Balsamic Braised Beef

By ezunich

Ingredients

• 4 oz pancetta, diced
• 1 bone in beef chuck roast (5 lb) trimmed and seasoned with salt and black pepper
• 2 cups chopped onions
• 1 cup chopped carrots
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 5 cloves garlic, smashed
• 1 tbs mustard seeds
• 2 tbs tomato past
• 1/2 cup dry red wine
• 1 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
• 2 bay leaves
• 3 sprigs fresh rosemary, divided
• 2 tbs honey
• 1/2 oz dried porcini mushrooms
• 1 tsp unsalted butter
• 1 tsp flour

Preparation

Step 1

Cook pancetta in a large sauté pan until crisp, 20 minutes; transfer to a paper towel lined plate and reserve drippings. Sear roast in drippings until brown on all sides, 15 minutes; transfer to a 7-8 qt slow cooker. Sauté onions, carrots, celery, garlic and mustard seeds in same an until liquid starts to release, 1-2 minutes. Stir in tomato paste and cook until it begins to caramelize, 2-3 minutes. Deglaze pan with wine, scraping up any brown bits. Cook mixture until wine nearly evaporates, 2 minutes; transfer to slow cooker. Add vinegar, bay leaves, 2 sprigs rosemary, honey and mushrooms to slow cooker. Cover slow cooker and cook roast until fork tender on high setting, about 5 hours. Transfer roast to a cutting board and break in to pieces using two forks, discard any excess fat. Strain braising liquid through a fine mesh sieve; discard solids. Skim any fat from surface of ;liquid and discard. Transfer liquid to a saucepan with remaining rosemary sprig over medium heat. Bring liquid to a simmer and reduce to 1 1/4 cups; discard rosemary. Combine butter and flour, then whisk into reduced liquid. Simmer sauce until thickened, 2 minutes; season with salt and pepper.