Pot Roast Pappardelle

A couple weekends ago when Hurricane Irene hit, all I wanted was comfort food; this pot roast fit the bill (and thankfully, we didn't lose power). The slow-cooked tender meat can be served as its own course with some wide pappardelle noodles coated in its sauce as another course, or the meat can be shredded and added right to the sauce to top the pappardelle. We opted for the latter.

This recipe comes from Domenica Marchetti's The Glorious Pasta of Italy, which you may already be realizing is my current go-to cookbook. Every time I flip through it, I find something else I want to make, and everything I've made from it has been so full of flavor and satisfying -- this pot roast is no exception.

I made the simple tomato sauce from Marchetti's book as well, but you can use store-bought sauce if you prefer. When I was looking for a dry white wine for the recipe, I came across Tavola food wine at Whole Foods. The wine bottle had tomatoes pictured on the label, and I was only too happy to incorporate it into the dish.

While the pot roast takes a little hands-on prep time at the beginning, for the most part it slowly braises in the oven, and you can put your feet up and relax while it cooks. It's a perfect Sunday evening meal. And you'll probably have plenty of leftovers to eat throughout the week as well.

Pot Roast Pappardelle (adapted from The Glorious Pasta of Italy)

Ingredients

1 (2 1/2 to 3 pound) boneless chuck roast, tied
Kosher salt and pepper
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 large yellow onion, finely chopped
2 carrots, peeled and finely chopped
2 celery ribs, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, lightly crushed
1 1/2 teaspoons finely chopped, fresh thyme
1 cup dry white wine
1 cup simple tomato sauce
1 cup water
12 ounces pappardelle
Freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, for serving

Preparation

Heat oven to 325 degrees.

Season the roast on all sides with salt and pepper.

Heat oil in Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Once the oil is hot, place the roast in the pan, and turn it every 3 to 4 minutes to brown it on all sides. Transfer the roast to a plate.

Reduce heat to medium, and add onions, carrots, celery, and garlic to the pot. Cook, stirring frequently, for about 10 minutes, or until vegetables are softened and onion is golden.

Stir in the thyme and the wine, tomato sauce, and water.

Return the meat to the pot, along with any juices that accumulated on the plate.

Bring liquid to a simmer, cover, and place the pot in the oven. Braise the meat, turning it every 45 minutes or so, for about 2 1/2 hours or until meat is fork-tender and sauce has thickened. (At this point, I turned the oven off and left the roast in there until we were ready to eat, about an hour later, to keep it warm.)

Remove the roast from the pot, and slice and shred it.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, and cook pappardelle according to package directions. After draining pasta, return it to the pot, and stir a little of the sauce into it.

Transfer the shredded meat to the Dutch oven, and stir it into the sauce.

Place some pappardelle on each plate, and spoon the meat and sauce over the pasta. Sprinkle with Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, and serve.

Store the pasta and sauce separately in refrigerator in airtight containers. Each night, we reheated some of the pot roast and sauce in a skillet, stirred in some pappardelle, and cooked everything together.

Like it or not, fall is coming. (I'm kind of excited for it.) What comfort foods are you looking forward to this fall?