We decide to make a pot roast mainly because our husband spent the vast majority of his childhood summer vacations sharing the backseat of a silver stationwagon with his two brothers, while the family made their way from Philadelphia to Pine Knoll Shores, North Carolina. They were on their way to visit their beloved Grandma Mooney. The ride took a minimum of 9 hours but usually ended up being 12 or more laborious, soul-crushing hours in the car.
The culmination of each road trip was arriving in North Carolina fuzzy headed, cooped up, sitting down to eat leathery slices of roast, and then falling dead asleep.
In a Dutch oven heat two tablespoons of oil on fairly high heat and brown the roast on all sides. Then add one cup each of chopped onion, carrots, celery, and 2/3 cup water. Adding red wine is optional - we did. Then cover, and either cook on the stovetop reducing the heat to medium low or throw it in the oven with a temperature of 300. (We opted for the oven and put our temperature at 350). The roast should cook for three to three and a half hours.
While eating, we talk about the silver station wagon making its way to North Carolina, three boys listening to a Star Wars recording (where Han Solo was voiced unfortunately by the actor who played "Face" on the A-Team), and the whole ordeal of the family ritual fading away the next morning as soon as they wake up and take off for the beach.
