The usual cuts for a pot roast are chuck, shoulder, rump or round. The piece should weigh 4 or 5 pounds (a smaller piece is apt to dry out too much). The pan for pot roasting should be a deep, heavy one with a tight cover. Mix: 2 tsp. salt 1/4 tsp. pepper 1/2 tsp. sugar to help browning

Pat into the surface of 4 or 5 pound piece of beef. Heat a deep, heavy pan over high heat, greasing it lightly if the beef is very lean. Put in the meat and brown it thoroughly on all sides. Cook with the meat 1 or 2 slices of onion or add 1 package of onion soup mix with the liquid. When the meat is a dark, rich brown (this may take 30 minutes or longer), put a low rack under it so that it will not stick. Add 1/2 cup water or tomato juice. Put on the cover, lower the heat and cook very slowly until the meat is fork tender, 3-4 hours. Add a little liquid from time to time as it cooks away, but never have the liquid more than 1 inch deep. Put the meat on a heated platter to keep warm while you make the gravy. There will be much more liquid than for oven roasted beef, so pour it into a jar and cool it 10 minutes. You can then take off the fat easily, leaving plenty of clear juice. Add consomme or water to make plenty of gravy for second servings or for the next day. Serves 10-12.