First attempt at roasting beef

stressedoutmumof1

I am hoping you lot can help me out with roast beef - something I have never been able to cook properly

Everytime I cook it it comes out really chewy, the last time I tried I put the joint in a roasting tin - sat it on balls of scrunched up foil - but some water in the bottom and covered it in foil - thinking it would come out melt in your mouth like - it didn't :mad:

Where am I going wrong I have a 2kg joint of beef and want to be able to cook it really well - help!!!!

arkonite_babe

This is how I do my roast:

Seal the roast in a dry frying pan, this helps retain juices before roasting.
Set in roasting tin on some roughly chopped carrot and onion.
Roast at 180 - 200 oc for 20 mins per pound plus an extra 20 minutes if you dopn't want the meat rare.

So a 2kg roast I would cook for 1hr 40 minutes, this leaves the meat nice and pink just in the middle. (If you want it well done add an extra 20 mins)

Next is the important bit, you must leave the meat to rest for at least 20 mins before carving, this allows the juices to seep back into the meat keeping it moist and tender.Degalze the roasting tin with some stock, water or red wine to make fab gravy.

Serve with all the trimmings, enjoy

stressedoutmumof1

Do you cover the beef in foil - or do you let it face the elements alone?

arkonite_babe

I usually cover it with foil for a while then take it off, I just judge this as time goes on. I think if you left the foil off it would dry the meat out too much.

HTH

stu3105

What cut of meat is it?
Certain cuts don't roast well.and tend to be tough

arkonite_babe

Anopther useful piece of equipment for any meat etc is a food thermometer. I bought one for £3 in a local shop and I wouldn't be without it now. If you are unsure about judging cooking times as I've described above then this is essential for you. It's a great tool when you are re-heating food too, helps make sure your food is safe

Ebay is usually good for them too

arkonite_babe

stu3105 wrote:

What cut of meat is it?
Certain cuts don't roast well.and tend to be tough

Using my method, I've not had a tough roast in ages, but it does have to be a good piece of meat. I won't buy supermarket meat any more, too pink. Local butchers is best and the darker the meat, the better it's going to be.

stressedoutmumof1

It's from Sainsburys - it just says beef roasting joint

Spendless

I was just going to question where you were buying it from.Sometimes if we have bought from a different butchers stall, we can tell the difference in the meat.

stu3105

In my opinion I find the best beef to roast is a rib roast either with or without the bone.
Most supermarkets will label them as a roasting joint but if there is no fat marbling through the joint I would pot roast it with onions, carrots and some herbs,use either beef stock or a light ale like Mackesons,stick it in the oven on a low heat for approx 3hours.
I promise it will taste like beef and will melt in the mouth. !!!!!!!!

As a little add on i find this a failsafe recipe for yorkshire puddings.

4 eggs
4oz plain flour
4floz milk
salt to taste
pour the mix into pudding tray that has oil which is smoking hot
cook at 220 for 15 mins,then 180 for 15 mins.
Ye cannae beat it!!!!!!!!!
good luck

Debt_Free_Chick

stressedoutmumof1 wrote:

It's from Sainsburys - it just says beef roasting joint

hhmmmmm ..... difficult to advise without knowing the precise cut of meat. Different cuts contain different types of muscle and differing amounts of connective tissue & fat - so some cuts are far more suitable for roasting than others.

I think if you want to be absolutely certain of tender beef, you'll need to slow roast it.

It makes my blood boil when the supermarkets don't label the joint with the cut of meat. You don't actually know if they've sold you a roasting joint or not. And even if it's labelled, it might not be suitable. I've seen supermarkets sell Silverside as a "roasting" joint. Well, you can roast it - but you need to do so for hours, add fat and baste numerous times :mad:

Resting all joints of meat will help to retain some juices, but it won't make a tough cut of meat like silverside or topside tender - it will only stop it being "more dry"

I'd go for the safe bet and slow roast it - but it won't, of course, be rare