Who doesn’t love a good roast dinner?

A real oven roast dinner is a weekend treat in our house. Crispy herb-scented vegetables, a beautiful piece of meat or whole chicken and a thick gravy to pour over it all. Out of all the things I cook, a classic roast is still one of my husband’s favourite meals.

A cheats way of enjoying a roast mid week however, is by using the slow cooker.

This recipe takes about 20 minutes to chop the veggies, brown the piece of beef and pour over the ingredients that will turn into the gravy. If you can find 20 minutes earlier on in the day, then dinner time is simply carving the meat, steaming some greens and serving!

Recently, we walked in the door to this slow cooker roast after a very busy day and a chilly evening at soccer training. I was exhausted and cold, and so were the kids. This being ready to eat was an absolute blessing.

This is my version of a recipe from Slow Cooking by the Australian Women’s Weekly.

Serves 4-6

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil

750-1kg piece of beef blade steak

1 tablespoon of wholegrain mustard

1 spanish onion, peeled, chopped into wedges

2-3 garlic cloves, peeled, left whole

3 large carrots, peeled, cut into chunky long pieces

1/2 a large sweet potato, peeled and cut into thick rounds (or you could use wedges of pumpkin instead)

3-4 washed potatoes, skin on, cut into thick rounds

a few sprigs of fresh rosemary

1/2 cup red wine

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

1 cup beef stock (or 1 cup of water and 1 teaspoon vegemite)

1 tablespoon of cornflour

Method

Place all the vegetables, garlic and rosemary in the bottom of the slow cooker.

Heat olive oil in a frying pan and brown the beef on all sides.

Remove from heat, rub the mustard all over the beef and place on top of the vegetables.

Combine the red wine, balsamic vinegar and stock and pour over the beef and vegetables.

Place the lid on the slow cooker and cook for approx 4-5 hours (or low for 8, high for 4 if you have those settings)

Remove the beef and place on a board, cover with foil and let rest.

Remove the vegetables with a slotted spoon and place on a plate, cover with foil to keep warm.

Strain the gravy left in the bottom of the slow cooker into a small saucepan.

Mix the cornflour with a little cold water and pour into gravy while stirring.

Bring to the boil and simmer for a few minutes until thick.

Carve the meat and serve, covered in gravy, with vegetables and some steamed greens.