Marinade and Seasonings

doesn't matter that much, what's more important is the sauce, which is derived from the marinade.

• sweet
  • ketchup
  • coke
  • sugar
• savory
  • mustard
  • cloves
  • bay leaves
• cajun - throw Essence or some cajun spice blend. Recommended sounds for doing this are:
  • BAM!!
  • WHIFF!!
  • KA-POW!!
  • KA-CHING!!
  • SHO-RYU-KEN!!
  • KAMEHAMEHA!! (more powerful when dragged out for 2 episodes)
  • or any of these will do
• Premade Sauces
  • BBQ sauce

Liquids

The roast and vegetables will give up a lot of water. Keep this in mind. You can drown your roast in an environment like a slow cooker to make lots of sauce, or you can cook it dry and make a pan sauce later from the fond and drippings.

Dry vs wet

dry means the roast is surrounded by air, wet means the roast is submerged. it doesn't matter that much. you can prevent dryness by covering the roast completely. Also, our oven is gas, which is "wetter" than electric ovens.

Searing

Undecided on this if searing is all that great. Gives a nice color to the outside and burned bits taste good. But then again, it doesn't do that much. It does look good though... do it if you're braising. don't do it if you're slow cooking. for everything else, enh, whatever.

Vegetables

• pearl onions - are better than regular onions. They're sweeter and maintain their shape. They won't fall apart like regular onions and so will retain their taste better. When done, pearl onions should be completely soft.
• white onion - get bitter when you cook the hell out of 'em. if you're planning on using onions, I would caramelize them on the stove beforehand.
• carrots - not sure what the best way to cut the carrots are (different techniques change the surface area to volume ratio). But the pieces should be sizable. They're done either when they're about to lose their firmness, or until they're so soft they melt in your mouth. Personal preference.
• potatoes - Red "c" potatoes are common. Any waxy roasting potatoes will do. Baking potatoes will fall apart. Piece potatoes before cooking so they get more flavorful. They're done when completely soft.
• celery - for flavor only, throw away after cooking
• bell pepper - for flavor only, will probably be too soft to use. I've never used them in a roast.

Seasoning

Season the meat dry, then adjust as you go on. Always underseason, as the roast will lose mass, and the liquid will reduce (to make your sauce). If you overseason in the beginning, your gravy/sauce will end up too concentrated.

Heat

Roast at low temperates. Or in a crock pot, or braise. Whatever, they're all kind of similar. In general, you can start with a high heat, but always end in low.

If your roast is surrounded by liquid, it will cook faster. A lot faster it turns out. If you're planning on finishing your roast in the oven, you may want to consider jumpstarting the cooking process by boiling in a flavorful liquid or even <shock> 10 minutes in the microwave </shock>.

Data

Meat	Fat	Result
Pork Shoulder	on outside and marbled	good
Beef Brisket	on outside	alright. needs a good sauce
Beef Chuck	marbled and on outside	good

Results

2 pound (6 hours) chuck shoulder- braised in water and 1 can of coke, 2 sticks of fresh rosemary. at first it was kinda nasty and bitter, but the rosemary mellowed out and the braising liquid reduced to a sweet gravy.

2.4 Lb chuck shoulder - forgot how it ended up. it was good.

1.5 Lb chuck roast - forgot too. it was good though.