Upgrade Your Pot Roast With One Boozy Ingredient

Pot roast is a classic, cozy dish that's familiar and always inviting. It's one of those recipes that can be made by heart — season and sear the meat, saute the veggies, then cook in beef broth and wine. Although vino is typically relied on to prepare pot roast, beer is the boozy ingredient that will elevate your pot roast.

Like beer, pot roast has a hearty, warm flavor. Wine is a top-notch choice, but in our opinion, this malted, sweet drink embraces the intricacies of pot roast much better. Beer imparts the beef with a delicious, yeasty flavor in a more warming way than tart, fruit-forward wine. Also, it's great at softening meat and breaking it down into something more tender, which is perfect for when you want a melt-in-your-mouth pot roast.

There aren't any changes you need to make when using beer to make a roast. You can choose to deglaze the onions and garlic with beef broth then simmer everything in the alcoholic beverage, or just use it throughout the entire dish. Stick with normal seasonings like salt and pepper, as well as using woodsy herbs such as rosemary and thyme. However, it's also a good move to branch out to things that complement your beer of choice, like bay leaves, tarragon, or mushrooms.

Pot roast has an intense, beefy flavor, so when cooking with beer, opting for a rich stout or porter will best match the dish. These types of drinks tend to have a higher ABV that lends to their flavor, thus making your pot roast more delicious. The heady beers are nutty and full-bodied, with a slight chocolate flavor that sweetens the meat perfectly.

Chocolate and steak is an unlikely pairing that brings rich results, so it's not strange to cook pot roast with beer that has a cocoa undertone. To balance the sweetness, add earthy mushrooms and garlic to a rump roast prepared with a stout or porter. Enhance the flavor of the fungi and alliums by sauteing them in truffle oil before deglazing them with a splash of this alcoholic beverage. 

For super tender herb and fig pot roast, simmer the beef in a Belgian-style dubbel. The amber brew has a slight sweetness from chocolate and caramel tasting notes, but its medium body prevents it from being overpowering, perfect for the sticky-sweet figs.

When making harissa beef pot roast, it's best to go with something slightly lighter, like an amber lager. The medium-bodied beer is a little sweet, with a low bitterness that won't mask the heat of harissa. With a soft, roasted flavor and toffee-like finish, it's perfect for amping up the coziness of beef.