— from the kitchen of the Garza family
The Garza family came home from mass every Sunday morning and the roast went in. It had been that way since before anyone could remember — since Grandma Ofelia started it sometime in the 1960s and nobody ever thought to stop.
The whole family knew when they were getting close to the house. You could smell it from the end of the block. The front door would be unlocked, the TV already on, and the roast sitting in the oven like it had always been there and always would be.
"It didn't need an occasion. Sunday was the occasion. That's what my grandmother always said."
For forty years, Grandma Ofelia made it the same way — chuck roast, garlic pushed into slits in the meat, onion and carrot, a splash of Worcestershire that she poured without measuring. She cooked it low and slow until the meat fell apart when you touched it with a fork.
When she passed in 2011, her daughter Carmen took over. Carmen makes it the same way, every Sunday. She says the smell is the hardest part — how it takes her right back to being eight years old, sitting on the kitchen floor waiting for her mother to say it was ready.
Preheat your oven to 300°F. Use a knife to cut small slits all over the roast and push a piece of garlic into each one. Season generously all over with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder.
Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven over high heat. Sear the roast on all sides until deeply browned, about 3–4 minutes per side. Don't rush this — the crust is where the flavor starts. Remove and set aside.
Turn the heat to medium. Add the onion and cook for 2 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste and cook another minute. Pour in the beef broth and Worcestershire, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot.
Return the roast to the pot. Nestle the carrots around it. Cover tightly and transfer to the oven. Cook for 2½ hours.
Add the potatoes, pushing them down into the liquid. Cover and return to the oven for another 45 minutes to 1 hour, until the potatoes are tender and the meat pulls apart easily with a fork.
Let rest for 10 minutes before serving. Serve in the pot, at the table, with warm tortillas or bolillo rolls to soak up the broth.
From the family
The key is low and slow — don't try to rush it at a higher temperature. Carmen says her grandmother would put it in before church and it would be ready when the family got home. Start it early and let it do its thing.
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