Recipe: Barbecue Pot Roast (using Fire Water) (Marlboro Country Cookbook)

BARBECUE POT ROAST

1 to 2 bone or blade pot roasts 1 1/2 inches thick
3 Tbsp. bacon fat or lard
1/2 tsp. each salt and pepper
3 medium onions, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce
1/2 cup Fire Water (recipe follows) (or water plus 1/4 tsp. Tabasco sauce)
3 Tbsp. brown sugar
1 to 2 tsp. chili powder and dry mustard
1/4 cup cider vinegar
2 Tbsp. spicy steak sauce

Trim meat if needed. Heat bacon fat in a Dutch oven (extra large for 2 roasts); Brown meat on all sides Remove meat from pot and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Add onions and garlic to pot. Cook over medium heat and stir until onions are golden brown. Place meat on top of onions. Mix tomato sauce and Fire Water; pour over meat and onions. Bring to a boil, cover and cook at a slow boil for 1 1/2 hours. Mix sugar, chili powder dry mustard, cider vinegar, and steak sauce; pour over meat and onions. Cover and cook 1 hour. Baste with sauce once or twice. Remove roast and thicken sauce with 2 Tbsp. flour and water, if desired.

One roast makes 4 to 6 servings

FIRE WATER
Makes about 2 cups

Once you've developed a taste for using Fire Water, take the next big step: make it in larger quantities and substitute it in recipes calling for everyday water.

4 or 5 long red or green chili peppers
1 sprig fresh oregano
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp. cumin seed
2 large cloves garlic, peeled and sliced
1 tsp. salt
2 cups boiling water
Dried red pepper flakes, optional

Wash and cut slits in chili pepper, no need to remove seeds.

Put oregano, bay leaf and cumin seed into a clean jar. Add chili peppers, garlic, and salt; pour boiling water over. Cover and let stand overnight.

Strain out solids; pour Fire Water into a glass bottle, adding a few dried pepper flakes, if desired. Refrigerate between uses.

Drizzle Fire water over cooked chicken or meat. Sprinkle over cooked vegetables. Dip crusty bread into it. Add it to soups and stews.

Source: Marlboro Country Cookbook