The Simple Joys of Country Living: A Classic Sunday Dinner

Growing up in rural America was a vastly different experience from the one we know today. The Dust Bowl, which lasted from 1930 to 1940, had a profound impact on the country and its people. It taught them what it truly meant to survive, work hard, and rely on each other for support. In this classic Sunday dinner, we will revisit those simple yet meaningful traditions that defined our forefathers' lives.

A House Full of Folks

It's astonishing how someone could fit an entire generation into a relatively small house. Those folks were little, but they knew what hard times were all about. They had to rely on each other for help, whether it was building fences, working cows, or pulling windmills. Their daily lives revolved around community and mutual support. We can only imagine the countless hours spent helping neighbors in need, sharing meals together, and relying on one another for comfort.

Sunday Dinner: A Time of Reflection

Sunday dinner is often considered one of the best times of the week. It's a time to slow down, savor good food, and spend quality time with family and friends. In this classic Sunday dinner, we will focus on traditional dishes that were staples of our forefathers' lives. The centerpiece of the meal is a slow-cooked chuck roast, which has been smoked to perfection. Alongside it, we have a medley of steamed vegetables, including carrots, potatoes, and green beans.

Preparing for the Big Meal

Before we begin cooking, let's take a moment to appreciate the simple joys of country living. There's something special about working outdoors, breathing in fresh air, and feeling connected to nature. As we prepare for Sunday dinner, we must remember that it's not just about the food; it's about the time spent together as a family.

Preparing the Carrots

One of my favorite parts of this meal is preparing the carrots. I like to leave them whole, but I do take some liberties with them. To get rid of the outer peeling, I use a knife to scrape it off, making sure to reserve any larger carrots for splitting. This process may seem old-fashioned, but it's essential in bringing out the natural sweetness of these delicious vegetables.

The Magic of Smoked Meat

When it comes to smoked meat, there's no substitute for tradition. My slow-cooked chuck roast has been infused with a rich, smoky flavor that's sure to satisfy even the most discerning palate. I take pride in my ability to create tender, fall-apart meat that's both flavorful and full of character.

Gravy: The Final Touch

No Sunday dinner is complete without a good gravy. To create this classic accompaniment, I use a combination of beef broth, evaporated milk, and cornstarch. By simmering the mixture until it thickens to perfection, I'm able to pour it over the roast, vegetables, and potatoes in a beautiful, golden brown sauce.

Family and Faith

As we sit down to enjoy our Sunday dinner, let's not forget the most important ingredient: family. We take turns sharing stories, praying together, and expressing gratitude for the blessings in our lives. It's a moment of perfect harmony, where everyone comes together to strengthen bonds and reinforce faith.

Honoring Our Veterans

As we gather around the table, it's essential that we remember those who have served our country with courage and distinction. We salute all servicemen and women, veterans, and their families, whose sacrifices have enriched our lives and made possible the freedoms we enjoy today.

A Sunday Afternoon in the Country

After dinner, we'll take a moment to appreciate the beauty of nature that surrounds us. The cool pine trees, evergreen branches, and sparkling sun will create an idyllic backdrop for a fun-filled afternoon of dancing, storytelling, and simply enjoying each other's company.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enthere's classic cars and there's classic music but folks this is the classic meal a Sunday evening meal oldfashioned style chuck roast at its best come on we'll save you a chair at the table welcome y'all so much what do you think of the new camp I'm going to tell you last time I was cooking in Southwest Oklahoma it was 104 and it's like 74 here in the cool pine tree hey but if y'all are just now catching up you ain't seen about 2 weeks ago video remember we bought us a new wagon went over and went shopping showed you the whole process and we told you it was the wagon that we were going to have on location in New Mexico cuz I'm loving me some cool air the camera don't get hot the Flies ain't swarming and it is a happy day it is but I need y'all to comment tell me what you think about our camp old glories up there they ain't even ain't even much Breeze I'm not going to say it too loud because it'll catch up with me but hey we're just so blessed God has blessed us so much to to be in this place SN ain't you even happy I mean you're not even painting what a better way to kick off our new wagon and our new camp with what an old classic a traditional Sunday dinner and it all started with a chuck roast and a lot of times them women would say we going to cook a pot roast a pot roast was any roast that would fit in the pot when I was little folks I am really loving the beef they got there at Lazy tea they got a lot of great cuts of beef they do be sure and check them out they'll ship it to you anywhere but we need to get started cuz ain't no telling when the Sunday crowd might show up so we just going to get this out of there and I'll tell you a little tip that I like to do is I like to take this roast out about one hour ahead of time let me get rid of this while snow ain't watching look over there snow there's a bear but you can see the great deal of marbling that's in this Chuck Roose this is 3 lb and 4 o as it is but there is an arm roast there is a what is that other I'm trying to think of chuck roast arm roast rump roast I mixed up on roast this is going to give you the most lean to fat that you really need in there and it's going to be really tender and we need to season it up really properly now I'm going to season this with our original back in the day when Mom and them was cooking salt and pepper was about it but they did do it quite heavily you want to make sure that you get it seasoned well and remember that tip again a long time ago you're going to get more even coverage when you're up here than when you're down here now if you're doing this at home and you ain't yet ordered you some of this original seasoning mix you up some coar ground black pepper some sea salt put a little garlic powder in there and you'll be good to go make sure you get these edges now they would take a big old cast iron skillet and they'd have it on that old burner getting it smoking hot put them a little lard or Crisco in there that' give this a light coat and a flour and they would sear it but to bring out the most flavor for this I'm going to cook this in a dutch oven before you slap it in there we got to get something on the bottom we got to have a buffer that's where this fell comes in right here and we just need to cut him straight in half my mother would do this time you lay them in the pan just like that then he's going to go right there on top you're off the heat surface there this is after it's cooking not when you sear it we got a dutch oven over that is preheating if you're going to do this in a crock pot at home I need you to go ahead about 25 minutes ago plug that thing in turn it up to high go ahead and get you a box of beef broth pour it in there cuz crock pots they take forever to heat up now you get this thing hot with the beef broth in there lay your onions in there lay them on top that way all that liquid can come around but we're going to put this one on the smoker it's going to bring about a whole different flavor and if you're doing this in a crock pot let me find you something liquid smoke this is sort of like nitroglycerin a little of this will go a long ways and I never want you to just take it and pour it on me cuz you're just going to get it covered up you take this and you dilute it down to where you got like three teaspoons and about I'd say a half a cup of water and then just brush it on both sides you'll get that Smoky flavor that comes out of of there well we've got that rough neck smoker preheated to about 250° laying her dead center in there remember this rough neck Soaker has a slide in heat deflector that's got vents so we're not directly overheat we ain't it about 250° is where we're starting and that's where I want to sort of stay cuz we just want to get a smoke bath really on this and to warm that meat up so it ain't in that Dutch oven quite so long so we're going to let this cook probably about 45 minutes but if you're doing this at home and you want to sear it remember just about 2 to 3 minutes on each side but you got to give it a little coat of seasoning a little coat of flour and when you're searing you got a little hot oil in there to go with it let me get a little cherry wood in here and we'll go for 45 minutes well been on about 50 minutes we have we reached that temperature about 110 you want to get between there and 120 uh because you can over smoke up up it's okay between 110 and 120 so it is ready to go follow me on over here at the Chuck box and we'll get it to bacon here in just a second that thing is so pretty coming off that smoker and remember them two onions I told you we done got them in here as bumpers that way that thing ain't sitting right down on hot iron we done spear does up some potatoes about 4 lbs I got two onions just chopped up roughly so when you go to pour it into beef broth I don't want you to place the meat in there first because you're washing some of that seasoning off so let's just take a whole box get her in there we going to add some wory shower down in there in the bottom too how do you say that Shen wash your sister sauce yeah and just cuz I like it I'm just going to give it a little sprinkling right here on top of this roast let me get the boat ready to go laying right there on top them onions I guarantee you that thing is going to fall apart it's going to be so good now you're sinking to your yourself is that all he's put in there is onions and ters well we're going to put some carrots in there cuz it's my favorite thing to go in there that roast but if we put them in there right now and start cooking them thing's going to shrivel up nearly be gone but it'll take these ters longer to cook than it will them carrots so we're just going to lay them around there now we're going to add some bay leaves but a comment long time ago was know how many you're putting in there and that's how many you're going to take out because they say they're not good to eat they need to be down here in some broth so we just going to stick them down here around the edges get one on every corner now we're going to season that one more time there it is right there because them potatoes ain't had nothing on them and we're going back with our original last last but not least and one of the most important players is to give that gravy the richness that we need we need some butter in there this is ready to go on the fire well you see me load up the top pretty heavy pretty heavy around the bottom also cuz this is a long cook and one thing I need to emphasize here is keep you a bunch of coals if you're doing this outside you ain't going to have time to remake them about every 15 minutes you need to go ahead get your big pile going you may have to add some to that to finish because I'll probably have to refire that twice to get it Plum done it's probably going to go a little over two hours uh I want it to just be really fork tender where that roast will nearly fall apart and if you're doing this house you preheated oven to about 375° you got it in a big old cast iron skillet or a roasting pan that you can slip in the oven it is covered you're probably going to go roughly 3 hours crockpot remember we started out on high when you put that roast in there it's a little cooler than that so leave it on high for about two more hours then you can turn it back down to low if you want like a 6-hour cook if you want to keep it on high you're probably looking at four and 1 half to five remember we got all the information you're going to need to know about these recipes on our website whether it's indoor outdoor we got you covered you know we're going to make some gravy at the end of that and if you got gravy you got to have something to do soing with sopping is some of the best things I ever done in my life either it would be with light bread or a biscuit so you got to have that gravy and there's going to be something left on the plate and you run that biscuit around there and we're going to make the whipped cream biscuits and they oh so easy they are recipes down there y'all should have watched that video by now anyway go back and check it out but we always had biscuits I can remember I think one of the best memories I have of Sunday dinner will always be at my mother's table she' slave in that kitchen get everything put together like 8:00 in the morning then she' get me Dale Randy Cindy all ready for church and my sister Cindy was in a wheelchair so we had to have somebody to help us get out each step to get in that church house but Mama made sure of two things we were always clean when we went and we were never late but we always look forward to coming home after church cuz we knew what she was going to pull out of that oven and Mama would say hope that preacher don't talk too long my roast to burn but the other thing I think that probably stood out as much as anything was going down to Ana's house she was like all them old women in my country a great cook a great person that whole family even when we got together and it was cousins and everything else and you're going to see how many people come out of this house on a Sunday dinner and that house wasn't that very big I don't know how she stacked them all in there all those folks in that generation had been through the Dust Bowl uh they might have been little but they knew what hard times were they knew what it take to survive in that country and you could count on them people every day if you need a help in hand you need somebody to help you build fence work cows pull a windmill they were there I wished our country could back up and go to those times because life was really a whole lot simpler you helped your neighbor you loved each other you knew who you could count on and you relied on it day after day and just like Sunday dinner is some of the best times in life it was them potatoes just by forking them there they're about half done and it's time to put them carrots in we just cut the ends off both of them then just take your knife scrape it down through there get that outer peeling off and if you get one that's of any size up there close to the top go ahead and split that you'll get more of an even cook time on them and I try to use a whole pound sometimes a pound and a half of carrots because they're some of my favorite things to be in here we're just going to put them there on top we still got plenty of br you want to make sure that you check that when you put them carrots in there now if you're doing this at home I'd probably say after you've had that roast cooking 35 40 minutes then go ahead and put them carrots in there after you get them carrots in there don't forget to give them a little seasoning too right now we've had to not add any coals on the top I've added some of them on the bottom but I want to check this heat it's still pretty good and things are Browning up nicely on top so I'm probably not going to add no more on there till right at the very end if I have to so I'm just going to leave them alone woo some of that goodness is jumping off that plate already we took them veggies out put them in a bowl and then we brought that chuck roast over there and laid right in the center it was a beautiful side it was and then all them drippings off that meat with that beef broth pour you a can of that pet milk in there I'm talking that evaporated milk going to make good Rich gravy it is and then we're going to add some corn starch and cold water mix that together when that gets to a pretty good simmer nearly a bowl we're going to pour it in there let it thicken just a little and it is a done deal put them green beans on the plate pour that gravy over everything you can and I know the old-timers would be proud because this is one of the meals that we got by own for so many years first I'm going to have part of my favorite which is the carrot them carrots get sweeter as they cook along with you get that onion flavor back in there but let's just start with a piece of this meat I'm just going to get it right up here in my hand now remember we smoked that that's what I'm calling done Plum through it's got a little smokering on it thank you Jesus for the Memories this creates make me do the Hallelujah gents praise the lord we are going to town woo now when we sat down at that table and everybody was gathered around my mother always told me it's not the legs of the table that hold it up it is the family that surrounds it and we would join hands all get together and we would say father God thank you for our blessings thank you for the food upon our table thank you for giving us a strength and the stamina to work Lord and I just ask you to steal in me till today courage strength and I always got Faith Lord forgive us wor he fail you and is in Christ's name we ask these things but it is with great pride honor and privilege that I TI my hat to all the servicemen and women and all the veterans that have kept that old flag of line We Salute You all rest of you get up in here quick come on I'm going to bring out the whole platter cuz this is a great big hug I'll see you down the Sunday classic dinner Trail yes it's a great day be cooking in the cool Pines and the evergreen trees going to make it so nice going to dance all day in my blue jeans W you know what spoiled that right there had to bring his bed into Camp so he could rest That's What I Call Living the hard life right there squirrel right there turnning around Sand's wanting a biscuit and we got a camp dog and security is lacking now you done went up the treethere's classic cars and there's classic music but folks this is the classic meal a Sunday evening meal oldfashioned style chuck roast at its best come on we'll save you a chair at the table welcome y'all so much what do you think of the new camp I'm going to tell you last time I was cooking in Southwest Oklahoma it was 104 and it's like 74 here in the cool pine tree hey but if y'all are just now catching up you ain't seen about 2 weeks ago video remember we bought us a new wagon went over and went shopping showed you the whole process and we told you it was the wagon that we were going to have on location in New Mexico cuz I'm loving me some cool air the camera don't get hot the Flies ain't swarming and it is a happy day it is but I need y'all to comment tell me what you think about our camp old glories up there they ain't even ain't even much Breeze I'm not going to say it too loud because it'll catch up with me but hey we're just so blessed God has blessed us so much to to be in this place SN ain't you even happy I mean you're not even painting what a better way to kick off our new wagon and our new camp with what an old classic a traditional Sunday dinner and it all started with a chuck roast and a lot of times them women would say we going to cook a pot roast a pot roast was any roast that would fit in the pot when I was little folks I am really loving the beef they got there at Lazy tea they got a lot of great cuts of beef they do be sure and check them out they'll ship it to you anywhere but we need to get started cuz ain't no telling when the Sunday crowd might show up so we just going to get this out of there and I'll tell you a little tip that I like to do is I like to take this roast out about one hour ahead of time let me get rid of this while snow ain't watching look over there snow there's a bear but you can see the great deal of marbling that's in this Chuck Roose this is 3 lb and 4 o as it is but there is an arm roast there is a what is that other I'm trying to think of chuck roast arm roast rump roast I mixed up on roast this is going to give you the most lean to fat that you really need in there and it's going to be really tender and we need to season it up really properly now I'm going to season this with our original back in the day when Mom and them was cooking salt and pepper was about it but they did do it quite heavily you want to make sure that you get it seasoned well and remember that tip again a long time ago you're going to get more even coverage when you're up here than when you're down here now if you're doing this at home and you ain't yet ordered you some of this original seasoning mix you up some coar ground black pepper some sea salt put a little garlic powder in there and you'll be good to go make sure you get these edges now they would take a big old cast iron skillet and they'd have it on that old burner getting it smoking hot put them a little lard or Crisco in there that' give this a light coat and a flour and they would sear it but to bring out the most flavor for this I'm going to cook this in a dutch oven before you slap it in there we got to get something on the bottom we got to have a buffer that's where this fell comes in right here and we just need to cut him straight in half my mother would do this time you lay them in the pan just like that then he's going to go right there on top you're off the heat surface there this is after it's cooking not when you sear it we got a dutch oven over that is preheating if you're going to do this in a crock pot at home I need you to go ahead about 25 minutes ago plug that thing in turn it up to high go ahead and get you a box of beef broth pour it in there cuz crock pots they take forever to heat up now you get this thing hot with the beef broth in there lay your onions in there lay them on top that way all that liquid can come around but we're going to put this one on the smoker it's going to bring about a whole different flavor and if you're doing this in a crock pot let me find you something liquid smoke this is sort of like nitroglycerin a little of this will go a long ways and I never want you to just take it and pour it on me cuz you're just going to get it covered up you take this and you dilute it down to where you got like three teaspoons and about I'd say a half a cup of water and then just brush it on both sides you'll get that Smoky flavor that comes out of of there well we've got that rough neck smoker preheated to about 250° laying her dead center in there remember this rough neck Soaker has a slide in heat deflector that's got vents so we're not directly overheat we ain't it about 250° is where we're starting and that's where I want to sort of stay cuz we just want to get a smoke bath really on this and to warm that meat up so it ain't in that Dutch oven quite so long so we're going to let this cook probably about 45 minutes but if you're doing this at home and you want to sear it remember just about 2 to 3 minutes on each side but you got to give it a little coat of seasoning a little coat of flour and when you're searing you got a little hot oil in there to go with it let me get a little cherry wood in here and we'll go for 45 minutes well been on about 50 minutes we have we reached that temperature about 110 you want to get between there and 120 uh because you can over smoke up up it's okay between 110 and 120 so it is ready to go follow me on over here at the Chuck box and we'll get it to bacon here in just a second that thing is so pretty coming off that smoker and remember them two onions I told you we done got them in here as bumpers that way that thing ain't sitting right down on hot iron we done spear does up some potatoes about 4 lbs I got two onions just chopped up roughly so when you go to pour it into beef broth I don't want you to place the meat in there first because you're washing some of that seasoning off so let's just take a whole box get her in there we going to add some wory shower down in there in the bottom too how do you say that Shen wash your sister sauce yeah and just cuz I like it I'm just going to give it a little sprinkling right here on top of this roast let me get the boat ready to go laying right there on top them onions I guarantee you that thing is going to fall apart it's going to be so good now you're sinking to your yourself is that all he's put in there is onions and ters well we're going to put some carrots in there cuz it's my favorite thing to go in there that roast but if we put them in there right now and start cooking them thing's going to shrivel up nearly be gone but it'll take these ters longer to cook than it will them carrots so we're just going to lay them around there now we're going to add some bay leaves but a comment long time ago was know how many you're putting in there and that's how many you're going to take out because they say they're not good to eat they need to be down here in some broth so we just going to stick them down here around the edges get one on every corner now we're going to season that one more time there it is right there because them potatoes ain't had nothing on them and we're going back with our original last last but not least and one of the most important players is to give that gravy the richness that we need we need some butter in there this is ready to go on the fire well you see me load up the top pretty heavy pretty heavy around the bottom also cuz this is a long cook and one thing I need to emphasize here is keep you a bunch of coals if you're doing this outside you ain't going to have time to remake them about every 15 minutes you need to go ahead get your big pile going you may have to add some to that to finish because I'll probably have to refire that twice to get it Plum done it's probably going to go a little over two hours uh I want it to just be really fork tender where that roast will nearly fall apart and if you're doing this house you preheated oven to about 375° you got it in a big old cast iron skillet or a roasting pan that you can slip in the oven it is covered you're probably going to go roughly 3 hours crockpot remember we started out on high when you put that roast in there it's a little cooler than that so leave it on high for about two more hours then you can turn it back down to low if you want like a 6-hour cook if you want to keep it on high you're probably looking at four and 1 half to five remember we got all the information you're going to need to know about these recipes on our website whether it's indoor outdoor we got you covered you know we're going to make some gravy at the end of that and if you got gravy you got to have something to do soing with sopping is some of the best things I ever done in my life either it would be with light bread or a biscuit so you got to have that gravy and there's going to be something left on the plate and you run that biscuit around there and we're going to make the whipped cream biscuits and they oh so easy they are recipes down there y'all should have watched that video by now anyway go back and check it out but we always had biscuits I can remember I think one of the best memories I have of Sunday dinner will always be at my mother's table she' slave in that kitchen get everything put together like 8:00 in the morning then she' get me Dale Randy Cindy all ready for church and my sister Cindy was in a wheelchair so we had to have somebody to help us get out each step to get in that church house but Mama made sure of two things we were always clean when we went and we were never late but we always look forward to coming home after church cuz we knew what she was going to pull out of that oven and Mama would say hope that preacher don't talk too long my roast to burn but the other thing I think that probably stood out as much as anything was going down to Ana's house she was like all them old women in my country a great cook a great person that whole family even when we got together and it was cousins and everything else and you're going to see how many people come out of this house on a Sunday dinner and that house wasn't that very big I don't know how she stacked them all in there all those folks in that generation had been through the Dust Bowl uh they might have been little but they knew what hard times were they knew what it take to survive in that country and you could count on them people every day if you need a help in hand you need somebody to help you build fence work cows pull a windmill they were there I wished our country could back up and go to those times because life was really a whole lot simpler you helped your neighbor you loved each other you knew who you could count on and you relied on it day after day and just like Sunday dinner is some of the best times in life it was them potatoes just by forking them there they're about half done and it's time to put them carrots in we just cut the ends off both of them then just take your knife scrape it down through there get that outer peeling off and if you get one that's of any size up there close to the top go ahead and split that you'll get more of an even cook time on them and I try to use a whole pound sometimes a pound and a half of carrots because they're some of my favorite things to be in here we're just going to put them there on top we still got plenty of br you want to make sure that you check that when you put them carrots in there now if you're doing this at home I'd probably say after you've had that roast cooking 35 40 minutes then go ahead and put them carrots in there after you get them carrots in there don't forget to give them a little seasoning too right now we've had to not add any coals on the top I've added some of them on the bottom but I want to check this heat it's still pretty good and things are Browning up nicely on top so I'm probably not going to add no more on there till right at the very end if I have to so I'm just going to leave them alone woo some of that goodness is jumping off that plate already we took them veggies out put them in a bowl and then we brought that chuck roast over there and laid right in the center it was a beautiful side it was and then all them drippings off that meat with that beef broth pour you a can of that pet milk in there I'm talking that evaporated milk going to make good Rich gravy it is and then we're going to add some corn starch and cold water mix that together when that gets to a pretty good simmer nearly a bowl we're going to pour it in there let it thicken just a little and it is a done deal put them green beans on the plate pour that gravy over everything you can and I know the old-timers would be proud because this is one of the meals that we got by own for so many years first I'm going to have part of my favorite which is the carrot them carrots get sweeter as they cook along with you get that onion flavor back in there but let's just start with a piece of this meat I'm just going to get it right up here in my hand now remember we smoked that that's what I'm calling done Plum through it's got a little smokering on it thank you Jesus for the Memories this creates make me do the Hallelujah gents praise the lord we are going to town woo now when we sat down at that table and everybody was gathered around my mother always told me it's not the legs of the table that hold it up it is the family that surrounds it and we would join hands all get together and we would say father God thank you for our blessings thank you for the food upon our table thank you for giving us a strength and the stamina to work Lord and I just ask you to steal in me till today courage strength and I always got Faith Lord forgive us wor he fail you and is in Christ's name we ask these things but it is with great pride honor and privilege that I TI my hat to all the servicemen and women and all the veterans that have kept that old flag of line We Salute You all rest of you get up in here quick come on I'm going to bring out the whole platter cuz this is a great big hug I'll see you down the Sunday classic dinner Trail yes it's a great day be cooking in the cool Pines and the evergreen trees going to make it so nice going to dance all day in my blue jeans W you know what spoiled that right there had to bring his bed into Camp so he could rest That's What I Call Living the hard life right there squirrel right there turnning around Sand's wanting a biscuit and we got a camp dog and security is lacking now you done went up the tree\n"