Mini Pot Roast Dinner, in Under an Hour, a dinner idea!

Cooking almost every meal we eat, is my usual kitchen style. Often requiring a bit of creative license to use what we have on hand in the pantry. When eating dinner, my husband will turn to me and say, "are you going to blog this?” And that is how a dinner idea came to be...not really a recipe, but too good, not to share.

Any time I can find sliced beef shank meat in the meat case, I buy it!

You see, we love a tender pot roast, with carrots and potatoes and a thickened pan gravy. But what we don't like is the high price of a piece of beef, to make a Pot Roast dinner...and then I remembered this idea from one of my grandmother's cookbooks. A recipe to use beef shank meat to make individual Pot Roast Dinners. And from there I took over! To make this quick and easy, I am using a pressure cooker, because everyone needs a delicious Pot Roast dinner to fall back on. 

This could not be simpler, and it turns out tender every time!

Loading your pressure cooker takes about ten minutes even with browning the meat, and peeling the potatoes and carrots. But once seasoned you simply set the cooking time and relax. Making a salad could work out without too much trouble. Or if you are like me, another load of laundry! After the NPR rest period, put everything on a platter, thicken the pan juices and dinner is ready!

Cooks tip: When you brown the shank and it curls up, use a pair of scissors as shown and cut the sinew so that the meat will lay flat while cooking. 

Some additional thoughts on this recipe:

I do not use the sauté feature on my Instant Pot/pressure cooker. I believe it does not get hot enough to sear meat for flavor, but I do use it to thicken the gravy when the NPR rest is over. 

With that said if you like the sauté feature, please use it as you wish. 

For variety add mushrooms, or other root vegetables.

For those that love sour cream gravy, stir in a couple of tablespoons right before serving!

And finally this! Like most appliances, I have discovered that my Instant Pot cooks slightly different, from the many recipes I have tried, indicate. My current model seems to need an additional minute or two. Adjust the cooking time listed in the recipe if needed for your particular model. 

Ingredients needed for this recipe: 

• beef shank meat
• onion
• garlic
• carrots
• potatoes
• salt 
• fresh ground pepper
• beef broth
• cornstarch

You will also need:

• pressure cooker
• vegetable peeler
• small skillet
• kitchen fork
• kitchen knife
• glass measuring cup
• measuring spoons
• platter for serving

Now we are ready to begin!

Dice the onion and mince the garlic and put in the bottom of the pressure cooker, there is no need to sauté. 

Brown the beef shank slices. 

Turn and brown the other side. 

Place on top of the onions and garlic in the pressure cooker, season with salt and pepper.

Peel enough carrots for each serving to have two carrots. (since I knew we could get two dinners out of this much meat, I peeled eight carrots) Place the whole peeled carrots on top of the beef. 

Peel a potato for each serving. Place the peeled potatoes on top of the carrots. Season with salt and fresh ground pepper. 

Pour one cup of beef broth into the pan. 

Close the InstantPot/pressure cooker, making sure the vent is also closed. Set the cooking time for 25 minutes. 

When cooking time is up, allow to rest for 15 minutes NPR before opening the cooker. 

Carefully place the meat and cooked vegetables on a serving platter. 

To thicken the gravy place 1/4 c water in a small bowl (or use the measuring cup to save a dish!) and stir in 1 generous tablespoon of cornstarch.  Stir until no lumps remain.  

Using the InstantPot/pressure cooker sauté feature, add the cornstarch mixture, stirring well. Cook and stir until gravy is thickened. 

Serve gravy in a separate bowl. 

Storage options for Mini Pot Roast Dinner in Under an Hour. Store covered in the refrigerator for up to three days. You may freeze for longer storage time, however do expect some changes in texture when thawed. Let thaw in the refrigerator before reheating. 

You may also enjoy: 

Chocolate, Chocolate Chip Bread Pudding. 

#wholefoodingredients

#scratchmadefoodforyourfamily

#adinneridea

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