilty. We had the leftover in a sandwich on onion bread, it was great!

Delicious Chunky Beef Chili

This recipe was taken out of Donna-Marie Pye's Canada's Best Slow-Cooker Recipes. I found this book at my local library while searching for various slow-cooking books. My book is in French so I will be freely translating the recipe. I bet I translated the name wrong as well, but this recipe is a keeper so bare with me.


The Recipe

1 tbs oil
2lb stew meat in 1cm cubes (I used blade roast since it was on sale)
2 tbs chilli powder
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp dried oregano
3/4 tsp salt
2 medium onions, diced
2 carrots, diced
2 branches of celery, diced
19 oz can of diced tomatoes
19 oz can of chickpeas, rinsed and drained
3 oz of tomato concentrate ( I used half a little can of tomato paste)
1 red pepper, diced (I used green)

1. In a large skillet, heat your oil on medium heat. Add the beef and brown for 7-8 minutes, until it is slightly golden on all sides, Add the spices and cook for 1 minute. Using a slotted spoon, transfer to you slow-cooker.

2. Add the onions, carrots, celery, tomatoes (be sure to add the juices as well), and stir. Place the lid and cook on low for 8-10 hours or 4-6 hours on high. Add the green bell pepper and cook for an additional 20-25 minutes on high.

According to the author, adding the pepper at the end makes it taste better and leaves it crunchier, which I will agree to. She also specifies to use a good quality chilli seasoning and not to replace the chilli with cayenne  (which i also agree to ;) )

The Verdict


Granted, browning the meat prior to slow cooking seems like a bit of a hassle at 7 am while you are trying to get everyone to eat breakfast, get dressed and out the door, but  the smell that came from that skillet when all the spices were in was well-worth it. I just couldn't wait for the evening to chow it all down. I must say that the meat was very tender and quite tasty, which is a something that I find lacking in other meat recipes where the additional step isn't required

I liked that this recipe didn't use ground meat and provided me with an opportunity to liven up my blade roast. I had bought three the previous week while it went on sale, and the idea of my regular stew 3 times in a month bored me to death. Plus, having such a "cheap" cut come out so well is extra icing on the cake.

Another plus is the availability of the ingredients. I usually have all of them lying around and if I don't, the local grocery store will for a good price. The spices above are versatile and most likely will get used in other dishes.

We ate a ton with sour cream and cheese and still had leftovers. My partner in crime told me he normally didn't like chilli, but that he thought this one was amazing. We also ate all the leftovers and were excited about having leftovers, so thumbs up!