Recipe of the Week

Mexican Pot Roast in a Tequila-and-Chile Sauce

Spice Rub:
-1 teaspoon ground cumin
-2 teaspoons fresh oregano, chopped (or 1 teaspoon dried)
-2 teaspoons pure New Mexico, California, or Ancho Chile Poweder
-1/8 teaspoon ground allspice
-2 teaspoons salt
-1 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground

Pot Roast:
-1 boneless chuck roast or rump roast (about 4 lbs), tied
-1 tablespoon olive oil
-2 cups onions, thinly sliced
-2 tablespoons garlic, finely chopped
-3 tablespoons tomato paste
-1 cup tequila
-2 tablespoons tomato paste
-1 tablespoon fresh oregano, chopped (or 1 1/2 teaspoons dried)
-2 tablespoons (about 1 chile) fresh jalapeno, chopped (optional)
-1/2 cup pineapple juice, fresh or canned
-1/4 cup lime juice, freshly squeezed
-1 cup canned low-sodium chicken broth
-1 bunch cilantro stems, finely chopped (save leaves for garnish)
-salt
-black pepper, freshly ground
-lime juice

Garnish:
-fresh pineapple, cut into chunks
-reserved fresh cilantro leaves, chopped
-red onion, finely chopped

1.  Preheat oven to 325 F
2.  In a small bowl, combine all rub ingredients.  Sprinkle over meat.
3.  Heat oil in a large, heavy-lidded pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat and brown meat until all sides are nicely browned, about 7 to 10 minutes.  Transfer meat to a platter.  Pour off all but 2 tablespoons or so fat and add onions. 
4.  Cover pot and cook onions until they are soft and just beginning to color, about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Stir in garlic and chile powder and cook 1 minute.
5.  Pour in tequila and stir, scraping up any browned bits from bottom of the pan.  Bring to a boil and reduce tequila to about half.  Add tomato paste, oregano, optional jalapeno, pineapple juice, lime juice, chicken broth, cilantro stems.  Stir and bring to a boil.
6.  Add back reserved meat.  Reduce to a simmer, cover, and place in middle of oven.  Bake until meat is fork-tender, about 2 hours.  If not tender, continue to cook, checking every 15 minutes.  Transfer pot to stove-top.  Remove and keep meat warm and degrease the liquid.   
7.  Reduce liquid at a boil until it just becomes syrupy.  Season with salt, pepper, and lime juice if needed. 
8.  Slice meat into 1/2 inch thick slices or cut into chunks and arrange on a platter.  Pour on some of the sauce.  Let guests add their own garnishes to taste. 

Mark LOVES this dish, and we found that shredding the leftover meat, warming up some corn tortillas and topping with the Garnish ingredient turned the pot roast into amazing tacos!!!

Enjoy!