A couple months ago I was inspired to try to create some unique pot roast recipes that have an international flare. Pot roast is such a classic American dish, but I wanted to spice it up with some different flavors from around the world.
My definition of pot roast is slow cooked braised beef served with a starch and a vegetable. Potatoes are the standard starch but I have gone outside the box in using things like soba noodles and couscous. As for the veggies, carrots are the standard but sometimes I change it up like with adding some steamed broccoli at the end.
Moroccan Inspired Pot Roast with Couscous and Chickpeas
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Chickpeas and couscous
are both enjoyed in Moroccan cuisine. They both provide a nice texture balance that takes what is normally a heavy meal and lightens it up. I slow cook the chickpeas before hand which gives them a creamy texture and then add them to the pot roast at the end.
I cooked the couscous by steaming it via the Alton Brown method. This made it light and fluffy, without being gummy.
Greek Inspired Pot Roast Recipe
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In Greece, they serve a stew called Youvetsi (pronounced yoo-VEH-tsee). This stew contains tomatoes and orzo
. It was the inspiration for this pot roast. I choose to use a whole wheat orzo. Normally I am not a fan of whole wheat pasta, however the whole wheat flavor blends right in with the beef.
The perfect topping for this pot roast is some freshly chopped Greek oregano and feta cheese. The feta adds a tanginess to the dish.
Asian Inspired Pot Roast Recipe
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When I think of Asian flavors, soy sauce and ginger are the first two to come to mind. So those were the first two ingredients I gathered for this Asian inspired pot roast. I used fresh ginger that I grated before hand. For the startch I choose soba noodles
, which are made of buckwheat and are popular in Japan.
Instead of using carrots this time around, I choose to used steamed broccoli that I added at the table. Beef and broccoli is a popular dish found in American Asian restaurants, so that was my inspiration there.